Resources
Resources are items required to process or store what is produced in a manufacturing process or batch. Two batches must not occupy the same resource simultaneously. If this situation occurs, a signal indicates an overlap in the planning board and this can be solved using allocate or schedule process batches functions. These are the major types of resources:
- Process
- Tank (storage)
- Enabling
Resources are organized in resource groups and require other resources, or enables to be more effective. For example, a packing machine may require two types of lifting trucks: one used to load and the other to off-load. Each of these lifting truck is unique and identifiable. These required resources belong to the enabling resource groups.
Resources contain many capacity-related properties and include specific information on changeover, availability and claim for other resources and utilities. You can allocate process and tank batches to resources.
The production rates and efficiencies of resources in a resource group can be overwritten for a process batch.
These are the impact of the resource dependent rates:
- Resources in a resource group of a process step are subject to the used method. These resources can have different filling levels, filling or standing times, inflow durations, inflow rates, initial rates, outflow durations, and outflow rates.
- Resource levels, rates, and durations, which are defined in the process step of the resource group, can act as the default values for resources in the group.
- A resource can have different levels, rates, and durations. A resource can be in different resource groups, even for the same process step.
- The used levels, rates, and durations depend on the resources and resource groups that are in the process step when allocating batches.