Standalone Throughput Analysis on the Wave Propagation of Disturbances in Production Sub-Systems

Abstract

Standalone throughput (SAT) of a single station is one of the most widely used performance indexes in industry due to its clear definition, ease of evaluation and the ability to provide a guidance for continuous improvement in production systems. A complex multistage manufacturing system is typically segmented into several subsystems for efficient local management. It is important to evaluate performance of each subsystem to improve overall system productivity. However, the definition of standalone throughput of a production subsystem is not as clear as for a single station in current literatures or in practice, not to say an effective evaluation method. This paper deals with the standalone throughput of a serial production line segment. The definition and implication of standalone throughput of a line segment is discussed. A data driven method is developed based on online production data and is proved analytically under a practical assumption. In addition, the method is verified through simulation case studies to be an accurate and fast estimation of the standalone throughput of a production line segment.