| The cycle time-throughput curve is one of the most important analytical tools used to assess operating policies in manufacturing systems. Unfortunately, the generation of this curve is complicated and time consuming when generation is based upon discrete event simulation. This research focuses on development of efficient cycle time-throughput curve generation techniques using discrete event simulation. Approaches and solutions are presented on the three prime issues of this research: the establishment of the simulation sampling strategies, the determination of the simulation sequences, and the determination of the length of a simulation run at a specific design point in the simulation experimental design space. First, strategic simulation sampling guidelines are proposed as to how to use a fixed amount of samples when trying to generate a precise and accurate cycle time-throughput curve for complex systems. Second, in order to provide good references for the sequential experiments to generate precise cycle time-throughput curves, a set of discrete design points is ranked sequentially. Third, a sequential stopping rule is developed to determine the length of a simulation run. The results show that the approaches and solutions are effective in the fast generation of a precise and accurate simulation-based cycle time-throughput curve. |
