Sequencing orders of multiple sized stock sheets

Abstract

This thesis studies the problem of two-dimensional multiple sized stock sheets cutting. It is concerned primarily with the problem of how to sequence orders of multiple sized stock sheets in order to minimize the total trim-loss for a given bill of material. Existing optimal and heuristic pro edures do not balance well the conflicting requirements of efficient stock sheet utilization and minimal computational effort. A critical study of these procedures, however, leads to a new procedure which is based on a single stock sheet layout approach. The procedure is designed for an IBM compatible microcomputer. It is compared with three of the better existing procedures using test data created by a random problem generator. Results show that the new procedure performs relatively well.