UK-RF Closed Nuclear Cities Partnership

FACTORY LAYOUT PRINCIPLES

Mark Allington, December !!" INTRODUCTION #his note is intended to pro$ide guidance on la%ing out machines in a &actor%, based upon decisions about the t%pe o& manu&acturing process to be accommodated' (a%ing out a &actor% in$ol$es deciding )here to put all the &acilities, machines, e*uipment and sta&& in the manu&acturing operation' (a%out determines the )a% in )hich materials and other inputs +like people and in&ormation, &lo) through the operation' Relati$el% small changes in the position o& a machine in a &actor% can a&&ect the &lo) o& materials considerabl%' #his in turn can a&&ect the costs and e&&ecti$eness o& the o$erall manu&acturing operation' -etting it )rong can lead to ine&&icienc%, in&le.ibilit%, large $olumes o& in$entor% and )ork in progress, high costs and unhapp% customers' Changing a la%out can be e.pensi$e and di&&icult, so it is best to get it right &irst time' #he &irst decision is to determine the t%pe o& manu&acturing operation that must be accommodated' #his depends on product $olume and $ariet%' At one e.treme, the &actor% )ill produce a )ide $ariet% o& bespoke products in small $olumes, each o& )hich is di&&erent +this is called a /0obbing1 operation,' At the other e.treme it )ill produce a continuous stream o& identical products in large $olumes' 2et)een the e.tremes, the &actor% might produce $arious si3ed batches o& a range o& di&&erent products' BASIC LAYOUT TYPES 4nce the t%pe o& operation has been selected +0obbing, batch or continuous, the basic la%out t%pe needs to be selected' #here are three basic t%pes5

Process la%out Cell la%out Product la%out

6obbing operations +high $ariet%7lo) $olume, tend to adopt a process la%out' 2atch operations +medium $ariet% and $olume, adopt either a cell or process la%out' Continuous operations +lo) $ariet%7high $olume, adopt a product la%out' 1. Process layout 8n process la%out, similar manu&acturing processes +cutting, drilling, )iring, etc', are located together to impro$e utilisation' Di&&erent products ma% re*uire di&&erent processes so material &lo) patterns can be comple.' An e.ample is machining parts &or aircra&t engines' 9ome processes +such as heat treatment, need specialist support +e'g' &ume e.traction,, )hile other processes +e'g' machining centres, need technical support &rom machine setters7operators' 9o the &actor% )ill be arranged )ith heat treatment together in one location and machining centres in another' Di&&erent products )ill &ollo) di&&erent routes around the &actor%' 2. Cell layout 8n cell la%out, the materials and in&ormation entering the operation are pre-selected to mo$e to one part o& the operation +or cell, in )hich all the machines to process these resources are located' A&ter being processed in the cell, the part-&inished products
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ma% go on to another cell' 8n e&&ect the cell la%out brings some order to the comple.it% o& &lo) that characterises process la%out' An e.ample is specialist computer component manu&acture' #he processing and assembl% o& some t%pes o& computer components ma% need a dedicated cell &or manu&acturing parts to the *ualit% re*uirements o& a particular customer' 3. Product layout Product la%out in$ol$es locating the machines and e*uipment so that each product &ollo)s a pre-arranged route through a series o& processes' #he products &lo) along a line o& processes, )hich is clear, predictable and relati$el% eas% to control' An e.ample is automobile assembl%, )here almost all $ariants o& the same model re*uire the same se*uence o& processes' Another is paper making' Although di&&erent t%pes o& paper can be manu&actured, all t%pes ha$e the same processing re*uirements' First the )ood chips are combined )ith chemicals, )ater and steam in the /cooking1 process to &orm pulp' #he pulp is then put together through a cleaning process be&ore being re&ined to help the &ibres lock together' #he mi.ing process combines the re&ined pulp )ith more )ater, &illers, chemicals and d%es, a&ter )hich it is spread on a &ine &le.ible )ire or plastic mesh' #his is shaken &rom side to side as it mo$es along to lock the &ibres into the sheet o& paper and to drain a)a% the )ater' #he press rollers s*uee3e more )ater out o& the paper and press the &ibres closer together' #he dr%ing process continues to reduce the )ater content in the paper be&ore &inall% it is )ound onto large reels' 8t makes sense then to locate these processes in the order that the% are re*uired +cooking, then cleaning, then mi.ing, spreading, shaking, s*uee3ing, dr%ing and )inding, and to let materials &lo) through them in a predictable manner' SELECTING A LAYOUT TYPE #able : sho)s some o& the more signi&icant ad$antages and disad$antages o& each la%out t%pe' 4ne signi&icant di&&erence is their association )ith fixed and variable costs' Process la%outs tend to ha$e relati$el% lo) &i.ed costs but high $ariable costs, as each product is di&&erent' 2% contrast, product la%outs ha$e high &i.ed costs to set up the manu&acturing lines, then lo) $ariable costs &or producing large $olumes o& the same product' <ence i& $olume is high and $ariabilit% lo), product la%out is likel% to be the best option' #able :5 Ad$antages and disad$antages o& di&&erent la%out t%pes (a%out Process Ad$antages <igh mi. and product &le.ibilit% Robust against disruptions =as% to super$ise e*uipment -ood compromise bet)een cost and &le.ibilit% &or high$ariet% operations Fast throughput (o) unit costs &or high $olume =*uipment can be specialised, impro$ing e&&icienc% Materials mo$ement optimised Disad$antages (o) utilisation o& machines Can ha$e high )ork-in-progress Comple. &lo) can be di&&icult to control More machines needed Can gi$e lo)er plant utilisation (o) &le.ibilit% Not $er% robust to disruptions

