A new methodological approach for considering workers' diversity in assembly system design (by taking into account the European MAIA project)
Visiting Researcher, Niloofar Katiraee presented results from a study investigating workers’ diversity in production systems to understand how differences among workers affect production systems, with a particular focus on assembly systems. After an extensive literature analysis, new approaches and optimisations are proposed to integrate workers’ differences into assembly systems. Distinctively, a combination of worker features was considered with the objective of analysing the effectiveness of considering workers in assembly systems (in both design and rebalancing phases) and improving workers’ involvement in job assessments, promoting an inclusive culture in workplaces. This research work identifies important relations between workers’ differences and assembly system performance. The outcome of this research can be instructive for production system managers and practitioners whether deciding on investments in the design phase or in workforce management.