Abstract
Panel line is an important process occupying the largest work amount in shipbuilding. In this research product simulation has been carried out to establish the optimal production scheduling. For this purpose a web-based panel line simulator was developed using an object modeling technology and C# language. The balance of work-load and increase in the productivity by the improvement of production facilities and process are the key factors for a good scheduling. In this study SPRT(Shortest Remaining Process Time) rule was applied for the work-load balancing and a good result achieved. To increase the productivity in the stiffener welding stage which is a bottleneck; process, more welding heads and higher welding speed were tested using the developed simulator. The simulation results showed that either more welding head or higher welding speed decreased the total work time. Use of both, however, deteriorated the productivity because of the bottleneck in the following stage. This result points out that the improvement of production facilities and/or process should be evaluated with their influences on the leading and following processing stage.
