Heuristic algorithm for type II two-sided assembly line rebalancing problem with multi-objective

Abstract

In practical production, the balance of the assembly lines is always destroyed by many factors, e.g., demand fluctuations, disruptions caused by workstation breakdowns or shutdowns, and changes of the work force. Therefore, this paper addresses the type II rebalancing problem for the two-sided assembly lines (TALRBP-II), which are widely utilized to assemble large-size high-volume products. As we all know that TALBP-II (two-sided assembly line balancing problem type-II) is NP-hard, TALRBP-II is its extension and much more complex. In order to solve this problem, a mathematical model with the objectives of minimizing cycle time and rebalancing cost is proposed. Constraint programming (CP) method is applied to optimize the model and a workstation-oriented heuristic algorithm is designed to solve the problem. An example is presented to illustrate the procedure of the proposed algorithm, and the best solution obtained verify the efficiency of the proposed algorithm.