The Performance of Manufacturing Systems in A Disruptive Environment

Most manufacturing systems operate at less than planned capability due to unplanned interruptions (disruptions) to the production process. Yet, relatively little is known about the impacts such disruptions have on various measures of manufacturing system performance (e.g., capacity, th throughput, interval, WIP). This paper describes quantitative studies aimed at characterizing the performance of multi-product, serial manufacturing lines as a function of load, frequency and duration of disruptions, and other sources of variability.