Dynamic simulation of flexible manufacturing systems (FMS)

The simulation method to be used in FMS should be multilevel and dynamic and should incorporate solid modeling techniques. This means that operation control simulation in FMS should rely on information sources provided from different levels of the organization; thus there should be an overall planning level and a dynamic, or real-time, level. One should also conclude from this article that, without understanding the design principles and operating rules of FMS, the simulation model created will be inadequate and in most cases misleading. Because of this, FMS simulation should be performed by a team, incorporating the manufacturing system designers as well as the simulation experts.