Online cutting stock optimization with prioritized orders

Abstract

Purpose

To have all the required components of batches of product orders ready for timely assembly and delivery, the real time wood strip cutting patterns in a major solid wood furniture manufacturing plant has to be dynamically generated based on both the order priority and the minimum wood waste.

Design/methodology/approach

An adaptive fuzzy ranking method and a recursive function for pattern generation were integrated into an optimization procedure to solve the real time one‐dimensional multiple‐grade cutting stock problem when orders are prioritized.

Findings

The simulation results illustrate that the optimization algorithm produce considerably less waste than the current approach. If implemented in the industry, the saving in raw material could be in the range of 5‐10 percent.

Research limitations/implications

The optimization algorithm is for the cut‐to‐size decisions only with the consideration of the order priorities. The overall scheduling of the production shop floor is not addressed.

Practical implications

The algorithm can be used on the cutting machines as an online patterns generator and cutting optimizer.

Originality/value

There is no literature available for the real time one‐dimensional multiple‐grade cutting stock problem when orders are prioritized. The few commercial optimizers have unknown algorithms with unpredictable waste.

Citation

Ghodsi, R. and Sassani, F. (2005), "Online cutting stock optimization with prioritized orders", Assembly Automation, Vol. 25 No. 1, pp. 66-72. https://doi.org/10.1108/01445150510579021