Setup Flexible Line Balancing installation is normally done from the distribution CD-ROM.

Alternatively, you may copy the CD contents directly to the hard drive of your computer and execute the setup procedure from that location. To start setup, select Run on the Windows Start Menu and enter the location and the setup program, such as D:SETUP.EXE (if D: is the letter assigned to your CD-ROM drive). You may also start the setup program by selecting and double-clicking SETUP.EXE in Windows Explorer. When the setup program is executed, a series of screens will appear. The first two screens, shown following, introduce the program. Select the Next command button on the Welcome screen to continue the setup process.

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In the next setup screen, select the location for installation of Flexible Line Balancing files. The default, as shown, is to install files within the Program Files folder. To change the location, select the Browse button; otherwise, select Next. Select Cancel to abort the installation, or use Back to return to the prior screen.

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The Setup program will automatically copy required Flexible Line Balancing files to your computers hard drive. Following the copying activity, the completion screen following will appear. Click Finish to go on.

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You must restart your computer before using the program. Choose an option on the final setup screen shown following. If you choose Yes, your computer will be shut down and rebooted. Choosing No will return your computer to normal operations.

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The Setup program will also place a Flexible Line Balancing shortcut icon on your Windows desktop. Double-click the icon or select it and press the Enter key to start the program at any time following the installation process. Modifying, Repairing or Removing the Program At some future time, you may wish to make changes to the Flexible Line Balancing installation. Occasionally, files are corrupted or inadvertently deleted, causing problems in operation. At some point, you may also wish to remove the program from your computer. The Flexible Line Balancing files you originally installed from the distribution CD-ROM provide these functions. To modify, repair, reinstall, or remove the program, Run SETUP.EXE again. The installation program will detect the existing files on your computer and display a series of maintenance screens. The first screen, shown following, allows a choice of Maintenance, Repair, or Removal of the software. Select the desired option and click Next. In this example, Modification is chosen.

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The screen shown next is the last display in the reinstallation process. Select Finish to end the process.

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The Repair and Removal options are used in a similar manner to the Maintenance reinstallation shown. After selecting the desired option, you should follow the instruction screens as they appear. Following a removal operation, a few files may remain in the Flexible Line Balancing folder. These may be deleted using Windows Explorer. Main Menu You may start Flexible Line Balancing by selecting the program on the Windows Start Menu or by selecting or double-clicking a shortcut icon on the Windows desktop. When the program starts, a Main Menu appears. There are five selections on the menu bar:
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Process: This selection enables you to define an assembly process by adding or inserting work tasks, their standard times, and specifying sequential relationships between all tasks in the scenario. Standard Elemental Task: This menu allows you to input and save elemental task descriptions and standard times. After elemental tasks are saved, they may be recalled at any time and used to define a new Process. Options: The Options menu allows you to set the appearance of precedence chart legends (on or off). Help: This selection provides access to the Help file, instructions on How to Use Help, an option to Search the Help file, and the version, copyright, and distribution information for the Flexible Line Balancing program. Exit: Closes the program and returns to the Windows desktop. Note that you may use a hot key combination to select various menu actions. In many cases, you can hold the ALT or CTRL key down and enter the underlined letter to choose the menu action. For example, to select Process, use ALT + P. Alternatively, you may also make menu selections on any program screen by clicking on icons that appear on the toolbar under the Main Menu choices. Icons are shown for many major program actions, and are provided with pop-up tips to indicate the action associated with each. Also, the status bar at the bottom of
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your screen will display a phrase which describes the function of each toolbar button as the mouse pointer is passed over it. Process The Process selection on the Flexible Line Balancing Main Menu allows you to start initial development of a line balancing solution, do various file manipulations, import or export data, display information in alternative ways, or access Help files. To begin work on a new Process scenario, select Process from the Main Menu. This will load a Process screen. Note that the screen is divided into two areas, referred to as the Text Work-

