Tools to aid in production and process planning are playing an increasingly important role in assuring that a successful system is designed in the shortest period of time. One tool that is gaining rapid acceptance and is proven to be effective for improving production system design and performance is FlexSim simulation software.
The benefits of simulation in manufacturing or supply chains are much like those realized in flight simulation.
Flight simulators allow a pilot to gain experience without the risks, time, and costs associated with training using actual equipment. A pilot learns essential skills through his experience with the simulator. He can make mistakes in a simulated environment, and learn from those mistakes without suffering the consequence of those actions. Both skill and decision making abilities are enhanced, resulting in far greater safety and efficiency.
Like flight simulation, process and system simulation is undertaken to:
Simulation has become a standard procedure for many companies when a new facility is being planned or a production change is being investigated.
Companies like General Mills have used FlexSim to build a completely customized simulation platform that is used company wide to build computer models of planned systems before their implementation. Many of the pitfalls that are often encountered in the start up of a new system can be avoided by using simulation.
Simulation enables one to visualize the operation of a system and clearly demonstrate the ability or inability of the system to meet the performance objectives.
Simulation is generally considered to be always a worthwhile endeavor, but certainly when the following conditions apply:
The uses of simulation are limitless. Manufacturing, material handling, baggage handling, warehousing, supply chain, food processing, healthcare, shipping ports, and lean manufacturing implementation are just a few of the applications modeled within FlexSim. FlexSim provides the most graphical 3D, user-friendly simulation environment available on the market today.
There is no excuse not to take advantage of the benefits of simulation. Many who have questioned the values of simulation are amazed at the insights they have received with just a short modeling experience in FlexSim. Instead of spending time justifying simulation, more and more managers are recognizing that the rule should be to simulate every time. What you can potentially learn from gathering the data needed to create the simulation is often justification enough, let alone the insights gleaned from the actual simulation study.