Evaluation of the Impact of Process Modeling on Opportunity Loss/Gain in a Manufacturing Environment

Process modeling is a very common research area in the field of manufacturing engineering. Examples of process modeling in machining include cutting forces, tool wear, machine thermal growth. Very few research has been done to demonstrate the impact they could have to improve a competitive edge of a company. In this paper, a model based on Monto Carlo simulation has been developed to provide an assessment tool for the impact of a process modeling on the competitive edge in an industrial setting. The competiveness is assessed as an improvement in quality by decreasing the defect rate, or as an opportunity to reduce losses if the process model has been developed or used. Finally, a case study based on an error compensation schema to eliminate the cutting tool deflection errors when machining free form surfaces is used to demonstrate the use and the benefits of a proposed assessment model.