Text Workplace

Graphic Workplace

place and the Graphic Workplace. The upper area (in gray) is the Text Workplace and the lower (white) is the Graphic Workplace. The relative screen size of each workplace may be changed by positioning the mouse pointer at the boundary of the two areas and dragging when the pointer changes to a twoFlexible Line Balancing V.3 User Guide 9 2001 LG Electronics Distributed by Production Technology

headed arrow. As shown in the illustration, the title bar of the screen will indicate Process: New1 the first time the screen is opened. Each successive opening of a new scenario will advance the count by one, i.e., New2, New3, etc. You may have unlimited Process files open simultaneously. After you name and save a Process, the title bar will indicate that file name. The Text Workplace is provided for entering Standard Elemental Tasks and the associated information required to build the Process. Note that the width of each column may be adjusted by moving the mouse pointer to the vertical line at the top of each column and dragging the column wider or narrower. The Graphic Workplace displays a precedence chart of work elements as they are entered into the program in the Text Workplace area. From left to right in the illustration, the fields are: No: A sequential line number automatically generated by Flexible Line Balancing. Proc #: Process number. An optional field that can be used to further define the process steps. Work Area: Enter the name of a work area. An optional field. You may use a department number, area name, cell, zone, or any desired description. Elem Task Description: Enter a brief description for each elemental task. ST: Enter the standard time for each elemental task.
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Elem Task # (Elemental Task Number): This is an automatically generated unique number for each elemental task.

The next several column headings refer to how relationships between and among elemental tasks are defined. See the section on Elemental Task Relationships. The last two columns are provided to insert text information about tooling and additional comments. Use of these columns is optional. The Process screen also shows a number of selections on the menu bar. These are used to perform file operations, editing of work elements within process scenarios, change the operating characteristics of the program, and allow access to program Help files. File Menu When you select File, a drop-down menu offers several choices, which may be activated by a mouse click or by use of specified Hot keys. Each click on New will open a new screen. Use Open to access and load an existing saved file, which can be selected from a list which appears when the command is used. Import is used to access and load an existing Process or Standard Elemental Task that has been saved in Flexible Line Balancing. Save and Save As selections are used to save active Flexible Line Balancing files under a current file name or an alternative
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name. The selections are active when a file is loaded. The functions are disabled until a file is loaded or a scenario is constructed. Delete is used to permanently remove a Flexible Line Balancing file from your computers hard drive. Note that deletion cannot be undone. Print Preview allows you to view how the on-screen data and graphics will appear when printed, done using the Print selection. The Print Setup choice allows you to do page formatting prior to printing the on-screen information. The Close selection will return you to the Flexible Line Balancing Main Menu. Edit Menu When you select Edit, the following choices are shown, each also activated by a mouse click or by use of specified Hot keys. The Insert and Append selections add a line to the Text Workspace on the Process screen. Insert adds the line immediately above the line selected (or the first line if no others exist), and Append places a new line at the end below the line selected (or the first line if no others exist). Delete permanently removes a line. Note that to remove or otherwise manipulate a line (e.g., for copy and paste). You can seFlexible Line Balancing V.3 User Guide 12 2001 LG Electronics Distributed by Production Technology

lect a line for deletion by clicking on any cell on that line. A short message will ask you to confirm any deletions. Copy and Paste commands allow duplication of existing lines in the analysis by selecting the line, copying, and placing to a new position. The Paste selection is not enabled if nothing has been selected and copied. Run and Graph Run and Graph are single-function choices (there are no dropdown sub-menus). Selecting Run will start the program actions to solve the Process scenario and present a line balancing solution. To execute a Run, you must have entered some number of Standard Elemental Tasks into the Text Workspace. After selecting Run, a dialog box appears in which you must choose the basis for work allocation, either Takt Time (cycle time), or Worker. This appears as follows: If you select Takt Time, enter the desired time in seconds or minutes, and select OK. The time must be equal to or greater than the standard time of the largest Standard Elemental Task. An error message will display if the time selected is too small. If you select Worker, you must provide the number of workers to be used in the assembly process. This can be any whole number.
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If no errors are detected by Flexible Line Balancing, the program will begin the computations to solve the process scenario. An animated bar display will appear on-screen to indicate progress toward a solution. Note that some time may elapse for solution of very complex scenarios. When computations are complete, Flexible Line Balancing will show a graphical analysis of the allocation of work elements in the problem. This includes notation of Takt Time, Neck Time, and a calculation of line efficiency. Task numbers are shown on the vertical bars that make up the graph.

