CP-BASED PROJECT DRIVEN MANUFACTURING

Constraint programming (CP) is an emergent software technology for declarative description and effective solving of large combinatorial problems. Such problems are frequently encountered in area of integrated production planning, where CP can be considered as a well-suited framework for the development of Production Process Planning (PPP) decision support software for small and medium size enterprises. In this context, the utility of the CP methodology lies mainly in providing an answer whether a given production order, specified by its cost and completion time, can be accepted in a given manufacturing system specified by the time-constrained production resource availability. The aim of the paper is to present the CP modeling framework as well as to illustrate its application in the design of decision support systems aimed at PPP of a new production order.