Study of Facility Layout Planning Algorithms and Approaches

Abstract

Facility Layout Planning problem (FLP) concerns with the design of plan or layout for different operations within the enterprise for enhanced productivity and improved efficiency of a production system. The aim of FLP problem is concerned with optimum layout design and arrangement/positioning of personnel, machines, tools and equipments within a factory environment. In a manufacturing firm, cost entailed for facilities layout corresponds to 20-50% of the total cost, which can be reduced to 20-30% with better FLP. In the last 5 decades, many researchers have proposed several mathematical, classical and heuristic approaches to solve FLP problem, due to its combinatorial NP-hard nature. A research direction on FLP design using several approaches has been described in this review article. The objective of review is to show the merits and demerits in many robust intelligent approaches to solve FLP.