U-shaped assembly line balancing with Grouping Evolution Strategy (GES)

In this research, we have applied Grouping Evolution Strategies (GES) as an alternative solution to U-shaped assembly line balancing problem (UALBP). By introduction of just-in-time (JIT) production principle, it can be proven that U-shaped assembly line system has better performance than its predecessor traditional straight line system. The parameters to compare are the number of workstations (the line efficiency) and the smoothness index of workload. Our evaluation shows by applying GES, at least same line efficiency of workstation integration can be achieved. Moreover, the variation and smoothness index of workload have been improved. Moreover, to measure the performance validation of the proposed algorithm, a number of standard UALBPs in the literature were used to compare the proposed algorithm results with other related work results. Simulation results show that the proposed model produced as good or even better line efficiency of workstation integration and improved the variation and smoothness index of workload. Keywords: U-shaped assembly line balancing, Grouping Evolution Strategies, Workstation, Smoothness Index