A method and tool for Sustainability-driven Computer-Aided Process Planning with user-tuneable optimization

Abstract

This paper introduces the methodology framework, and a cloud-based Sustainability-driven Computer-Aided Process Planning (s-CAPP) tool aimed at optimizing efficiency and sustainability aspects of manufacturing operations at shopfloor level, considering a user-tailored optimization goal function. Geometric data extracted from 3D models of the parts to be produced are coupled with process parameters and resource consumption data from the manufacturing equipment in order to analyze the metrics for productivity and sustainability accordingly. By leveraging comprehensive data resources in manufacturing, s-CAPP allows companies to balance their production plans between productivity and sustainability through a user-friendly interface. Its application in a furniture manufacturing case study demonstrates its potential for process planning by prioritizing between productivity or sustainability, showcasing promising results. The presented s-CAPP implementation assists the production managers in taking decisions regarding sustainability and productivity in the production of batches through the prompting of intuitive visual results, impacting on both economic and environmental sides.

 Keywords: sustainability-driven manufacturing, process planning, cloud-based computing, furniture manufacturing, process simulation, data-driven manufacturing, feature extraction