Assembly Line Balancing

Assembly Line Balancing

Understanding assembly lines

Steps to make a fabric face mask

• Cut fabric to shape - 3 minutes
  

• Sew mask using sewing machine - 2 minutes
  

• Sew elastic - 1 minute
  

Multiple Choice

Task 1: Cut fabric to shape - 3 minutes

Task 2: Sew mask using sewing machine - 2 minutes

Task 3: Sew elastic - 1 minute

Which of the following has highest output?

• One person performing all three steps

• Two people performing all three steps together

Multiple Choice

Task 1: Cut fabric to shape - 3 minutes

Task 2: Sew mask using sewing machine - 2 minutes

Task 3: Sew elastic - 1 minute

Which of the following has highest output?

• Person 1 performing step 1 and Person 2 performing steps 2 and 3.

• Two people performing all three steps together

• Both are same.

Multiple Choice

Task 1: Cut fabric to shape - 3 minutes

Task 2: Sew mask using sewing machine - 2 minutes

Task 3: Sew elastic - 1 minute

Which of the following is an example of an assembly line?

• Person 1 performing step 1 and Person 2 performing steps 2 and 3.

• Two people performing all three steps together

Assembly line

• Has multiple stations
  

• Work is divided among the stations
  

• Each station performs a specific task
  

Open Ended

What are the advantages of assembly lines?

Open Ended

Task 1: Cut fabric to shape - 3 minutes

Task 2: Sew mask using sewing machine - 2 minutes

Task 3: Sew elastic - 1 minute

What would happen if person 1 were performing tasks 1 and 2 and Person 2 only task 3?

Multiple Choice

Having equal work content at each station of an assembly line is desirable.

• True

• False

Adding more tasks

• Task 1: Cut fabric to shape - 3 minutes
  

• Task 2: Sew fabric mask using sewing machine - 2 minutes
  

• Task 3: Cut elastic to size - 1 minute
  

• Task 4: Attach elastic to mask- 1 minute
  

• Task 5: Pack mask in plastic wrap - 1 minute
  

Multiple Choice

Task 1: Cut fabric to shape - 3 minutes

Task 2: Sew fabric mask using sewing machine - 2 minutes

Task 3: Cut elastic to size - 1 minute

Task 4: Attach elastic to mask- 1 minute

Task 5: Pack mask in plastic wrap - 1 minute

Person 1: Tasks 1-2 (Takes 5 minutes)

Person 2: Tasks 3-5 (Takes 3 minutes)

Is the above allocation ok?

• Yes

• No

• Can't Say

Multiple Choice

Task 1: Cut fabric to shape - 3 minutes

Task 2: Sew fabric mask using sewing machine - 2 minutes

Task 3: Cut elastic to size - 1 minute

Task 4: Attach elastic to mask- 1 minute

Task 5: Pack mask in plastic wrap - 1 minute

Person 1: Tasks 1-5 (Takes 4 minutes)

Person 2: Tasks 2-4 (Takes 4 minutes)

Is the above allocation ok?

• Yes

• No

Multiple Choice

Task 1: Cut fabric to shape - 3 minutes

Task 2: Sew fabric mask using sewing machine - 2 minutes

Task 3: Cut elastic to size - 1 minute

Task 4: Attach elastic to mask- 1 minute

Task 5: Pack mask in plastic wrap - 1 minute

Person 1: Tasks 1 & 3 (Takes 4 minutes)

Person 2: Tasks 2, 4 & 5 (Takes 4 minutes)

Is the above allocation ok?

• Yes

• No

Multiple Choice

Task 1: Cut fabric to shape - 3 minutes

Task 2: Sew fabric mask using sewing machine - 2 minutes

Task 3: Cut elastic to size - 1 minute

Task 4: Attach elastic to mask- 1 minute

Task 5: Pack mask in plastic wrap - 1 minute

Which allocation should we go for?

• Allocation 1

  
  

  Person 1: Tasks 1 & 3 (Takes 4 minutes)

  Person 2: Tasks 2, 4 & 5 (Takes 4 minutes)

• Allocation 2

  
  

  Person 1: Tasks 1 & 5 (Takes 4 minutes)

  Person 2: Tasks 2, 3 & 4 (Takes 4 minutes)

Open Ended

Why is Allocation 1 preferable?

Multiple Choice

While balancing an assembly line, precedence of tasks i.e which tasks have to come first and which next should be taken care of.

• Yes

• No

Multiple Select

Task 1: Cut fabric to shape - 3 minutes

Task 2: Sew fabric mask using sewing machine - 2 minutes

Task 3: Cut elastic to size - 1 minute

Task 4: Attach elastic to mask- 1 minute

Task 5: Pack mask in plastic wrap - 1 minute

What tasks have to precede Task 5?

• Task 1

• Task 2

• Task 3

• Task 4

• None

Multiple Select

Task 1: Cut fabric to shape - 3 minutes

Task 2: Sew fabric mask using sewing machine - 2 minutes

Task 3: Cut elastic to size - 1 minute

Task 4: Attach elastic to mask- 1 minute

Task 5: Pack mask in plastic wrap - 1 minute

What tasks have to precede Task 4?

• Task 1

• Task 2

• Task 3

• Task 5

• None

Multiple Select

Task 1: Cut fabric to shape - 3 minutes

Task 2: Sew fabric mask using sewing machine - 2 minutes

Task 3: Cut elastic to size - 1 minute

Task 4: Attach elastic to mask- 1 minute

Task 5: Pack mask in plastic wrap - 1 minute

What tasks have to precede Task 3?

• Task 1

• Task 2

• Task 4

• Task 5

• None

Multiple Select

Task 1: Cut fabric to shape - 3 minutes

Task 2: Sew fabric mask using sewing machine - 2 minutes

Task 3: Cut elastic to size - 1 minute

Task 4: Attach elastic to mask- 1 minute

Task 5: Pack mask in plastic wrap - 1 minute

What tasks have to precede Task 2?

• Task 1

• Task 3

• Task 4

• Task 5

• None

Precendence Relationships matter

• Task 1 - No preceding activities
  

• Task 2 - Task 1 is preceding activity
  

• Task 3 - No preceding activitiies
  

• Task 4 - Tasks 2 & 3 are preceding activities
  

• Task 5 - Tasks 4 is preceding activity
  
  
  

• Task allocation to stations should should satisfy precedence conditions.