Operator allocation in labor-intensive manufacturing system

This paper presents the operator allocation decisions in labor-intensive manufacturing system. An integrated computer simulation and Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) are used in determining the best operator allocation alternative. A computer simulation is used to generate inputs and outputs for proposed alternatives. The input variables used in this study are average cycle time and average waiting time, while total parts produced, and average operator utilization are the output variables. DEA is used to analyze the proposed alternatives. The result of the study at the production line of a disk drive components manufacturing plant shows that the optimal operator allocation alternative proposed two operators for each operation.