Reducing Losses Due to Lack of Supply in a Manufacturing Company Using a Mixed-Integer Linear Programming Model

Abstract

In this article an optimization model based on mixed-integer linear programming to solve a novel problem of delivery of materials in a manufacturing plant of constant velocity joints (CVJ) is proposed. For modelling there were taken into account restrictions of forklift drivers, production cells being supplied, two warehouses of the different CVJ components and a production schedule to fulfil in a given sequence. As a result, a representative model of supply scheme was obtained that when solved by branch and bound method it provides a sequence in materials supply, fulfills the production schedule and reduces the percentage of losses due to lack of supply, directing to forklift drivers to the components to be taken, the cell which will be supplied and the CVJ model to be produced. The goal of the company at which this study was applied is to reach 1.5% in losses due to lack of supply; by the modeling solution it was achieved near 0% in losses due to lack of supply.