Integrated group technology, cell formation, process planning, and production planning with application to the emergency room

In this paper an integrated approach for the formation of parts and machine families in group technology is developed. The integrated approach is used to solve cell formation, process planning, and production planning simultaneously. The given information is part processing sequence, part production volume, part alternative processing plans, and part processing times. The approach is used to determine the machine-part cells and part processing plans, while the total intercell part flow is minimized. Also, the convergence of the algorithm is investigated. The approach goes across and beyond the group technology methods by considering sequencing, production planning, process planning, and part-machine cellular information simultaneously. Two methods are investigated: exact (optimal) and heuristic. The approach first solves an integer programming problem to find processing plans and then uses a procedure to form the machine-part cells. The proposed approach solves the problem iteratively until a set of plans for machine-part cell formations is obtained with minimal intercell part flow or interflow cost. An example is presented to explain the developed approach. Experimental results are also provided. An extension of the approach for solving the operations planning of an emergency room is also covered. In this extension of the approach, the application of cell formation provides a solution to efficiently managing patients and utilizing resources. By grouping patients by their needed medical procedures, time and resource efficiency is accomplished. An application to ER of University Hospitals of Case Western Reserve University is given.