Russell D. Meller of the industrial and systems engineering faculty has
received a $205,000 National Science Foundation award under the NSF's
career development program for junior faculty. The grant is supporting
Meller's research on integrated production system operations and facility
layout decisions.
Most companies design their production systems facility layouts
sequentially, according to Meller.
"By the time the facility layout is designed, a lot of the parameters
that influence it have already been decided," he said. "This can result in
increased material handling costs, increased inventory costs, decreased machine
efficiencies, or duplication of resources."
Meller will study how production system operations influence facility
layouts. His goal is to design a computer algorithm that can determine the
impact of production system design on facility layout design. He believes this
approach can be used not only to play what-if games, but also to suggest ideas
for developing new designs.
"I envision such an algorithm to be broad enough to cover most
manufacturing and distribution facilities and hopefully some service facilities,
too," he said.
The National Science Foundation, with support from the Alabama
Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR), will
administer the award, which consists of $50,000 per year for four years plus $5000
for equipment. In connection with this NSF research project, Meller will also be
eligible for $25,000 per year in matching funds for additional industry projects.
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