Selection of the optimal configuration for a flexible surface mount assembly system based on the interrelationships among the flexibility elements

• DOI: 10.1016/j.cie.2013.11.005
• Publication Date: 2013-11-14T06:16:28Z
• Authors: Tsung-Nan Tsai
• Keywords: 0211 other engineering and technologies; 02 engineering and technology

Flexibility has been widely recognized as a key competitive factor for manufacturing firms coping with the increasingly turbulent manufacturing environment today. Establishing a flexible surface mount assembly (SMA) system is critical for organizations to achieve a cost-effective assembly and gain competitive advantages in the printed circuit board (PCB) assembly industry. To find a practicable operating strategy, a multi-criteria decision-making framework that combines the analytic network process (ANP) with the consistent fuzzy preference relations (CFPR) is proposed to explore the interrelationships among the six dimensions and twenty-one criteria of manufacturing flexibility and resolve the uncertainty and divergence between decision-makers with the least amount of pairwise comparisons. Based on the results of prior analysis, an optimum configuration of a flexible SMA system is suggested for the capacity investment intended by a Taiwan electronics manufacturing service (EMS) provider to quickly respond to dynamic production requirements.