It’s been a while since I posted.  I thought I would discuss a topic that has some relevance in today’s market.  Given the state of the economy, many of the automakers and many of the businesses in the US are pulling back from new capital investments and reassessing their strategies.  As simulation engineers, we turn our focus to improving the systems that are already in place.  Modeling existing systems and looking for places to improve is a slightly different challenge that helping design a new (greenfield) facility or system.

A few questions/opportunities to consider when modeling an existing system.

1. You should be excited about the data.  Ok, excited is a bit over the top but, there should be a lot of historical cycle time and downtime data just waiting for some to find out why its relevant. 
2. Existing models.  Some systems have models that have been built and recommendations that were made from past studies.  Has anyone followed up to see if the recommendations were followed?  Has anyone checked that the assumptions made were valid (i.e. do the real cycle times match the assumptions from the first model?)
3. What advancedments/standards or generally good ideas have you seen implemented at other locations/lines within your organization?  Do they apply to this system?
4. Is there a gap in communication?  Would a simulation video/presentation help focus the existing team on the goals and areas for improvement?
5. What are the complaints of the operators that are on the current line or in the current facility?  How can simulation address these issues? 

There is a myriad of possibilities.  Ask the right questions and embrace the challenge of continuous improvement.  Every system can benefit from a critical, helpful eye that wants to quantify why changing practices will improve the way things are done.