A universal framework for lean design and control of automated material handling systems

Lean design and control of an automated material handling system is investigated in this study. A universal framework for modeling and analysis of different types of material handling mechanisms is introduced to obtain a minimum number of resources in a system design and fulfill a desired throughput. This framework is developed in a discrete event simulation environment and applied to a case study based on a real pallet system technology. The minimal design of the pallet system is realized by devising the system universal model.