Cell

Product

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DETAILED DESIGN OF THE LAYOUT 4nce the basic la%out t%pe has been decided, the ne.t step is to decide on the detailed design o& the la%out to determine5

#he e.act location o& all &acilities, plant, e*uipment and sta&& that constitute the /)ork centres1 o& the operation' #he space to be de$oted to each )ork centre' #he tasks that )ill be undertaken b% each )ork centre'

General objective #he general ob0ecti$es o& detailed design o& &actor% la%outs are5

Inherent safety. Dangerous processes should not be accessible )ithout authorisation' Fire e.its should be clearl% marked )ith uninhibited access' Path)a%s should be clearl% de&ined and not cluttered' Length of flow' #he &lo) o& materials and in&ormation should be channelled b% the la%out to &it best the ob0ecti$es o& the operation' #his generall% means minimising the distance tra$elled b% materials' Clarity of flow. All &lo) o& materials should be clearl% signposted, &or e.ample using clearl% marked routes' Staff comfort' #he la%out should pro$ide &or a )ell $entilated, )ell lit and, )here possible, pleasant )orking en$ironment' Management coordination. 9uper$ision and communication should be assisted b% the location o& sta&& and communication e*uipment' Accessibility. All machines, plant and e*uipment should be easil% accessible &or cleaning and maintenance' Use of space' All la%outs should make best use o& the total space a$ailable +including height as )ell as &loor space,' #his usuall% means minimising the space &or a particular process' Long-term flexibility. (a%outs need to be changed periodicall%' Future needs +such as e.pansion, should be taken into account )hen designing the la%out'

Detaile! !e i"n in PROCESS la#o$t #he detailed design o& process la%outs is comple., because o& the comple. )ork&lo) patterns that are associated )ith this la%out to ensure a $er% )ide $ariet% o& products can be made' 4ptimal solutions are di&&icult to achie$e and most process la%outs are designed through intuition, common sense and s%stematic trial and error' #o design a process la%out, the designer needs to kno)5 #he area re*uired b% each )ork centre' #he constraints on the shape o& the area allocated &or each )ork centre' #he degree and direction o& &lo) bet)een each )ork centre +&or e.ample number o& 0ourne%s, number o& loads, cost o& &lo) per distance tra$elled,' #he desirabilit% o& )ork centres being close together' #he degree and direction o& &lo) are usuall% sho)n on a &lo) record chart, like that in Figure :+a,, )hich records in this case the number o& loads per da% transported bet)een )ork centres' 8& the direction o& &lo) bet)een )ork centres makes little di&&erence to the la%out, then the in&ormation can be collapsed as sho)n in Figure :+b,'
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8n some operations, the cost o& mo$ing materials bet)een di&&erent )ork centres $aries considerabl%' For e.ample in Figure :+c, the unit cost o& mo$ing a load bet)een the &i$e )ork centres is sho)n' #he unit cost o& mo$ing loads &rom )ork centre 2 is slightl% higher than &rom most other centres, perhaps because products need care&ul handling bet)een these operations' Combining the unit cost and &lo) data gi$es the cost per distance tra$elled data sho)n in Figure :+d,' Minimising the distance bet)een 2 and C and bet)een 2 and = )ould reduce the o$erall costs o& production )ith this process la%out' +a, (oads7da% From7#o A 2 C D = A :> >! :! 8& direction is not important, collapses to 2 :? :! :! C ! :! D >! :! From7#o A 2 C D = 8& cost o& &lo) di&&ers bet)een )ork centres, combine )ith +c, Unit cost7distance tra$elled From7#o A 2 C D = A > :! :! 2 C > :! #o gi$e D > = > :! From7#o A 2 C D = A >A ! >!! ! A 2 ?> ! C @! ! ! D >"! = ;! @! :"! > ! 2 >; C "! D "! = ! "! :;! >!! +d, Dail% cost7distance tra$elled A 2 >! C >! D "! = ! >! @! ;! = :! ! ?! >! +b, (oads7da%

