Cell formation in real manufacturing systems with complex flow and technological constraints

Cellular manufacturing can accommodate high product variety with shorter lead times and less complex scheduling. However, most extant research presents clustering solutions to hypothetical or low-complexity problems that cannot be reproduced in practice. Empirical research is scarce. This study develops the PFA (Production Flow Analysis) for cell formation in a real environment, with multifunctional/universal machines and technological constraints. By applying FFA (Factory Flow Analysis), the flow is simplified, making the clustering problem feasible. In the environment studied, the clustering attempt based on the part-machine matrix did not yield a good solution. Better performance was achieved by applying the clustering algorithm to the part-operation incidence matrix, with machinery allocation as a subsequent step. Technological constraints were solved and cell loads were balanced to make implementation viable. The study contributes by treating aspects of complex manufacturing environments and by presenting solutions to real constraints, bringing theory and practice together and providing a roadmap for managers. Also, this empirical research adds to an existing body of knowledge in which axiomatic research predominates.