ITPEC IP October 2019 Question 87
When the processes from product development to shipment are divided into development, production planning, production, and shipment, which of the following is an appropriate process that can result in labor saving and improved efficiency by the introduction of the Flexible Manufacturing System (FMS)?
Explanation
Production — FMS automates the manufacturing floor so that different products can be made with little manual work.
A Flexible Manufacturing System links numerically controlled machine tools, industrial robots, automated transport and automated warehouses under computer control. Changing the product mostly means switching programs, so high-mix, low-volume manufacturing runs with few workers and short changeovers. That labor saving happens in the production process itself.
Answer (c)
Why not others:
- •(a) — development is supported by CAD and CAE, which help design and analyse products
- •(b) — production planning, deciding what to make, how many and when, is supported by production management systems such as MRP
- •(d) — shipment is handled by logistics and warehouse management systems
Key rule: FMS combines automation with flexibility on the production line: the same equipment switches between products under computer control instead of being re-tooled by hand.
Business Industry · AI-written, may contain errors
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