After a graph appears, you may close the screen to return to the prior Process screen. While the current scenario is open, you may use the Graph menu selection to display the current graph again at any time. If any changes are made in the work elements that comprise the Process, use the Run command again to develop a current work allocation and graphical analysis.

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For more information about how to use the Graph feature, see the discussion on What If ? Analysis. Zoom Menu Flexible Line Balancing provides zoom functions to allow conveniences in viewing on-screen information. The Zoom menu allows normal screen viewing (1:1), or the ability to zoom In or Out to display information more legibly or effectively. Each mouse click In or Out increases or decreases the size of fields and characters in the Text or Graphic Workspaces of the Process screen. There is no limit to the size adjustment that can be made. To increase or decrease text size, you must first have selected a cell or line in the grid area. To use the Zoom function in the Graphic Workplace area of the screen, use the mouse to select any node there before using the Zoom feature. Window Menu An additional convenience to the user is the ability to manipulate the configuration of multiple windows on the screen. This may be useful when two or more Flexible Line Balancing files have been opened simultaneously and you wish to view or manipulate portions of each. If you select Cascade on the Window menu, the Text and Graphic Workplace screens from opened files will be overlaid on the screen, much like stacked cards, with title bars and file names protruding. You may activate any screen shown by clicking on its title bar.
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You can also use the Windows control boxes to display any screen full size or minimized, or to close a screen. The last entries in the drop-down menu indicate files currently open. Click on any entry to display that file in the active window. The illustration following shows three cascaded screens.

If you select Tile, either Vertically or Horizontally, the opened file data will be displayed in a side-by-side manner, either topto-bottom or left-to-right. The example of a Tiled screen following shows three files opened and tiled Vertically. As shown, the topmost Process screen is active, since the title bar is blue. The Process screen at the bottom has just been opened, since no elements have been added to the Text Workplace.

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Help Menu The Help Menu allows access to the main program Help file, plus additional functions. The table of contents for Help can be viewed by selecting Contents. When the Contents page appears, you may easily select and view any topic listed. How to Use Help allows you to move directly to the Help file contents which provide information about Windows Help files. Information is available about where to look, printing, copying Help topics, and many other Windows features. There is an exFlexible Line Balancing V.3 User Guide 17 2001 LG Electronics Distributed by Production Technology

tensive discussion on the features of the Windows Help system later in this manual. The Search selection allows you to find Help topics by entering specific search words. The Windows Help system scans its internal database of words and phrases in the Flexible Line Balancing file and lists all applicable Help sections for your review. Choosing About Flexible Line Balancing displays a small screen which contains version, copyright, and distribution information about the program. Standard Elemental Task When you select Standard Elemental Task from the Main Menu, the screen shown following appears. As with Process, the screen is divided into two areas, the Text Workplace and the Graphic

Text Workplace

Graphic Workplace

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Workplace. The relative screen size of each workplace on this screen may also be changed with use of the mouse. The Text Workplace is provided for entering information required to build Standard Elemental Tasks which can then be used to build a Process scenario. An Elemental Task may also be called a Work Element or an Indivisible Element. A Standard Elemental Task is a element that is used in building a Process later, on the Process screen. Standard Elemental Tasks have standard times and precedence constraints assigned to them. This is done on the Standard Elemental Task screen. A screen display is shown following which contains several Standard Elemental Tasks. These may be named and saved as files, creating a library for use in building process scenarios.

Note that, unlike the Process screen, the Standard Elemental Task screen has no Work Area field. The fields are: No: A sequential line number automatically generated by Flexible Line Balancing. Elem Task Description: Enter a brief description for each an elemental task. ST: Enter the standard for each elemental task.
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Elem Task # (Elemental Task Number): This is an automatically generated unique number for each elemental task.

The next several column headings refer to how relationships between and among elemental tasks are defined. See the section on Elemental Task Relationships. As in the Process screen, additional columns are provided for optional user entry of information about tooling or notes about the task. Elemental Task Relationships Each task in the line balancing problem must be identified with its sequence in the assembly activity. This is called precedence. To establish the computer model, you must enter several characteristics of each elemental task and its relationship to other tasks. The specific conditions that may be specified for each are listed as follow: Prec (Preceding Elemental Task Number): Enter the immediate prior Elemental Task Number or the several prior Elemental Task Numbers that are required to be completed before the current task.

