A manufacturing facility assembles three different types of products, named P1, P2, and P3. These products consist of one or more component types. There are three different types of components, named C1, C2, and C3. Product P1 contains one component C1, product P2 contains one component C1 and one C2, and product P3 contains one component C1 and one C3.
Two inspectors clean and repair the components. Inspector 1 works on C1 components. Inspector 2 works on C2 and C3 components in random order. The inspectors will never have to wait for components. There is an infinite inventory of them always immediately available.
There are three workstations in the facility, named W1, W2, and W3, which assemble products P1, P2, P3, respectively. After the components pass inspection they are sent to their respective workstations. Each workstation has a buffer capacity of two components, with one buffer available for each of the component types needed. A product can begin being assembled only when components of all types required are available.
If all workstation buffers for a specific type of components are full, the corresponding inspector who finished inspecting a component with the same type is considered “blocked" until there is an opening, at which time the inspector can resume processing and sending components of that type.
