Design of Machine Tool Based on Reconfigurability Principles

Abstract

Global industries nowadays are characterised by market instability and rapid change in customer demand, which consequentially affect the product design and require quick decisions on modification or replacement of the processing and production workstations. Therefore, it has become essential for the world economies to implement an effective industrial strategy that addresses those changes in product design in order to remain competitive. An emerging strategy that might enable industries to cope with the rapidly changing product specifications is based on reconfiguring the manufacturing technologies. A manufacturing strategy that is based on reconfiguration of the workstations may help accommodate those changes at the lowest possible costs by combining certain levels of machine tool flexibility and customised automation. For the last few years, the literature has been enriched with works and publications concerned about the concept of machine tool reconfiguration. Most of these works agreed that a machine tool is considered reconfigurable if it satisfies a number of principles and characteristics. This paper discusses the development of a basic design for a machine tool based on those reconfigurability principles. The design attempts to produce a machine tool having a limited flexibility that is just enough to accommodate all possible modifications and changes, within customised level of automation in the designs of a product family of some automotive products. This work is a part of a project that is aiming on enhancing reconfigurable manufacturing in South Africa.