Development of a Flexible Manufacturing Laboratory

The author describes the design of the Flexible Manufacturing Laboratory (FML) in the School of Technology, Purdue University. Presently, FML is in the conceptual design stage. It covers over 5000 sq. ft. of bay area and spans four manufacturing areas. The needs and contents of the FML are assessed through collaboration betwen faculty members involved in differnt aspects of the manufacturing process. FML will be a full-scale manufacturing facility, an extension of the existing smaller-scale Computer Integrated Manufacturing Laboratory. As opposed to this small-scale system, the proposed FML will have regular-size computer-numerical-control (CNC) machines, and transport and storage systems