Research on the Application of Logistics Simulation Technology in the Facility Layout of Discrete manufacturing Enterprise

Because the facilities structures and relations in discrete manufacturing enterprise are very complex, the facility layout method only relying on the experience and the technology of traditional systematic layout planning (SLP) is very difficult to meet increasing demands of this kind of enterprise. In this paper, the advantages and shortcomings of SLP are analyzed, and the character of logistics simulation technology is demonstrated. A new approach that can be used to improve the system layout method is presented. The new approach is integrating SLP with logisitics simulation technology to design facilities layout of enterprise. In the first place, the SLP will be used to carry out quantitative analysis and plane layout of system. And then, the logisitics simulation technology will be applied to build the 3D models to simulate and optimize. The method can be used to realize facility layout design visualization, analyse the potential bottlenecks and optimize the system. A case is given to show that the application of this technology provides not only a high-efficiency, high-quality, visualization, flexible design tools for the factory layout, but also an effective communication means with decision-makers of enterprise. The research shows that the new approach has played a very important role in reducing losses, saving invest, and shortening the design cycle for enterprises.