This document discusses facilities planning and location analysis. It summarizes BMW's decision to locate a new plant at an existing facility in Regensburg, Germany. Reasons for this selection included the facility's track record, flexibility to shift production, agility of the production team, saving time, developing skills of new recruits, and accessibility along with cost effectiveness and political climate. It defines plant layout as arranging machines, equipment and facilities to ensure efficient material flow from receipt to output. An optimal layout impacts production optimization, minimizing material handling time and costs, flexibility, flow, land and building use, effective labor utilization and improved worker quality of life. Product, production process and production volume determine layout.

1. Learning objectives
After reading this chapter you will able to understand:
 the concept of facilities planning
Various tools, techniques and models used for layout
planning
Layout decisions and its techniques
Flowcharting
Various types of layout
Location analysis
Various tools techniques and models for location
analysis

2. BMW’S LOCATION DECISION
 BMW had to take strategic decision about the location of their new
plant to produce the new models.
 Company decided to start up at one of its existing plants, at the
Regensburg plant in Germany.
 Reasons for the selection are:-
 Facility’s track record of high quality standards
 Flexibility to shift production from one model to another
 Agility of the production team
 Save a substantial amount of time
 Facilitate skill development of new recruits.
 Plant is well connected with roadways, train lines and an airport.
 Existing human resources are well trained and understands the
mechanism of production.
 Accessibility to local markets, cost effectiveness and a congenial
political climate

3. PLANT LAY OUT
 Plant lay out can be defined as the physical
arrangement of machines, equipment and all other
supportive facilities to production with in a factory to
ensure easy and cost effective flow of materials , right
from the receipt of materials to various stages of
production and finally the output.

4. IMPORTANCE OF LAYOUT DECISION
 It has an impact on the process of production, like
optimization of relationship among output, floor area
and manufacturing process, minimization of materials
handling time and cost, flexibility of operations, easy
flow of materials, economic use of land and building,
effective manpower utilization and improved quality
of work life for workers.

5. DETERMINANTS OF LAY OUT
 Product
 Production process
 Volume of production

6. TYPES OF LAYOUT