Simulation of production and logistics for concrete plants

Abstract

The focus of the current research is the multi-criteria task of decision-making support for the effective management of ready-mix concrete production and its delivery to construction sites, taking all possible risk factors into account. The development of a simulation model for the network of production facilities and the distribution chain of ready-made concrete mixtures is a key element of the project to create a digital twin in the production and logistics of a concrete plant. The relevance of this study is supported by the fact that post-war restoration of the destroyed housing stock, reconstruction of damaged infrastructure and industrial buildings, and the resumption of work at all construction sites in the country will lead to a sharp increase in the demand for concrete, which will obviously exceed the existing production capacity. Therefore, one of the top priorities for Ukrainian concrete plants today should be the implementation of a strategy and relevant development projects aimed at increasing productivity without losing quality. This research aims to create a simulation model of the production and delivery of ready-mixed concrete in a network of manufacturing plants and construction sites, as part of a project to create a digital double for making effective risk management decisions in real-time for the early detection of suboptimal activity in the production of high-quality concrete mix and its effective logistics. Thus, the objectives of the study are as follows:  to analyze the problems and features of creating digital duplicates in the production and logistics of concrete plants; to develop a simulation model of analyzing production processes and logistics of ready-mixed concrete mixtures; to provide an illustrated example of modeling production and logistics processes in a network of concrete factories and construction sites; to conduct optimization experiments to determine the modes of system operation. After all necessary work had been done, the following results have been obtained. A simulation model of the analyzing production processes and logistics of ready-mixed concrete mixtures has been developed, with the help of which it is possible to solve several tasks, including the evaluation of the rationality and efficiency in the organization of production and delivery of ready-mixed concrete, the identification of bottlenecks in production and logistics processes, forecasting of indicators activities of concrete plants, taking into account changes in production conditions, and forming data for decision-making on reducing plant and customer downtime, among others. Conclusions. The academic novelty of the study is related to the solution of the actual problem related to the preparation and planning of logistical actions for the delivery of ready-mixed concrete in the network of plants and construction sites bycreating a complex of optimization and simulation models, that contributes to the effectiveness of decision-making on risk management for the early detection of suboptimal activities in the production of commercial concrete mixtures and logistics. The effectiveness of the proposed approach is illustrated by an example of concrete delivery in a network of concrete factories in the Kharkiv region.