MIXED-PRODUCT ASSEMBLY LINE: CHARACTERISTICS AND DESIGN CHALLENGES

Customized demands accompanied by assemble-to-order strategies require that the assembly system needs to handle uncertain market changes based on specific customer orders and adapt to new products or variants. This article will describe the characteristics of a mixed-product assembly line (MPAL) concept and its design challenges, based in an ongoing case study. The study shows that aspects of flexibility in assembly systems can be considered in an early conceptual design phase.

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