Using Simulation to Design a Lean Material Delivery System in an Automotive Body Shop

A simulation study was undertaken to help design a material delivery system to support lean manufacturing in an automotive body shop. Since this was a greenfield facility, simulation analysis was employed in the very early design phase of the system to determine and quantify the limiting parameters of the proposed lean material delivery system. The simulation analysis evolved with the changes in the design parameters and assumptions of the facility. The updated information from the simulation model helped the designers to evaluate alternate concepts and understand some parameters better such as, traffic congestion, manpower, and storage area requirement.