Integrated Optimization Modelling in Quality Control, Production Planning, Inventory Control and Maintenance

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Today's industry is mainly focused on improving productivity and quality. The key to success in manufacturing processes is the proper integration of quality control, production planning, inventory control, and maintenance policy, which have been treated as separate issues until recently. The proposed study presents integrated optimization modelling for solving various production and quality control problems. The research consists of four sets of problems which have practical and theoretical importance as well as training merit.***The first set involves the joint economic selection of process parameters and production run. This issue arises because it can affect the defect rate, material cost, scrap or rework cost and quality loss incurred by the customer. During the production period, the process parameters setting may shift to an out-of-control state. Setting the optimal process target parameter(s) and determining an optimal production run are two very important factors for many industrial processes. Effective integration of these factors will provide an economic advantage to the manufacturer. It is expected that the findings of this research will be very useful for end users.***The second set proposes integrated economic models for quality control, production control and preventative maintenance for a deteriorating production system in which the production process may not only shift from an in-control state to an out-of-control state, but also may break down at any random point in time. The economic design of control charts refers to the optimization of cost models for the purpose of selecting control chart parameters which minimize the cost of quality. The preventative maintenance of manufacturing equipment and the quality of a manufactured product are inter-related. The proposed research on integrated models will be formulated under general shift, breakdown and repair time distributions. This research is expected to make a significant contribution in the field.***The third set is the development of a dynamic integrated model for joint optimization of production quantity, inspection scheduling, and quality control for an imperfect production process with deteriorating inventory items. A generalized integrated economic model for inventory, quality, and maintenance problems will be presented for the manufacturer, for whom the product quality and the production quantity are equally important.***The fourth set is the development of an integrated model for determining the most economic manufacturing quantity, the optimal warranty cost, the optimal warranty period and the optimal price for a random lifetime distributed product. This is a new area of investigation which will analyze how integration of inventory, quality and maintenance can affect warranty policies. It will be shown that the corrective maintenance policy would considerably reduce warranty claims.