collapses to
From7#o A 2 C D =

+e, Dail% cost7distance tra$elled

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Figure :5 Collecting in&ormation in process la%out #he general approach to determining the location o& )ork centres in a process la%out is as &ollo)s5 :' Collect in&ormation relating to the )ork centres and &lo) bet)een them' ' Dra) up a schematic la%out sho)ing the )ork centres and the &lo) bet)een them, putting the )ork centres )ith the greatest &lo) closest to each other' >' Ad0ust the schematic la%out to take into account the constraints o& the area into )hich the la%out must &it' ;' Dra) the la%out sho)ing the actual )ork centre areas and distances that materials must tra$el' Calculate the e&&ecti$eness measure o& the la%out either as total distance tra$elled or as the cost o& mo$ement' B' Check to see i& e.changing an% t)o )ork centres )ill reduce the total distance tra$elled or the cost o& mo$ement' 8& so, make the e.change and return to step ;' 8& not, make this the &inal la%out' Figure sho)s a schematic la%out &or the operation described in Figure :' #he thickest lines represent the highest dail% cost o& mo$ement'

D
> ! ;!

> !

E
@!

:"!

A
?>

C
@!

Figure

Preliminar% schematic la%out

Figure > sho)s this schematic ad0usted to &it the building geometr%'

> !

D
;! > !

E
@!

:"!

C
@!

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Figure > Ad0usted schematic la%out

#he e&&ecti$eness o& di&&erent la%outs is calculated as

C Fi0 Di0 Ci0

Dhere5 Fi0 is the &lo) in loads bet)een )ork centre i and )ork centre 0

Di0 is the distance bet)een )ork centre i and )ork centre 0 Ci0 is cost per distance tra$elled bet)een )ork centre i and )ork centre 0
For the la%out schematic sho)n in Figure >, the cost e&&ecti$eness is E:!?>7da% and it is clear that these costs can be minimised b% situating A and = as close to D as is practicable' From this schematic, the actual plant la%out can be dra)n, taking into account the space needed &or each process and an% storage space needed &or in$entor%'
Detaile! !e i"n in CELL la#o$t Cells are a compromise bet)een the &le.ibilit% o& process la%out and the simplicit% o& product la%out +co$ered ne.t,' #he% are best used )hen a predictable $ariet% o& products ha$e to be produced' #he detailed design in$ol$es deciding the e.tent and nature o& the cells to be used and )hich resources to allocate to )hich cells' #he e.tent and nature o& cells depends primaril% on the processing resources to be located in each cell' A cell might include &or e.ample t)o machines that are &re*uentl% needed to per&orm a gi$en trans&ormation +like a milling machine and a drill, &or &acing and drilling metal blocks,F alternati$el% a cell might pro$ide all specialist e*uipment and ser$ices needed to per&orm specialised heat treatment' #he detailed design o& cell la%outs is di&&icult, because cells are a compromise bet)een process and product la%out' 8n process la%out, the &ocus is on the location o& $arious processes in the &actor%' Dith product la%out, the &ocus is on the re*uirements o& the product' Cell la%out must consider both' 4ne method is to &ind )hich processes naturall% group together' #his in$ol$es e.amining each process and asking )hich other processes might also be needed &or a t%pical product' For e.ample, )hen making &urniture, i& all parts that need holes drilling in them also need those holes to be countersunk, then it makes sense to locate drilling and countersinking machines in the same cell' Another method is to design the cells around product &amilies' #he &amilies indicate the characteristics o& similar products, such as si3e, shape and material that determine their processing re*uirements' Cells can then be designed to co-locate the necessar% processes &or di&&erent product &amilies' A popular method o& allocating tasks and machines to cells is prod ction flow analysis, )hich e.amines both product re*uirements and process grouping simultaneousl%' 8n Figure ;+a, a manu&acturing operation has grouped the products it makes into eight product &amilies G &or e.ample, the products in &amil% : re*uire machines and B' 8n this state the matri. does not e.hibit an% natural groupings' <o)e$er, i& the order o& the ro)s and columns is changed to mo$e the crosses as close as possible to the diagonal o& the matri. that goes &rom top le&t to bottom right, then a clearer pattern emerges +Figure ;+b,,' #his sho)s that the machines could be

