VULNERABILITY OF PRODUCTION SYSTEMS WITH MULTISUPPLIER NETWORK - A CASE-STUDY

Despite management capability and innovative production techniques, un certainty and variability that affect production systems cannot be com pletely controlled or eliminated. Thus, it is important to evaluate th e intrinsic system characteristics that are susceptible to the negativ e impact of unexpected or unavoidable disruptions on system performanc e. In this paper, we apply the concept of vulnerability to production systems in order to provide some insight into the effect of uncertaint y and variability on system performance. In particular, a model of a p roduction system with a multi-supply network that is subject to proces s uncertainty and product mix variability is used to analyse the effec ts of system vulnerability. A case study is used to demonstrate the ef fects of specific characteristics of a real production system that can render the system vulnerable. The approach demonstrates the difficult y of improving performance without appropriate changes in the product/ process design and/or in operations management.