POLCA – A CAED BASED MATERIAL CONTROL SYSTEM FOR LOW VOLUME AND CUSTOM PRODUCTS A CASE STUDY IN FURNITURE MANUFACTURING

The current research tackles a new philosophy of planning and control of resources and parts in the production process according to customization and small load size. Manufacturing systems designers by Quick Response Manufacturing (QRM) have devised a card that contains the characteristics of both the pulling and pushing system to find a solution to the flow of materials in a mechanism that achieves work in process reduction in addition to a high percentage reduction in lead time. The research also contains a follow up of the concept and mechanism of Polca with a reference to the ways of similarities and differences between them and the Kanban system, for the system also contains a case study of producing a new product according to Customization and small lot size within the framework of the Polca system procession logic. The research suggests an algorithm for issuing dispatching orders inside the cell to achieve an efficient flow between the two cells in the Polca loop. The results of research conforming that the polca card mechanisms achieve a powerful balance of materials follow through the product routing, in addition to the avoidance of accumulating the working process in front of cells. For that it has a good roll of reducing lead time. Quick Response Manufacturing QRM Agile Factory Mass Customization . QRM No-Value added . QRM POLCA HL/ MRP ) Suri, 1998, 8 ( . Pull System . QRM POLCA .