SHOP FLOOR SCHEDULING OF A MANUFACTURING FACILITY IS A COMPLEX TASK THAT IS DONE TODAY LARGELY BY MANUAL MEANS. THE TASK IS COMPLEX BECAUSE THERE ARE A LARGE NUMBER OF CONSTRAINTS TO CONSIDER; THE FACILITY IS VERY DYNAMIC AND UNFORESEEN EVENTS OCCUR THAT INVALIDATE PREVIOUSLY DEVELOPED SCHEDULES; AND THE SCHEDULING PROCESS IS TIME-CONSUMING AND THERE IS NORMALLY NOT TIME TO DEVELOP AND EVALUATE MORE THAN ONE VERSION. THIS PAPER DISCUSSES THE CONCEPT OF PERIODIC SCHEDULING AS IT RELATES TO COMPUTER SIMULATION TO HELP OVERCOME THE PREVIOUSLY MENTIONED PROBLEMS IN THE CREATION OF SHOP FLOOR SCHEDULES. SIMULATION-BASED SCHEDULING HAS BEEN IMPLEMENTED BY A NUMBER OF U.S. MANUFACTURING COMPANIES. THIS PAPER DESCRIBES THREE CASES AND SUMMARIZES SOME LESSONS LEARNED FROM THEM AND SIGNIFICANT BENEFITS THAT HAVE BEEN REALIZED.
