Case 2: Process Modeling and Analysis in an Assembly Factory The LeedsSim factory is a traditional assembly facility working as a subcontractor to...

Case 2: Process Modeling and Analysis in an Assembly Factory The LeedsSim factory is a traditional assembly facility working as a subcontractor to the telecommunications industry. Their main product is a specialized switchboard cabinet used in the fourth-generation (4G) network base stations. The company has been suc-cessful on the sales side, and with the 4G expansion taking off, the orders are piling up. Unfortunately, the operations department has had some problems with reaching the desired (and necessary) productivity levels. Therefore, they have decided to seek help to create a simulation model of the involved processes as a first step to analyze and improve the process design.To find the right level of detail in the model description, they want to start with a simple model and then successively add more details until a suitable model with the right level of complexity is obtained. The simulation should be run over a 3 month (12 week) period of five 8 h workdays/week. A schematic flowchart of the manufacturing process is shown in Figure 9.35.After the cabinets are completed and inspected, the finished cabinets leave the factory. It is noteworthy that each workstation can handle only one item at a time. Moreover, a forklift truck is required to move the assembled cabinets. Workstations 1 through 3 cannot store items. Similarly, there is no room to store items before workstation 4, but after it, there is room to store two assembled cabinets. At workstation 5, there is ample space to store cabinets before the workstation, but after it, there is only room to store at most two painted cabinets. At the inspection station, there is ample space to store cabinets both before and after the station.......