Selected Elemental Task Number: 3 Preceding Elemental Task Number: 1, 2

When entering more than one task, separate the numbers with commas. In the precedence diagram shown below, the tasks are indicated by circles. The first two Elemental Tasks (1, 2) do not
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have preceding tasks. The solid lines and arrows between tasks indicate direction and sequence, left to right. Sep (Separate Elemental Task Number): If a current task may not be included in a work station assignment with another prior task, indicate this under the Sep column, entering the task number that should be excluded. Graphically, this is displayed as a red dotted line between elemental tasks.

Selected Elemental Task Number: 3 Separate Elemental Task Number: 1

Ind (Independent Elemental Task Number): Select T if the current elemental task is done by an operator as an independent task, for example, an inspection operation. Select M if the current task is done by a machine as an independent task. If you do not specify either type, the automatic default entered will be F, which indicates neither of the prior types listed. The task is shown graphically as a gray circle.

Selected Elemental Task Number: 3 Independent Elemental Task Number: 3

Grp (Grouped Elemental Task Number): Grouped entries include tasks that must be included in a common group with work performed separately from other groups. Also, a task from one group cant be assigned at a workstation with a task from any
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other group. There can be more than one group in a specific problem. Graphically, each elemental task that has been assigned to a group will show a common color for the circle indicating the task.

In this example, one group includes Elemental Task Numbers 4, 5, 6. The circles will appear as red in the Graphic Workplace. Elemental Tasks 7 and 8 are in another group; these will appear as green in the Graphic Workplace. Conn (Connected Elemental Task Number): Select a next following Elemental Task Number that the current elemental task must be performed with. To state the constraint another way, the current task should be an immediately preceding task to the connected task. This relationship is shown graphically with the addition of a blue dotted line between the circles representing elemental tasks.

Selected Elemental Task Number: 1 Connected Elemental Task Number: 3

Cont (Contained Elemental Task Number): Enter a previous

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elemental task number that the current elemental task should contain. When Flexible Line Balancing executes Run, the standard time of the contained elemental task will be internally added to the current elemental task. It is displayed as gray dotted arrow between elemental tasks (circles).

Selected Elemental Task Number: 3 Contained Elemental Task Number: 1

Program Features Using Flexible Line Balancing, you are able to completely define all steps in an assembly process and then determine the optimum method of sequencing those tasks to insure the most efficient and productive output. In this section, several Flexible Line Balancing features and program options will be described. Building a Precedence Diagram A key factor in development of a balanced and efficient assembly process is the definition of elemental work tasks and their placement into a logical sequence. This is the function of the precedence diagram, also called a precedence chart. Precedence is the relationship of each given work element to all others in a given model, in terms of which elements must precede others and which are mutually exclusive (or independent) of another. Elements having no precedence are totally independent of all others.

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A precedence chart is a diagram of nodes which represent each element of work in a given model. The chart indicates sequence of work and desired or necessary sequence and precedence of activities. The precedence chart usually contains a description of the work element, its position as a node relative to all others, and a standard or normal time for its execution. Precedence charts are easily drawn in the Flexible Line Balancing program. Each elemental task entered into the Text Workplace grid on the Standard Elemental Task (SET) screen automatically generates a node, shown as a circle. As the description for each task is entered, a new circle appears in the Graphic Workplace. In the example following, three tasks have been entered, and three nodes of a precedence chart appear in the Graphic Workplace area.

Note that as nodes appear in the Graphic Workplace, they are stacked together. Each circle represents a sequential task taken from the Text Workplace grid, and each shows a consecutive number and the associated standard time. A green rectangular box surrounds the most recent element entered or the one that is currently active in the Text Workplace. At any time you may use the mouse to drag elements anywhere on the graphics area, expanding the diagram. When the example elements are separated, they are shown with interconnecting lines and arrowheads, as well as the
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appropriate standard times. If you have entered specific constraints in precedence, such as Separate, Connected, Independent, Grouped, or Contained tasks, the appropriate colored or dashed interconnecting lines will also appear. When you have entered any number of elements to the Standard Elemental Task workplaces, you may save the sequence to a file for future use, which may include use of all elements or Importing of selected elements into another scenario. When you select File/Save on the SET menu, the following dialog box appears. To save your work, enter a name for the file. In the example, Casting Check is used. An optional field is also provided for brief notes about the saved tasks. Select OK to permanently save the information, or Cancel to go on without saving.

