An Approximation Approach for an Integrated Part Quality Inspection and Preventive Maintenance Planning in a Nonlinear Deteriorating Serial Multi-stage Manufacturing System

This paper develops a mixed-integer non-linear programming model for an integrated planning of part quality inspection and preventive maintenance activities. This model considers a serial multi-stage manufacturing system while its production stages are deteriorating nonlinearly. The deterioration is assumed a non-linear process and an approximation approach based on the separable programming is developed to cope with the non-linearity. The model determines the optimum times and locations for performing inspection and preventive maintenance activities while minimizing total manufacturing cost. The theoretical achievement of the presented approach is investigated through a numerical example.