Resource oriented assessment of alternative process chains

Challenges and possibilities in process chain assessment in the production planning process. In consequence of rising costs for raw materials and energy, the question for a sustainable production is becoming more and more important. A considerable part of the energy and resource demand in manufacturing is defined in the production planning process. Thus the chosen production technique and the consequential process design have a major influence on the consumption values. Until today there exists no method to assess different process chains towards their resource efficiency in early phases of the production planning process. Basing on a reference model a software tool is developed which helps the production engineer choosing the most efficient production techniques. This tool bases on a methodology to calculate the anticipatory energy and resource consumption of different process techniques. After the development process, the tool is validated and optimized in a real production environment. © Carl Hanser Verlag, München.