To open a previously-saved file, select File/Open on the Standard Elemental Task menu. A dialog box similar to the following will appear.

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Select the file to open and click OK to proceed. The file contents, both text and graphics, will be loaded to the SET screen, where you may modify, add, or delete elements. Select Cancel to return to the prior screen. The Flexible Line Balancing program has virtually unlimited capacity to create complex precedence relationships and diagrams. The example following is the Complex sample diagram provided with the Flexible Line Balancing program. Here,

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57 work elements are described and shown graphically. Note that in this example, elements 51 through 57 have been identified as belonging to a different work group, as indicated by the letter B in the Grp field shown below on the Process screen.

As a result, the drawing generated by Flexible Line Balancing will show those elements in a different color, in this case blue. All similar elemental constraints entered into the Text Workplace will appear on the precedence diagram that is fabricated in the Graphic Workplace. The use of different screen colors, lines, and broken lines allow you to easily expand the diagram and position elements on the screen for best viewing. Building a Process Scenario In Flexible Line Balancing, you may build a Process scenario from either the Standard Elemental Task (SET) function of the program, or directly on the Process screen. If you are using preexisting element descriptions and standard times which have been saved and filed within the program, you may wish to imFlexible Line Balancing V.3 User Guide 27 2001 LG Electronics Distributed by Production Technology

port one or more of those files into a Process. If desired, you may work directly on the Process screen, creating and saving elemental tasks as part of the Process file. In the following example, a new process scenario is defined by entering a few Standard Elemental Tasks directly to a Process. Following that, additional Standard Elemental Tasks are imported to the Process from the Casting Check file illustrated in the prior section. First, open a new Process from the Main Menu, by selecting Process.

On the Process screen that appears, enter data for desired tasks. In this example, three tasks are entered. The first line is created in The Text Workspace by using Edit/Insert on the menu. Following lines can be added using Edit/Append. When a blank line has been added, you may type the data in appropriate fields.

At this point, you may elect to save these elements. As an example, the file is saved as Porosity Test. Also, if desired, the Process screen can be closed by using File/Close or the close toolbar icon.
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To add pre-existing work elements (Standard Elemental Tasks) to the threetask Process just defined, you should use the File/Import menu selection on the Process screen. In this example, the total desired Process will be built by adding other operations which were structured and saved as Standard Elemental Tasks. These will be Imported to complete the Process.

On the main Process menu, select File/Import/Standard Elemental Task. Available saved SET files will be displayed in the list that follows. Select the file Casting Check.

After clicking OK, the file contents are added to the Process
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Text Workplace following the existing three lines as shown following. Notice that the added elements are automatically numbered sequentially as numbers 4-6. Also, Flexible Line Balancing automatically reassigns numbers in the Prec column to indicate correct precedence relationships for the added tasks.

In the example, assume that Tasks 4-6 must occur before Tasks 1-3. This is corrected by using Edit functions to Copy and Paste. First, select the elements to be moved (Tasks 4-6) as shown in the illustration below. After selection, click Edit/Copy to copy contents of these lines.

Finally, place the mouse cursor on the first line. This indicates to the program that the first line of those copied will be placed there. Now use Edit/Paste to place the lines in the Process. The resultant Text Workplace now appears as follows. Note the new lines are automatically assigned new task numbers (7-9).

