Import and Overall Flow – Manufacturing

This model object shows how to model a job shop type of system, where entities can flow to any location in any order according to planned routings. The entity carries the routing sequence and production times at the associated locations. The model object only contains five machines but quickly expands to any number of machines and handles unlimited diversity of routings. It provides a method to import the flow from historical information. It shows how to pull data from attributes to feed the routing and timing of the model.

This concept for building allows complex model creation and testing in record time. Our users report 2-day model builds for complicated systems. This method uses a direct import of historical data. This is a superior method for developing a model to answer the questions such as:

1. What is the production time to complete a schedule if I change or add equipment?
2. How would production time differ if I changed staffing?
3. What if I could change set-up times, load or unload times?

This method works because you have historical production schedules, routings showing all locations visited, and production times per part. You also need production results that allows you to verify the as-is model. Changes allow you to see the reduction in production time.

This modeling method is unsuitable for changing the arrival pattern or volume because of direct imports of data and quantity.

Where to Find the Model Object

The following model object will be used to create an import and overall flow to import data into ProcessModel:

• Arrivals \ Import and Overall Flow – Manufacturing

Difficulty Level

• Ease of Use: Moderate
• Ease of Modification: Moderate

How to Use the Model Object

1. Open Your Model: Open your model or create a new blank model.
2. Insert the Model Object into Your Model: Locate the appropriate location in your model where you would like to place the model object, move the view to the location and then insert the model object.
3. Add or Change Locations:
   1. Add and/or change locations. Locations must start with an alpha character. Keep the names short. You should have short names in your database.If you do not wish to add or remove any default locations, skip to step 4.0.
   2. Create routes from the Director activity to any new activity. Duplicate the methods used in the existing red routes.
   3. Create a route from each activity to the black box activity. Duplicate the methods used in the existing blue routes.
   4. Review and update the action logic at the Director activity. The Director is set up to handle up to 15 locations. If your scenario has more than 15 locations, simply copy/paste the logic to add more locations.
      Ensure that the appropriate attributes, a_Loc#, and a_Time#, are defined through the Define Attributes, Variables & Scenarios window.
   5. Review the instructions in the action logic at activity Press and enhance the action logic on all activities to account for the new activities added.
   6. To remove a location activity, follow the instructions from step 3.1 onwards and, delete routes, reduce/update action logic appropriately.
4. Open the Excel File: Right-click on the Scheduled ArrivalsInput Sheet Excel icon and click on the third option from the bottom to open the Scheduled ArrivalsInput vx-x Excel file, where x-x represents the version number of the Excel file.
   Before using this Excel file for the first time, or after changing your model name, ensure that a manual data export is done via ProcessModel. From your model, click Tools \ Export Data, click ‘Yes’ to all prompts until the data export file opens, close the data file, and then use this Excel file.Click Enable Content if prompted.
5. Setup the Excel File: Once the Scheduled ArrivalsInput vx-x Excel file opens, click 1. Setup button. This will instruct the Excel file to ping ProcessModel, fetch the names of all entities with a Scheduled route from the active model, and create new tabs for each entity.
   If you have multiple entities with a Scheduled route and only want to update one or more of the entity’s schedules you can delete the tabs of other entities. Make sure that you keep the tab with the buttons, change the name of the tab to reflect the name of another entity if the current entity name on the tab with buttons is not what you want to update, make sure that you keep the naming format: Ent (Entity-Name).
6. Enter Raw Data: Copy your raw data into the Excel file from cell A7 onwards. Ensure you add all the attributes (a_Loc# and a_Time#) for all the locations in your model and provide relevant values for them. Sample data is included.Have UK dates and times? Use the UK Dates ConverterThe locations’ names must match, and times corresponding to each location should be in hours
7. Import Data from the Spreadsheet to Processmodel: After clicking the 2. Update button you may select one of the following options in order instruct ProcessModel what it needs to do.
   1. Simulate Model: Selecting this option will simulate the model after completing all the actions mentioned in Import Data. The animation will be off.
   2. Animation On: Selecting this option will simulate the model with animation on after completing all the actions mentioned in Import Data.
8. Completion: The Import and Overall Flow – Manufacturing model is now integrated into your model, you should now be able to save and then simulate the model.

Controls Usage

Attributes:

1. a_Loc_Count: Counts the cycles of the patient through the Director activity. This allows the logic to know which location and time attribute to use.
2. a_Next_Loc: Is used to steer the entity from the Director activity to hospital locations.
3. a_Next_Setup_Time: Time to set up the new location.
4. a_Next_Time: Is used to hold the patient at the next location for the time pulled from the corresponding time attribute.
5. a_Loc1 to 15: Used to store the name of the location. The numbers specify the order of routing. When the logic encounters a zero in the location attributes, the entity routes to the Discharge activity.
6. a_Time1 to 15: Used to store a patient’s time at a location. Time attributes correspond to location attributes.
7. a_Setup_Time1 to 15: Used to store the setup time a part requires at a location. Time attributes correspond to location attributes.

Variable:

1. v_TimeLeftDay: Used to count the time left in a day.

Verifying Import

After clicking the 2. Update button, wait a few seconds until you receive a relevant prompt via Excel or are moved to ProcessModel for model simulation. Once you are back in ProcessModel, you can look at the following location to make sure that the import was successful:

1. Click on the arrival route, and from the Properties Dialog, click Define Schedule, open the Action Logic, and review the import values.
   Review the first line of data that was imported
   The data imported into ProcessModel reflects the same values.

Other Applications of this Model Object

1. Job Shop manufacturing
2. Inpatient hospital modeling
3. Surgery systems
4. Repair work — product lifecycle