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Reconfiguring a Remanufacturing Line at Visteon, Mexico

Author

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  • Sunder Kekre

    (Graduate School of Industrial Administration, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213)

  • Uday S. Rao

    (College of Business, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio 45221)

  • Jayashankar M. Swaminathan

    (The Kenan-Flagler Business School, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599)

  • Jun Zhang

    (A. B. Freeman School of Business, Tulane University, New Orleans, Louisiana 70118)

Abstract

Visteon's remanufacturing facility in Lamosa, Mexico was plagued with heavy fluctuations of supply and demand, leading to periods of severe capacity shortage. Management asked us to assess options for improving capacity. We developed a simulation-based line-configuration model that simultaneously considers line balancing and line length (number of production stations) to maximize the remanufacturing system's effective throughput. We computationally analyzed the effect of processing-time variability on line-reconfiguration decisions, the effect of correlated task-processing times on throughput, and the marginal benefits of using dynamic line balancing. Based on the data we collected, we made recommendations for reconfiguring Visteon's remanufacturing line. Management successfully implemented these changes, increased asset utilization, and reduced its planned new investments in capital equipment.

Suggested Citation

  • Sunder Kekre & Uday S. Rao & Jayashankar M. Swaminathan & Jun Zhang, 2003. "Reconfiguring a Remanufacturing Line at Visteon, Mexico," Interfaces, INFORMS, vol. 33(6), pages 30-43, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:inm:orinte:v:33:y:2003:i:6:p:30-43
    DOI: 10.1287/inte.33.6.30.25184
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Francas, David & Minner, Stefan, 2009. "Manufacturing network configuration in supply chains with product recovery," Omega, Elsevier, vol. 37(4), pages 757-769, August.
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    3. Chiang, Wen-Chyuan & Urban, Timothy L., 2006. "The stochastic U-line balancing problem: A heuristic procedure," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 175(3), pages 1767-1781, December.
    4. Georgiadis, Patroklos & Athanasiou, Efstratios, 2010. "The impact of two-product joint lifecycles on capacity planning of remanufacturing networks," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 202(2), pages 420-433, April.
    5. Pokharel, Shaligram & Mutha, Akshay, 2009. "Perspectives in reverse logistics: A review," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 53(4), pages 175-182.

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