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Now, to finish the example, you must remove the last three lines, which are duplicates of those tasks moved to the beginning of the Process. To do this, select the last three lines and use Edit/Delete to remove the data from the Text Workplace. (Alternatively, you can use the keyboard Delete key to remove data, but the lines will still remain. In this case, the blank lines can be used to input additional tasks, if desired). After deleting the unwanted lines, the Text Workplace appears as below:

At this point, you have successfully integrated an existing Process file with additional tasks which were imported from a saved Standard Elemental Task file. To finish the Process scenario, you must still review the precedence relationships shown. In the example, the last three tasks follow the first three; therefore you must change the contents of the Prec column. With these changes, the resulting Text and Graphics Workplaces appear as shown following:

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The Import and Edit file functions in Flexible Line Balancing are versatile tools which can be used to rapidly fabricate Process scenarios in a variety of ways. Use of the Import function can be used to integrate existing Process or Standard Elemental Task files, and the Copy and Paste commands can be used to quickly rearrange the Process. Also, you can use the Edit/Cut, Edit/Insert, Edit/Append, or Edit/Delete menu commands to structure the Process sequence. Time Units In Flexible Line Balancing, the unit of time used for the Standard Time entry field (ST) is optional with the user. You may elect to use seconds, minutes, or any other consistent unit. The time is recorded in Process and Standard Elemental Task files and used to assign workstation time with the COMSOAL algorithm. You must be consistent. Do not intermix time units within a single problem. It is recommended you choose a constant unit and use that for all Flexible Line Balancing work. Flexible Line Balancing will accept standard times to two decimal places. Also, it is not necessary to prefix decimal values with a zero when entering data. For example, enter .3, not 0.3.

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Graphics Legend The Graphics Legend box may be turned on or off using the Options selection on the Main Menu. The legend box, shown here, optionally appears on the Process screen. It is used to identify the graphic conventions used to construct precedence diagrams in Flexible Line Balancing. You may close the legends box at any time by selecting the Close command button. In the illustration shown, Separate is a red dotted line, Connected is blue, and Contained is gray. Independent tasks are represented by a gray circle, and Grouped tasks are shown as blue circles. All Preceding tasks are connected with a black line and arrowhead. These conventions of color and style are used consistently throughout the program to indicate constraining conditions in work flow and task requirements. The Graphics Legend box is shown only on the Process screen. Doing a What If? Analysis A powerful feature of Flexible Line Balancing is the ability to perform a line balancing computation on a defined Process, then revise the result incrementally. In the following example, the
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sample file Simple has been opened on the Process screen using the File/Open menu selection.

The loaded file appears as shown. Note 1) that the Graphics Legend is On in this example, and; 2) that the elements of work are not assigned to workstations since the program line balancing computations have not yet been made. Also, the optional user entry field Work Area has no information yet. As example, a Takt Time of 18 has been entered to the Run Criteria dialog box. Alternatively, a number of workers or workstations could have been specified

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After selecting OK, the example Process is Run. Following completion of Flexible Line Balancing calculations, results are presented graphically.

With the given elements, precedence relationships, and specified Takt Time, this is the best result possible, as computed by Flexible Line Balancing. The analysis shows a relatively poor work allocation over six workstations, with an efficiency of 80.4%. On the Graph, the selected Takt Time of 18 is shown, and also Neck Time, which is the duration of the longest set of work elements. To achieve a better result, Takt Time may be varied and the problem run again as many times as necessary to achieve a better result, within your production conditions. To achieve a better balancing solution, the problem is Run again,
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with a trial Takt Time of 19. You may use any desired cycle time, but the selection must be equal to or greater than the length of the longest Standard Elemental Task. This yields a somewhat better solution, with efficiency of 86.3% and five workstations. If five, rather than six workstations are satisfactory, this may be an appropriate solution. Remember that Flexible Line Balancing always arrives at the optimum solution, considering precedence, constraints and the specified run

criteria, either Takt Time or number of workers. The program may literally examine hundreds or thousands of alternative solutions during the Run process to arrive at the most productive balance. To make a significant change in the result, one or more work elements or other constraints must be changed. When the Run has been completed and the graphical result examined, you may close the Graph screen and return to the ProcFlexible Line Balancing V.3 User Guide 36 2001 LG Electronics Distributed by Production Technology

ess screen. Notice now that the Standard Elemental Tasks have been combined into operations or workstations as shown on the graph. In this example, there are five workstations or process areas where tasks are grouped. These five groupings correspond to the color-coded nodes on the precedence diagram shown in the Graphics Workplace.