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con$enientl% grouped together in three cells, identi&ied as cells A, 2 and C, )ith each cell co$ering a distinct group o& product &amilies' #his anal%sis rarel% results in a totall% clean di$ision bet)een cells' 8n this case, product &amil% @ +allocated to cell A, needs processing b% machine >, )hich has been allocated to cell 2' #here are three )a%s o& dealing )ith this5

Purchase another machine the same as machine > and put it in cell A' #his sol$es the problem but re*uires in$esting capital in a ne) machine that might be under utilised' 9end products in &amil% @ to cell 2 a&ter the% ha$e been processed in cell A' #his a$oids the need to purchase another machine but it results in more comple. materials &lo)' 8& there are se$eral product &amilies that ha$e this problem, de$ise a special cell &or them including all necessar% machines to tackle their processing needs' #his in$ol$es e.tra capital e.penditure, but remo$es the /problem1 product &amilies &rom the rest o& the operation, lea$ing it )ith a more predictable and ordered &lo)'

+a, 2asic product &amil% and machine data Machines : : H > ; B " ? @ H H H H H H H H H H H H H H H > Product &amilies ; B " H ? H H H @ H

+b, Machines and product &amilies reorganised into cells Machines > H H " H H @ H H H H Product &amilies B Cell A H H H H Cell C Cell 2 H H H H H H H H ; : ?

; : " > @ B ?

Figure ; Using production &lo) anal%sis to allocate machines to cells Detaile! !e i"n in PRODUCT la#o$t Product la%out in$ol$es arranging the $arious manu&acturing processes to &it the se*uence re*uired b% the product' Detailed design in$ol$es allocating )ork tasks to locations' #he decisions to be made are5
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Dhat c%cle time is neededI <o) man% processing stages are neededI <o) should $ariation in time taken &or di&&erent tasks be dealt )ithI <o) should the la%out be balancedI <o) should the stages be arrangedI

Cycle time #he c%cle time o& a product la%out is the time bet)een completed products emerging &rom the operation' C%cle time is a $ital &actor in the design o& product la%outs and in&luences most other detailed design decisions' 8t is calculated b% considering the likel% demand &or the products o$er a period and the amount o& production time a$ailable in that period' For e.ample, suppose a &actor% is to process )ooden doors' #he number o& doors to be processed is :"! per )eek and the time a$ailable to process the doors is ;! hours per )eek' C%cle time &or the la%out J time a$ailable 7 number to be processed 8n this case, c%cle time J ;!7:"! J K hour J :B minutes' #here&ore the &actor% la%out must be capable o& processing one completed )ooden door e$er% &i&teen minutes' Number of stages #he ne.t decision concerns the number o& processing stages, )here a processing stage is a distinct period o& time to carr% out part o& the door manu&acture' #he number o& such stages can be an%thing bet)een one and se$eral hundred, depending on the c%cle time re*uired and the *uantit% o& )ork in$ol$ed in making the product' #he latter *uantit% is called the /total wor! content" o& the product' #he larger the total )ork content and the smaller the re*uired c%cle time, the more stages )ill be necessar%' For e.ample, suppose the &actor% calculated that the a$erage )ork content to manu&acture a )ooden door is "! minutes' #he number o& stages needed to process a )ooden door e$er% :B minutes is then calculated as &ollo)s5 Number o& stages J total )ork content 7 re*uired c%cle time 8n this case, number o& stages J "!7:B J ; stages' 8& this number had not been a )hole number, then it )ould ha$e been necessar% to round up to the ne.t largest )hole number, since it is di&&icult +but not impossible, to hire &ractions o& people to sta&& the stages' Task-time variation At the moment )e can imagine a line o& &our stages, each contributing a *uarter o& the total )ork content in processing the door' 8n practice o& course, the &lo) )ould not be so regular' =ach stage might on a$erage take :B minutes, but this time )ould $ar% &or each door processed because5

