In todays world of operations management, layouts of manufacturing processes play a key role in achieving and maintaining long term goals. These layouts need to be well thought out and carefully planned for they can effect the cost or producing goods and delivering services for many years into the future. Layouts are dependent on the technology utilized and product type manufactured. There are four typical layouts: process layout, product layout, fixed position layout and combination layout. A combination layout is a layout that shares properties of two or more layouts. Such as a group technology layout that shares characteristics of a process layout and a product layout. Theyre similar in that the cells are designed to perform a specific set of processes, and it is similar to product layout in that the cells are dedicated to a limited range of products. Each layout usually involves compromise and balancing of the process variables and its always debatable whether the perfect layout actually exists. The purpose of layout planning is: to maximize the efficiency and profitability of a manufacturing operation to allow consistency and quality in products to be produced to allow flexibility and ease of adaptation for machinery and production personnel to products as required by the market(Anonymous 2). Some characteristics of a good layout would be minimum material movement, workstations close together, easily adjustable to changing conditions and one plant floor so that everyone can see whats going on. To define and explain, a product layout is a product-orientated layout that is appropriate for producing one standardized product in typically large volumes. Each unit being produced requires the same sequence of operations from beginning till end. During times when product demand is high enough and sustainable over a long period of time, it is usually cost effective to rearrange resources from a process layout to a product lay...