Each time you execute a Run in Flexible Line Balancing, the work elements are reallocated and grouped by the Proc # field. At this point, you can also enter auxiliary information to the Work Area field if desired. In the example, the Work Areas have been identified as Assy area 1, Assy area 2, and Final assy. This may be done before or after the Run. You may repeat the Run procedure any number of times, varying either the Takt Time or the number of workstations until an acceptable solution is reached. At that point, you should name and save the Process file, using the File/Save menu command on the
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Process screen. Using Interactive Graphics in What If? Analysis Flexible Line Balancing offers an alternative method to examine work task allocation on the program graph. In this case, you can the computer mouse to move elements directly on the graph produced by running the Flexible Line Balancing program. Returning to the earlier example using a Takt Time of 18, you may click on any element of work to assess the possibilities of combining it with other tasks at different workstations. In this case, we have selected Task 8, which is then highlighted in yellow. When you select a work element, it will be highlighted in yellow and some other elements at remaining workstations will appear in blue. In the example shown, element 7 at station 2, element 9 at station 4, and element 12 at station 5 are now displayed in blue.

Blue

Yellow

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Elements shown in blue are those which Flexible Line Balancing has determined are representative locations where the yellow task in question may be moved. To move the yellow task to a new location, simply click your mouse on one of the blue tasks shown; Flexible Line Balancing will move the candidate task to the workstation of the blue task selected. Flexible Line Balancing may not show any elements in blue; if this happens, it is because the candidate task is constrained from moving from its current location. Conversely, many tasks may appear as alternate locations for the selected item. When this occurs, it is indicative there are few constraints in the precedence diagram. To further illustrate, Task 8 will be moved from station 3 to station 4, where it will be placed with existing Task 9. After clicking on Task 9, Flexible Line Balancing re-computes the work allocation and displays a revised graph. In the illustration, note that the program has now joined Task 8 to Tasks 9 and 12 in

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station 4. However, the instantaneous efficiency calculation done by Flexible Line Balancing shows this was not a prudent move, since efficiency has slipped to 75.9% from the prior 80.4%. This solution should probably be discarded. As illustrated, Flexible Line Balancing gives you easy-to-use and versatile tools to examine various work combinations in any type of what if ? situation. Remember that the Run always produces an optimum solution for line efficiency. If specific tasks are subsequently moved, it is generally done to accommodate other considerations not shown in the precedence constraints, and usually results in lowering efficiency. As a final note about the Graph function, remember that the last graph executed is the one which will be displayed when the Graph menu command on the Process screen is used. If you name and save a Process file and exit the program, you may display the same graph the next time the program is used by selecting the Graph command after the file is reopened. Printing Results Flexible Line Balancing allows you to fully format, preview, and print all information and graphics that are viewed on screen at any time. This is accomplished using the print functions on the File menu which appears on both the Process and Standard Elemental Task screens and also the Graph screen. Both Standard Elemental Task text information and precedence charts from the Graphic Workplace may be printed. Using the Process screen as example, the File menu includes functions for Print Preview, Print Setup, and Print.
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After selecting File, click on the Print Setup menu function. Using the dialog box that appears next, you may adjust several printing parameters, including choice of printer, paper size and source, and page orientation, either portrait or landscape.

Following Print Setup, you may also wish to preview the printed result. Do this by clicking Print Preview. This will display a graphic approximation of how the printed page will appear. An example (partial screen) is shown following.

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Note that the Print Preview screen includes several controls to assist in viewing. You may zoom in or out on the displayed page by positioning the mouse pointer over the page and clicking, or you may use the Zoom In or Zoom Out command buttons. Also, you may display one or two pages, and advance from page to page with the Next or Prev Page controls. If satisfied with the view, you may send the page directly to the printer with the Print command button. If you choose to print, either from this preview screen or from the File/Print menu command, a printing dialog box will display. This display will allow you to make several choices about the printing task, including page numbers to print (or all, or a selected section), number of copies of each page, and whether to print to paper or to a file. If your printer has the capability, copy collation may also be an option. To access additional settings for your specific printer, select the Properties button.

