A state-of-the-art workload control system for customized industry

Bespoke manufacturing strategies, such as Make-To-Order, are increasingly employed by individual companies as well as supply chains competing on customized products/services. Uncertainties from individual requirements greatly increase the complexity of the operation and production process, making planning and control activities extremely difficult. Workload Control (WLC) is a Production Planning and Control (PPC) approach uniquely designed for customized industry. However, implementation of WLC has encountered significant difficulties due to the gap between theory and practice. This paper describes a state-of-the-art WLC Decision Support System (DSS) which is considered an effective enabler of WLC application. To address the practical challenges (e.g., lack of quotation support, unexpected incoming of workloads) noted in the literature, the system has been developed through a user interactive action learning and reflection environment called `living lab'.