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ejust avatar image
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ejust asked Jason Lightfoot commented

Ideas to model an auto service garage

Hi,
I'm interested in developing a model to study the layout of an auto services garage with the following design:

site-plan.png

  • - Each block is associated with a certain type of services
  • - Pre-check is done in Block(1) then the vehicle is headed to the specialized service area(s)

My objectives are to:

  • Study how the system will behave during peak hours.
  • Configure the traffic patterns inside the facility
  • How many cars the facility can serve at the same time?
  • Operator’s utilization analysis
  • Number of operators needed during peak hours vs. regular hours
  • Configure workflow bottlenecks (if any)
  • Expected time inside the facility for each customer

I would like to know how would you approach such a model?

If possible, please share your thoughts about in-depth details such as how would you represent the vehicles in the model, handling the traffic, etc.

Thanks!

@Jason Lightfoot @Felix Möhlmann @Joerg Vogel

FlexSim 23.2.0
layout testmodel planningprocess mapping
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1 Answer

Felix Möhlmann avatar image
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Felix Möhlmann answered Jason Lightfoot commented

If having some form of collision avoidance is important I'd use an AGV network. Otherwise a travel network with network nodes would suffice and is easier to set up.

The different work stations can be represented by the network node/control point at that location. What type of station they represent would be determined by a label.

At the start of the simulation have all those NNs/CPs on a list and when a car is supposed to move to a work station, pull a fitting value from the list and have the car move there. Then return the NN/CP to the list once the car moves onto the next station or leaves the model entirely.

The cars could be task executer flow items ("Truck" for example), so they can move on their own. Before a travel task is given, you could then acquired a worker and move them into the car as the driver.

When a new car is created it will have to be connected to the network. You can check out the necessary code in the "Task Executer as Flowitem" option, for example.

All you really need are either line 28 or line 32 (and the needed references to item and NN/CP of course)

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Jason Lightfoot avatar image Jason Lightfoot ♦♦ commented ·
In addition to Felix's layout related comments you might want to consider this as a Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul operation which has parallels to healthcare processing and as such depending on your chosen level of process detail, you might find the people module helpful as it allows technicians to collect mobile shared resources and has examples to which you can refer.
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ejust avatar image ejust Jason Lightfoot ♦♦ commented ·

I was planning to study the client's flow (vehicle owner) in a later phase using the people module, but I'd never thought I could use it for the MRO operations too! This is stunning, @Jason!

May you elaborate further on how can I adapt the people module's healthcare examples to fit the vehicle workflow? Can I import HC environment ProcessFlow blocks into the default environment?

It would be great if you could refer me to any model demos, tutorials, or ex-questions related to this subject.

Please let me if I need to post a new question for my inquiries.

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Jason Lightfoot avatar image Jason Lightfoot ♦♦ ejust commented ·
I don't have any examples to show - but in the distant past build MRO models for vehicles and aircraft where the processes are vastly more variable than a standard manufacturing model, and require locations, staff and tools at various stages, much like the People/HC flows. Since this question is a call for ideas I see no reason to create another to do the same unless you have specific questions about how to implement non-HC processes using the People Module.
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Chandler avatar image Chandler Jason Lightfoot ♦♦ commented ·
As a primarily HC user, this is super cool. I've never thought of it but I agree there are a lot of similarities with healthcare flows.


To be honest I'm just commenting to be able to find this later.


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Joerg Vogel avatar image Joerg Vogel commented ·
Repair and service is for me a task to be fulfilled on items taken from a pallet and brought back on finish. Items can you see in this case as documents that must be checked Or items are parts to do a service on. You unload them, put them in a processor and finally bring them back. You can do this with one item only at each station or with many items but each single item is special for each single station. Many items are an advantage, if you want to see how many different steps of a service are necessary on a car from start to finish in your whole process. A processor can you setup to use operators. It can be more than one Operator. You can define a setup time and a cumulated process time. If you have several steps to accomplish at a station you can choose to insert more processors or you use a multiprocessor object.
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ejust avatar image ejust Joerg Vogel commented ·

Oh, this is a novel approach that I hadn't considered but clearly has its merits. Much appreciated, @Joerg!

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ejust avatar image ejust commented ·

Thanks, @Felix! Brilliant answer as always! This is the exact type of suggestions and recommendations I was looking for.

I'm interested in simulating the garage as accurately as possible, so I'll go with the AGV network to avoid collision and get a better representation of queuing.

I have a few other questions that I would love to get your valuable perspective on. Shall I post a new question or a comment will do fine?

1. Incorporating Car Lifts into the WorkStation:

Some of the workstations (bays) will have a car lift to allow mechanics to work underneath the vehicle. I can only think of a custom Elevator TaskExecuter to get this done, but I'm not sure how this would work with the control points yet. Is there something else that might seem more reliable/efficient to model the car lifting?

2. Modeling Multiple Services Per Car:

  • How to best track and execute multiple services for a single car that must undergo?
  • What's the most efficient way to sequence these services, especially if certain services are dependent on the completion of others? Is using a list/table/labelArray for each car is a best practice?
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