Principle of flow control in CONWIP mode

The CONWIP (CONstant Work In Process) method aims to maintain a constant quantity of work-in-process on a production line at all times. To achieve this, we first define a fixed number of production orders. The control instruction is simple: each production order sent to the line must be accompanied by a production authorization to enter the line. When all available permits have been committed to the line, new production orders must wait at the start of the line. In this way, the line will not be saturated by an excessive amount of work-in-process. At the other end, when a production order leaves the line, the accompanying authorization becomes available again. This allows a new order to enter the line.

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