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TYPES OF LAYOUTS
There are four types of product layouts as follows
1. 2. 3. 4.
Fixed position layout
Process layout Product layout Cellular layout
They are described with examples as follows;
1. Fixed position layout
In fixed-position layouts, the materials or major components remain in a fixed position, and workers, materials, and equipment are moved as needed. Fixed-position layout is used when product is very bulky, heavy or fragile. Fixed-position layouts are used in large construction projects (buildings, power plants, and dams), shipbuilding, and production of large aircraft and space mission rockets. Fixed-position layouts are widely used for farming, firefighting, road building, home building and repair.
EXAMPLES
( Examples are provided on next page )
Figure 1 Aircraft Manufacturing
Figure 2 Dam Construction
Figure 4 Power Plant Construction
Figure 3 Farming
2. Process Layout In this type of layout machines of similar type are arranged together at one place. This type of layout is used for batch production. It is preferred when the product is not standardized and the quantity produced is very small. It is designed to facilitate processing items or providing services that present a variety of processing requirements. This layout includes departments or other functional groupings in which similar kinds of activities are performed. A manufacturing example of a process layout is the machine shop, which has separate departments for milling, grinding, drilling, and so on.
Figure 5 Process Layout
Figure 6 Machine shop operations using process layout
Figure 7 Process layout in manufacturing
Figure 8 another process layout example
The above figure shows a process layout where a forklift moves pallets of material from department to department in a stamping factory that makes automotive molding
3. PRODUCT LAYOUT In this type of layout the machines and equipments are arranged in one line depending upon the sequence of operations required for the product. It is also called as line layout. The material moves to another machine sequentially without any backtracking or deviation and the output of one machine becomes the input of the next machine. It is used for mass production. Operations are arranged in the sequence required to make the product. For instance, if a portion of a manufacturing operation required the sequence of cutting, polishing, and painting, the appropriate pieces of equipment would be arranged in that sequence. Product layouts achieve a high degree of labor and equipment utilization.
Figure 9 Product Layout
Figure 10 Product Layout Model
Figure 11 Metal Processing Assembly Line using Product Layout
Figure 12 Example of Product Layout Production
The above figure shows a product layout in which partially completed units move by conveyer from one workstation to the next on an electronic assembly line 6
4. CELLULAR MANUFACTURING Cellular manufacturing is a type of layout in which machines are grouped into what is referred to as a cell. Groupings are determined by the operations needed to perform work for a set of similar items, or part families that require similar processing. Cellular layout provides faster processing time, less material handling, less work-in-process inventory, and reduced setup time. It is used when the operations system must handle a moderate variety of products in moderate volumes
Figure 13 Cellular Layout vs Process Layout
Figure 14 Cellular Layout
Figure 15 Formation of a cell in a production line