Products being processed along the line might be a little di&&erent, &or e.ample di&&erent models o& the same basic door' Products might re*uire slightl% di&&erent treatment, &or e.ample it ma% take longer to plane the sur&ace o& one door than another because o& the *ualit% o& the )ood' #here are usuall% slight $ariations in the ph%sical coordination and e&&ort o& the person, or the per&ormance o& the machine undertaking the task'
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#his $ariation can make the &lo) o& )ork along the line irregular, )hich in turn can lead to )ork-in-progress *ueues at the stages and lost processing time' #his reduces e&&icienc% and ma% re*uire additional resources +such as more sta&& time or more storage space, at additional cost to compensate &or this $ariation' Balancing work time allocation #he most problematic, detailed design decision in product la%out is ensuring the e*ual allocation o& tasks to each stage in the line' #his is called line balancing' 8n the door-processing e.ample, )e ha$e assumed that :B minutes o& )ork content has been allocated e*uall% to the &our stations' #his is nearl% al)a%s impossible to achie$e in practice and some imbalance in the )ork allocation bet)een stages )ill ine$itabl% result' #his )ill increase the e&&ecti$e c%cle time o& the line' #he e&&ecti$eness o& line balancing is measured b% balancing loss' #his is the time )asted through the une*ual allocation o& )ork as a percentage o& the total time in$ested in processing the product' 8n Figure B, the )ork allocations in a &our-stage line are illustrated' #he total amount o& time in$ested in producing each product is &our times the c%cle time' Dhen the )ork is e*uall% allocated bet)een the stages the total time in$ested in each product is ; . :B minutes J "! minutes' <o)e$er )hen )ork is une*uall% allocated as illustrated, the time in$ested is ! . ; J @! minutes' <ence ! minutes + BL, o& the total is )asted'
25

20

An ideal balance )here )ork is allocated e*uall% bet)een stages

C%cle time J :B minutes

15

10

0 1 2 S ta ge 3 4

B ! :B :! B ! :
St a ge

C%cle time J ! minutes

8& )ork is not e*uall% allocated, c%cle time increases and balancing losses occur
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Figure B 2alancing loss Balancing tec ni!ues #here are a number o& techni*ues to help )ith line balancing' Most common is the precedence diagram' =ach element o& the total )ork content is represented b% a circle' #he circles are connected b% arro)s that sho) the ordering o& the elements' #)o rules appl% )hen building the diagram5

#he circles that represent the elements are dra)n as &ar to the le&t as possible' None o& the arro)s should be $ertical'

#he general approach to balancing elements is to allocate elements to the &irst stage, starting &rom the le&t, in order o& the columns until the )ork allocated to the stage is as close to, but less than, the c%cle time' Dhen that stage is as &ull o& )ork as possible, mo$e on to the ne.t stage and so on until all )ork elements are allocated' Dhen more than one element could be chosen, select elements using these rules5

Choose the largest that )ill &it into the time remaining in the stage' Choose the element )ith the most /&ollo)ers15 that is the one )ith the highest number o& subse*uent elements that can onl% be allocated a&ter that element has been allocated'

#xample$ Ca!e factory De-tin and trim Decorate, green icing F A !': minutes !'!B minutes A cake &actor% has been contracted to suppl% a supermarket chain )ith a specialit% cake' #he re*uired $olumes )arrant a special production line to per&orm the &inishing, decorating and packing o& the cake' #he elements and the precedence diagram &or the 0ob are sho)n Figure "' Reshape )ith in o&&Decorate, blue icing G B cuts !'>! minutes !':! minutes

C D E

Clad in almond &ondant !'>" minutes

H I

A&&i. trans&ers !'!@ minutes

Clad in )hite &ondant !' B minutes

#rans&er to base and pack !' B minutes #otal )ork content J :'"@ minutes

Decorate, red icing !':? minutes

!':? mins

E
!':! mins !' B mins

A
!': mins

B
!'>! mins

C
!'>" mins

D
!' B mins

F
!'!B mins

G H
!'!@ mins

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Figure "5 =lement listing and precedence diagram &or specialit% cake production #he initial order &rom the supermarket is &or B,!!! cakes a )eek and the number o& hours )orked b% the &actor% is ;! per )eek' From this )e can calculate5 Re*uired c%cle time J ;! hours . "! minutes 7 B!!! J !';@ minutes Re*uired number o& stages J :'"@ mins +total )ork content, 7 !';@ mins J >'B stages 8n practice this means that &our stages )ill be needed' Dorking &rom the le&t on the precedence diagram, elements A and 2 can be allocated to stage : +since the% total !'; minutes, )hich is lo)er than the c%cle time o& !';@ minutes,' Allocating element C to stage : )ould e.ceed the c%cle time, so it is allocated to stage ' 8n &act onl% element C can be allocated to stage , because including element D )ould again e.ceed the c%cle time' =lement D is there&ore allocated to stage >' =ither element = or element F can also be allocated to stage >, but not both' Follo)ing the /largest element1 rule, element = is chosen' #he remaining elements are allocated to stage ;' Figure ? sho)s the &inal allocation and the balancing loss o& the line'