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You may preview and print all areas of both the Text and Graphic Workplaces on Process and Standard Elemental Task screens. When you wish to print the text information, place the mouse in that portion of the screen and select any cell on the grid. When you wish to print a precedence diagram from the Graphic Workplace, click on any node in the chart. These actions will instruct the Flexible Line Balancing program to preview the desired area, either text or graphic. Following is an example print preview of the Graphic Workplace (partial page shown).

You may also setup, preview and print the graphs generated by using the Run menu command on the Process screen. The illustrations show the menu choices on the Graph screen and an example of print preview for a graph.

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Print Setup and Print options for printing a graph are identical to those used for printing text or precedence diagrams from the Process or Standard Elemental Task screens. Graph Menu Selections The Graph screen that appears when a Process has been Run displays a number of menu choices which are similar to those appearing on the Process and SET screens. Shown below, the Main Menu bar allows you to access several functions, including a Zoom control, a Window viewing control, information About Flexible Line Balancing, and an array of Help commands. The File menu, shown in the prior section, displays commands for Print functions and Closing the Graph screen.

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Zoom and Window functions are identical to those for the Process and SET menus discussed earlier in this manual.

Error Messages As in any complex computer software, there are possibilities for error and anomalous outcomes in use of the Flexible Line Balancing program. In most cases, erroneous user inputs will result in on-screen error messages, similar to the example shown.

In this case, the user attempted to use the Edit/Paste command without having any lines yet entered in a new file. In another example, a Run is attempted with a user-input Takt Time less than the standard time of the largest work element. The resulting message is shown.

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In general, Flexible Line Balancing error messages do not cause a fatal error in the program performance. They are, as indicated by the icon, informational in nature. You should click OK, correct the procedure which caused the error, and go on. Many other messages relate to the precedence data you have used in the program.

In the case shown here, the error message indicates a logic conflict in precedence between two tasks in a Process. In this case, the message tells you the exact cause of the problem. If you encounter a problem which locks your computer, both on-screen and keyboard, it is probably a non-recoverable situation. In many cases, the data and precedence relationships input by the user have a problem that cause the COMSOAL algorithm calculations to enter an infinite loop. In this case, shut down the Flexible Line Balancing program by use of CTRL-ALT-DEL keys to end the task. Restart the program and re-examine the task structure you have built. If problems continue, divide your Process into smaller groups of tasks, and run an initial grouping first. If successful, add subsequent task groupings until you discover the problem cause. It is advised you always save the Standard Elemental Task or Process files you have built before executing a Run.

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Sample Files Flexible Line Balancing includes sample files for your use in becoming familiar with the program. These are named Complex and Simple. Both files may be opened from either the Process or the Standard Elemental Task screens. You should actively use these files to gain familiarity with Flexible Line Balancing procedures and conventions, including all the edit functions and file saving and manipulation procedures. You can also execute several runs and move elements to establish What If? scenarios. You may also build new processes using selected tasks from these files. If you use the sample files, you should Save them by other names, so that the original files remain intact. In this manner, you will always have access to the originals without possible need for reinstallation from the distribution CD-ROM. Importing and Exporting Data You may import data to Flexible Line Balancing from an external source or copy its data and paste to another location, such as a spreadsheet. To do this, use the copy and/or paste functions within Flexible Line Balancing and the external application (such as Microsoft Excel). Open the two applications, select the desired data in either location, and copy. This will place the data on the Windows Clipboard. In the opposing location, paste into the appropriate cells. As an example, to paste data from Excel to Flexible Line Balancing, type Element Task Description in the third column of a new worksheet, type the Standard Time in the fourth column, and type a unique identification number for each Elemental Task
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in the fifth column as above. Select and copy these rows, then go to the Flexible Line Balancing screen and use Edit/Paste on the Standard Elemental Task menu. After using the Paste command, you will have the following screen.

Elemental Tasks numbered 1,2,3, and 4 are automatically changed to the proper sequence of numbers in Flexible Line Balancing. In the illustration following, the last prior existing Elemental Task was #57. When the new data is pasted to the grid, the program automatically assigns proper numbers for them (58, 59, 60, and 61). In doing this process, you should be cautious to be sure the data has been placed into the desired cells and that none has been overwritten or lost. When all desired information has been moved, check the precedence relationships and make adjustment as necessary.

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