Impacts of Product Lifecycle and Production System Design on Competitive and Sustainable Production

In this paper, the design and development of productions systems is discussed. The role of production system is investigated as a part of life cycle of products as well as one of the players, an evolving entity fulfilling the strategic goals of a company. These two are then combined to discuss on how they effect on design, development, and operation of production systems. The study focuses on the flow of material, i.e., the transformation of raw material to finished products as well as the flow of information related to the realization of the products. Simulation of production systems is discussed on how it can be used to enhance the daily operations and investigating the alternative future solutions. Finally, the issues discussed in this paper are explained on how they can be utilized in university level education in engineering.