Decision-support tools and technologies to support European manufacturing at plant and supply chain levels
Thanks to EU funding, the ROBUSTPLANET (Shock-robust design of plants and their supply chain networks) project developed technology-based business approaches in opportunistic maintenance, factory-level robust production planning and scheduling, assembly line and supply chain network reconfiguration, and mechatronic component remanufacturing. The general approach deals with disturbances at three production levels, namely production network, plant and shop floor. It is based on four major pillars: innovative supply services; innovative product services enabled by ICTs; innovative methodologies for decision-making integrating plant and supply network levels; and innovative business and assessment models for value creation based on partnership. Developed approaches will significantly transform existing rigid supply chain mechanisms and current product-based business models into collaborative and robust production networks. This will enable the timely delivery of innovative products and services in very dynamic and unpredictable global environments. Project partners created the Simulation and Navigation Cockpit, a central, web-based framework that assists decision-makers in plants and networks to react or even proactively plan and manage their activities in a more robust way compared to traditional practices. Users are better able to tackle predictable and unpredictable changes and disturbances. They are also able to respond to the occurrence of uncertain events or protect the performance of production plans by anticipating the occurrence of such events. This software application framework supports the comprehensive modelling and simulation applications required in planning production and supply chain activities. As a result of ROBUSTPLANET research results, key actors in manufacturing plants and their supply chain networks will be able to react quickly and effectively to disturbances and uncertainties while maintaining the robustness of the overall production network.
Keywords
Manufacturing, supply chain, ROBUSTPLANET, shock-robust, production
