The Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) is a nationwide network of over seventy not-for-profit centers. The MEP is linked with the Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and has the sole purpose of providing small and medium-size manufacturers with the assistance they need to be competitive and successful. The Alabama Technology Network (ATN) joined the MEP in 1996 and began operation through a partnership among the University of Alabama System, Auburn University, and select two-year colleges. The ATN has 10 centers statewide that are focused on providing technical and business solutions to Alabama companies in order to lead them to high performance. The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) is the Region 1 center of the ATN and concentrates a large portion of its efforts in the field of Lean Enterprise Development.
Lean Manufacturing is a systematic approach to identifying and eliminating waste through continuous process improvement by flowing the product at the pull of the customer. This paper discusses recent improvements made to a hands-on simulation of a fictional factory (BUZZ Electronics) used as a training tool to demonstrate the benefits of lean manufacturing tools. The improvements include the development of computer software used to simulate an Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) system in the factory simulation’s final round. The simulated EDI, which uses four portable laptop computers and utilizes a wireless network, is useful in showing the benefits of paperless information systems, which simplify shop scheduling, and sequenced supplier deliveries.
Simulation of Information System In a Lean Factory
Proceedings of the Huntsville Simulation Conference.
By The Society for Modeling and Simulation International, San Diego, CA. Reprinted by permission.