Optimization of Lubricant Oil Filling and Packaging Lines: A Simulation-Based Automation Approach

This research was conducted to improve the efficiency of lubricating oil filling and packaging lines for 1L and 4L packages in a manufacturing company using the Arena Simulation. The existing system, which involves the handling of goods by operators is semi-automatic, leading to production activities shortage, employee overtime, and additional costs. The validity of the model was tested with Fuzzy Inference System (FIS) and t-test analysis, to achieve average significance values of 0.462 and 0.419 for 1L and 4L packages, with p>0.05 confirming no significant difference between simulation and actual data. This research proposed three improvement scenarios to optimize the production system. The first involved the addition of a robotic system for the packing process, which resulted in 5% time reduction and 6% productivity improvement for 1L packages, and 11% time reduction with 12% productivity increase for 4L packages. The second complemented the first through the introduction of a robotic arm palletizer, achieved a 12% time reduction and 13% productivity improvement for 1L packages, and 14% time reduction with 17% productivity increase for 4L packages. The third scenario, which combined an automatic case packer and robotic arm palletizer, showed the most significant improvements with 14% time reduction and 16% productivity increase for 1L packages, and 19% time reduction with 23% productivity improvement for 4L packages. The optimal third scenario reduced working time from 9.3 to 7.9 hours/day for 1L packages and to 7.53 hours/day for 4L packages.