Hybrid optimization methods for assembly lines with disabled workers

• Grant number: 08/09242-9
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• Effective date (Start): April 01, 2009
• Effective date (End): September 30, 2009
• Field of knowledge: Engineering - Production Engineering - Operational Research
• Principal Investigator: Luiz Antonio Nogueira Lorena
• Grantee: Antônio Augusto Chaves
• Host Institution: Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas Espaciais (INPE). Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia e Inovação (Brasil). São José dos Campos , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The Assembly Line Worker Assignment and Balancing Problem (ALWABP) appears in real assembly lines which we have to assign given tasks to workers where there are some task-worker incompatibilities and considering that the operation time for each task is different depending upon who executes the task. This problem is typical for Sheltered Work Centers for the Disabled. This research presents new solution procedures for the ALWABP, using the hybrid metaheuristic Clustering Search (CS) embedded in a Column Generation process. The CS main idea is to identify promising areas of the search space by generating solutions with a metaheuristic and clustering them into groups that are then explored further with local search heuristics. The CS solutions will be improving columns to CG process. Our results will be validated on a set of instances reflecting the ALWABP characteristics. (AU)

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

CHAVES, ANTONIO AUGUSTO; NOGUEIRA LORENA, LUIZ ANTONIO; MIRALLES, CRISTOBAL; BLESA, MJ; BLUM, C; DIGASPERO, L; ROLI, A; SAMPELS, M; SCHAERF, A. Hybrid Metaheuristic for the Assembly Line Worker Assignment and Balancing Problem. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, v. 5818, p. 3-pg., 2009-01-01. (08/09242-9)