Hybrid time slots sequencing model for a class of scheduling problems

This article presents a new model for the short-term scheduling of multistage batch plants with a single unit per stage, mixed storage policies, and multiple shared resources for moving orders between stages. Automated wet-etching stations for wafer fabrication in semiconductor plants provide the industrial context. The uncommon feature of the continuous-time model is that it relies on time grids, as well as on global precedence sequencing variables, to find the optimal solution to the problem. Through the solution of a few test cases taken from the literature, we show that new model performs significantly better than a pure sequencing formulation and better than a closely related hybrid model with slightly different sequencing variables. We also propose a new efficient heuristic procedure for extending the range of problems that can effectively be solved, which essentially solves relaxed and constrained versions of the full-space model. © 2011 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 2012

[1]  Carlos A. Méndez,et al.  An MILP framework for Short-Term Scheduling of Single-Stage Batch Plants with Limited Discrete Resources , 2002 .

[2]  P. Castro,et al.  Short-Term Scheduling of Multistage Batch Plants with Unlimited Intermediate Storage , 2008 .

[3]  Carlos A. Méndez,et al.  A Novel Optimization Method to Automated Wet-Etch Station Scheduling in Semiconductor Manufacturing Systems , 2010 .

[4]  Ignacio E. Grossmann,et al.  Decomposition techniques for multistage scheduling problems using mixed-integer and constraint programming methods , 2002 .

[5]  Pedro M. Castro,et al.  New Continuous-Time MILP Model for the Short-Term Scheduling of Multistage Batch Plants , 2005 .

[6]  Iftekhar A. Karimi,et al.  An MILP Approach to Automated Wet-Etch Station Scheduling , 2003 .

[7]  Ignacio E. Grossmann,et al.  New general continuous-time state-task network formulation for short-term scheduling of multipurpose batch plants , 2003 .

[8]  Iftekhar A. Karimi,et al.  An Improved MILP Formulation for Scheduling Multiproduct, Multistage Batch Plants , 2003 .

[9]  P. Castro,et al.  Two New Continuous-Time Models for the Scheduling of Multistage Batch Plants with Sequence Dependent Changeovers , 2006 .

[10]  C. Floudas,et al.  Optimal Event Point Determination for Short-Term Scheduling of Multipurpose Batch Plants via Unit-Specific Event-Based Continuous-Time Approaches , 2010 .

[11]  Pedro M. Castro,et al.  Scheduling multistage batch plants with sequence‐dependent changeovers , 2009 .

[12]  P. Castro,et al.  Integrated Constraint Programming Scheduling Approach for Automated Wet-Etch Stations in Semiconductor Manufacturing , 2011 .

[13]  A. Barbosa‐Póvoa,et al.  Simple Continuous-Time Formulation for Short-Term Scheduling of Batch and Continuous Processes , 2004 .

[14]  Christos T. Maravelias,et al.  Simultaneous Batching and Scheduling in Multistage Multiproduct Processes , 2008 .

[15]  Ignacio E. Grossmann,et al.  A logic-based approach to scheduling problems with resource constraints , 1997 .

[16]  Christos T. Maravelias,et al.  A General Framework for Process Scheduling , 2011 .

[17]  Jaime Cerdá,et al.  State-of-the-art review of optimization methods for short-term scheduling of batch processes , 2006, Comput. Chem. Eng..

[18]  Reha Uzsoy,et al.  A REVIEW OF PRODUCTION PLANNING AND SCHEDULING MODELS IN THE SEMICONDUCTOR INDUSTRY PART I: SYSTEM CHARACTERISTICS, PERFORMANCE EVALUATION AND PRODUCTION PLANNING , 1992 .

[19]  Iftekhar A. Karimi,et al.  Heuristic algorithms for scheduling an automated wet-etch station , 2004, Comput. Chem. Eng..

[20]  Christopher D. Geiger,et al.  A Tabu search approach to scheduling an automated wet etch station , 1997 .

[21]  Chi Wai Hui,et al.  A novel search framework for multi-stage process scheduling with tight due dates , 2010 .

[22]  Christodoulos A. Floudas,et al.  Enhanced Continuous-Time Unit-Specific Event-Based Formulation for Short-Term Scheduling of Multipurpose Batch Processes: Resource Constraints and Mixed Storage Policies. , 2004 .

[23]  Sebastian Engell,et al.  Multi-product batch scheduling with intermediate due dates using priced timed automata models , 2009, Comput. Chem. Eng..

[24]  I. Grossmann,et al.  New continuous-time scheduling formulation for continuous plants under variable electricity cost , 2009 .

[25]  C. Floudas,et al.  Novel Unified Modeling Approach for Short-Term Scheduling , 2009 .

[26]  Christodoulos A. Floudas,et al.  Unit-specific event-based continuous-time approach for short-term scheduling of batch plants using RTN framework , 2008, Comput. Chem. Eng..

[27]  Jaime Cerdá,et al.  An MILP continuous-time approach to short-term scheduling of resource-constrained multistage flowshop batch facilities , 2001 .

[28]  Christos T. Maravelias,et al.  Batch selection, assignment and sequencing in multi-stage multi-product processes , 2008, Comput. Chem. Eng..

[29]  Pedro M. Castro,et al.  Simultaneous Batching and Scheduling of Single Stage Batch Plants with Parallel Units , 2008 .

[30]  C. Maravelias,et al.  Scheduling of Multistage Batch Processes under Utility Constraints , 2009 .