Enhancing production control in the presence of critical raw materials: the case study of stators for electric engine

Tools and technologies from the Industry 4.0 paradigm allow automated, reactive, and efficient ways to optimise operations management. However, effective cost reduction and efficiency improvement depend on the tight coordination and design of (i) automated warehouses, (ii) digital twins for production control, and (iii) interconnecting systems for material handling, coupled with simulation and optimisation routines. These interconnections are particularly strategic in sectors involving critical raw materials with price and availability fluctuations, uncertain customer demand, and unreliable assembly machines like the production of electric vehicles. In these cases, inventory management should not be the only driver for operation performance. This paper investigates the effects on inventory management of enhancing production control for a real assembly line of stators for electric car engines. The results show that using priority-based job sequencing increases line WIP but avoids deadlocks, reduces costs, and improves overall efficiency.