USAGE OF FUZZY MULTI CRITERIA DECISION MAKING METHODS IN SELECTION OF NONTRADITIONAL MANUFACTURING METHODS

New manufacturing technologies such as nontraditional manufacturing methods (NMM) were needed recently because of new machining requirements for parts with complex geometries, very narrow machining area and high strength materials and also for very small and delicate parts. Since NMM are diverse and their numbers are increasing with the development of new approaches, selecting the most appropriate one among many NMM requires systematic models which incorporate multi-criteria decision making approaches. In this study, a selection model that uses Fuzzy Analytical Hierarchy Process (FAHP) and Fuzzy Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (FTOPSIS) approaches is developed for the selection of the most suitable NMM for a specific application. Furthermore, the effectiveness of the developed approach is evaluated by comparing its results with the ones obtained with non-fuzzy (crisp) versions of the AHP and TOPSIS methods. In this study for selection of NMM, fuzzy logic implemented selection methods are developed and after some case studies it is shown that weights obtained with binary comparisions are more effective for ranking results and FAHP phase is more important than FTOPSIS phase.