9tage :

9tage

9tage > !':? mins

9tage ;

E
!':! mins !' B mins

A
!': mins

B
!'>! mins

C
!'>" mins

D
!' B mins

F
!'!B mins

G H
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!'" !'B !'; !'; !'> !' !': ! : > ; !'>" !'; C%cle time J !';@ minutes !';@

8dle time e$er% c%cle J +!';@ G !'; , M +!';@ G !'>", M +!';@ G !'; , J !' ; minutes Proportion o& idle time per c%cle J !' ; 7 +; . !';@, J : 'BL Figure ?5 Allocation o& elements to stages and balancing loss &or specialit% cake "rranging t e stages All the stages do not ha$e to be laid out in a se*uential /single line1' 9ome elements can usuall% be arranged in parallel' For e.ample )ith the )ooden door e.ample, &our stages must )ork on the task to achie$e a c%cle time o& one door e$er% :B minutes' 2ut these stages can be arranged in one line o& &our, :B-minute se*uence steps, or in t)o parallel lines each o& t)o, >!-minute stages, or in &our parallel lines o& single, "!minute stages' #his leads to a decision on )hether the la%out should be arranged as a single, /long-thin1 line, as se$eral, /short-&at1 parallel lines, or some)here in bet)een +note that /long1 means the number o& stages in the line, )hile /&at1 means the amount o& )ork allocated to each stage,' #he ad$antages o& each e.treme are as &ollo)s' Ad$antages o& the long-thin arrangement

Controlled flow of materials' Simple materials handling, especiall% i& products are hea$% or large' Lower capital re% irements, because &e)er machines )ill be needed' More efficient operation, since each person and machine )ill ha$e high utilisation on producti$e )ork'

Ad$antages o& the short-&at arrangement

&igher mix flexibility' 8& se$eral t%pes o& product must be produced, each stage or line could specialise in di&&erent t%pes' &igher vol me flexibility' As $olume $aries, stages can be closed do)n or started up as re*uired, )hereas long-thin lines )ould need rebalancing e$er% time the c%cle time changes' &igher rob stness' 8& one stage breaks do)n, parallel stages are una&&ected, )hereas a long-thin line )ould stop operating completel%' Less monotono s wor!, because tasks are repeated less o&ten'

T e s a#e of t e line

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UK-RF Closed Nuclear Cities Partnership

8& the line has some se*uential &lo) bet)een stages, the designer must also decide on the shape o& the line' 8n 6apanese &actories, cur$ed lines are commonl% used, in 1U1 shapes &or shorter lines or /serpentine1 shapes &or longer lines +Figure @,' Ad$antages are5 Staffing flexibility and balance' #he U-shape enables one person to tend se$eral )orkstations G ad0acent or across the U G )ithout much )alking' #his opens up options &or balancing )ork among operators5 )hen demand gro)s, more labour can be added until each station has an operator' 'ewor!' Dhen the line bends around itsel&, it is eas% to return bad )ork to an earlier station &or re)ork )ithout disruption or the need to tra$el &ar' &andling. From a centre position in the U, a handler +human or $ehicle, can deli$er materials con$enientl%' (assage. (ong straight lines make crossing the line di&&icult' #his can hinder the rest o& the operation' Cur$ed lines reduce this problem' )eamwor!. A semicircular arrangement brings team members into contact )ith each other more easil%'

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UK-RF Closed Nuclear Cities Partnership

9tage arrangement can be linear, but has di&&icult% in coping )ith $ariation in processing times

U-shaped and serpentine arrangements are better because sta&& can help each other i& one stage is o$erloaded

Figure @5 Arrangement o& stages

Biblio"ra%&#
Apple 6 M +:A??, (lant layo t and materials handling, 6ohn Dile% 9lack N et al +:AA@, *perations Management, Prentice <all Du, 2 +:AA;, Man fact ring facilities + location planning and design, PD9-Kent

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