There are pre-existing rules to determine which parts are used, yes all can
be determined via a formula (presently we use spreadsheets to output proper
BOM's and the varying part's dimensions.
By the nature of our products, there could be hundreds of "configurations".
Our equipment varies (both size and components) by the varying requirements
of our customers load and facility requirements. If we manufacture two
identical units a year, it's because the are sold to the same customer and
the are positioned next to each other.
Keith
"Leo Laimer" wrote in message
news:51EB01235796A26F034653E43F5BE30D@in.WebX.maYIadrTaRb...
> Keith,
> May I ask you:
> - Who determines if a certain part is necessary or not? and in what size?
> Can this be put into an exact formula?
> - How many times would you use this functionality? Would you use it on
> hundreds of "configurations" or just a few ones?
>
> There was a huge project done by a competition office here, back in the
> MDT2.x days, where they did exactly what you are asking for: Some Mold
> assembly (well, rather a plant), where finally you enter some parameters,
> and the whole beast adjusted and assembled itself automatically.
> I think, this was about 1000 men-hours of work, and would (hopefully) save
> 1000ds of hour of work when being reused again and again.
> Not sure if it ever reached the break-even.
>
> So, the conclusion might be: It should be possible, in either package, but
> not sure if it's worth the effort.
>
> --
> Regards,
> ---
> Leo Laimer
> Bad Ischl - Austria
>
>