Nissan Europe Engineering Simulation

To aid in the production of its new NV200 Van, Nissan Europe Engineering relied on Simio’s discrete event simulation software to validate the layout of assembly lines in the automaker’s Barcelona plant.

A Simio partner in Europe completed a number of models in a multi-phased approach aimed at obtaining rapid answers to specific issues related with the deployment of the new lines. Among the challenges facing the team, several aspects were targeted as critical in terms of cost and time requirements:

• Analysis of number of hangers required to meet the projected vehicles throughput
• Validation of the alternative product mixes
• Evaluation of the docking process of various converging lines (bodies, chassis) paced at different times

Simio’s ease of use and ability to address the consecutive challenges faced throughout the progression of the project produced favorable results for the engineering team at Nissan Europe. The simple integration of 3D graphic objects – deemed “stunning” by the team — allowed Nissan Europe to create a high quality representation of real elements as found on the shop floor, such as different models of vehicles, carriers, monorails, and others. This visualization helped communicate the project – and Simio’s abilities — to Nissan management.

“We expect to continue the use of Simio to try to understand and resolve, through simulation, the potential problems of synchronization of the flow of vehicles on our other lines” said Nissan Europe Project Manager José Vilar. “Simio is seen as an effective complement to our other engineering tools.”

Note: This was a case study by a partner firm of Simio LLC, makers of Simio simulation software.