MRP/GT: A Framework for Production Planning and Control of Cellular Manufacturing

Material requirements planning (MRP) is typically used in US industry for manufacturing control. In UK manufacturing, production planning and control procedures based on group technology (GT) are used. A combination of MRP and GT is viable, although certain issues require careful analysis. As an example, the impact on the production planning and control system of rearranging only a part of the productive facilities into a cell remains unstudied. Procedures for capacity planning, lot sizing, and scheduling need to be developed and systematically investigated. Furthermore, clarification of the impact of production cells on such factors as the increase or decrease of job satisfaction, worker motivation, job enrichment, and job variety is needed. Despite the as yet unstudied areas, the GT approach is recognized as potentially increasing productivity and lowering costs of batch manufacturing. It is generally considered a necessity for the successful application of computer-aided design and manufacturing (CAD/CAM).