The Digital Twin at the service of storage zone optimisation and assembly line simulation

Overview & Synopsis

This paper presents a complete optimisation methodology to improve costs linked to storage zones in assembly lines. It consists of coupled combinatorial optimisation and simulation techniques, relying on a Digital Twin UML model. The methodology is applied to a use-case provided by Groupe PSA, an automobile manufacturer. Asynchronisms necessarily appear in assembly lines because, generally, different types of products are produced on the same line, and because of hazards which result in a temporary stop of part of the line. The role of storage zones is to improve the ow of the line despite these desynchronisations. They however represent a financial cost, so a goal for industrialists is to minimise the size of these zones while still insuring the good performance of the line. At present, this optimisation process is done by experts who explore solutions by hand with a flow simulation tool in a trial and error approach. In this paper, a three step solution is proposed. A modelling framework is defined to create a Digital Twin of the factory, which serves as input to an optimisation process. A first combinatorial optimisation tool reduces the possible number of configurations, and then a simulation tool chooses the best configuration insuring the performance of the line.