Design of Facility Layout for Industry 4.0

Abstract

The concept of Industry 4.0 combines a large number of fully or partly autonomous devices and humans into a system, which is, due to synergies, more flexible and effective than a fully automated system. To reach this objective we have to ensure such facility layout that ensures an efficient transport system which takes into account the large number of participants. The most important design goal is to minimise the path travelled by transport devices. In the case of Industry 4.0 we have two altered conditions: the number of devices (machines, workplaces, storages) connected in one system is substantially larger, and autonomous transport devices and humans have different organisational needs regarding the facility layout. This chapter presents a highly efficient method for preparation of layouts that is based on simplified space and the physical appearance of the system. The design of transportation paths will be subjected to finding the optimum layout of devices to lower transportation costs.