Title: The analysis of scheduling rules in a flexible job shop with non-zero setup costs

Authors: Faizul Huq, Ken Cutright, M. Khurrum S. Bhutta

Addresses: Management Systems Department, College of Business, Ohio University, Athens Ohio, USA; RMAPE, Groupe ESC Pau, 64000 Pau, France. ' Management Systems Department, College of Business, Ohio University, Athens Ohio, USA. ' Management Systems Department, College of Business, Ohio University, Athens Ohio, USA

Abstract: This paper evaluates the scheduling of parts in a Flexible Job Shop (FJS) with non-zero setup costs, varying arrival rates and multiple objective functions. The Shortest Processing Time (SPT), Longest Processing Time (LPT), First-in, First-out (FIFO) and Earliest Due Date (EDD) scheduling rules are evaluated with respect to minimising the number of early jobs and optimising the due-date performance while simultaneously approximating Just-in-Time (JIT) inventory levels. We show in this paper that when the setup costs are not zero, depending on which objective is given priority, different machine loading configurations optimise system performance.

Keywords: flexible job shops; FJS; just-in-time; JIT inventory; scheduling rules; non-zero setup costs; varying arrival rates; multiple objectives; simulation; job shop scheduling; machine loading; optimisation.

DOI: 10.1504/IJTPM.2009.025289

International Journal of Technology, Policy and Management, 2009 Vol.9 No.2, pp.126 - 147

Published online: 18 May 2009 *

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