Assembly planning and process optimization succeed when you compare layout variants based on data instead of gut feeling. This lets you shorten walking times, stabilize takt, improve ergonomics, and save floor space before expensive rebuilds are due. The methods are well known: value stream analysis, spaghetti diagrams, and MTM or REFA time building blocks. With VR factory planning in Halocline, the planning platform for production layouts and workstations, iterations get faster and decisions become traceable.
A variant comparison ranks layouts by measurable criteria and makes trade-offs visible. You assess cost per unit, throughput, ergonomic quality, space utilization, and material flow, and compare them for all variants using the same scheme. This creates a traceable basis instead of individual opinions.
You convert walking times pragmatically: distance in meters divided by 1.4 m/s gives seconds. 50 m corresponds to about 36 s, and if the route per cycle drops by 20 percent, that saves around 7 s. Effects like these act directly on the cycle time, which you derive from MTM or REFA building blocks plus realistic allowances and compare with the takt. The takt itself results from demand and available time.
You quantify inventory with Little's Law. At 30 parts per hour and a lead time of 0.5 hours, the result is 15 parts of work in process (WIP). Supplement the analysis with grasp and route classes, traffic route widths according to the German workplace rule ASR A1.8, and an ergonomic assessment. With the Rapid Upper Limb Assessment (RULA), 1 to 2 points are acceptable, 3 to 4 need investigation, 5 to 6 need changes soon, and 7 needs changes immediately. The Rapid Entire Body Assessment (REBA) has its own scale: up to 3 is low risk, 4 to 7 medium, and 8 or more high. This links productivity, safety, and ergonomics.
Set clear boundary conditions: the shift model, variant mix, demand, and scope define the assessment framework. You bring production planning, industrial engineering (IE) and lean, assembly, logistics, and occupational safety together in joint reviews. In Halocline, one person walks across the virtual shopfloor in VR at 1:1 scale while the others follow the walkthrough in spectator mode on screen. You create variants as copies and record assumptions with labels directly in the model. This keeps the layout comparison consistent.
Start with a clean value stream mapping: process times, waiting times, inventory, and the interfaces to logistics and quality. A spaghetti diagram shows walking routes, crossings, and bottlenecks; the conversion into time uses 1.4 m/s as a guideline. For the cycle time, you break the work steps down into MTM or REFA building blocks and add sensible allowances. The station with the longest cycle time is the bottleneck and determines what the line can produce.
For material flow, you assess circulation, routes, and batch sizes, and you derive WIP as a model from throughput and lead time. You secure data quality with a measurement plan, suitable sample sizes, and a plausibility check on site at the gemba. In Halocline, you measure distances with the measuring tool, check grasping areas with grasping area avatars, and display the minimum passage width while walking through. If you record a workflow in VR, the recording provides routes, times, and the spaghetti diagram, and the tabular report captures the values for each variant. With the MTMmotion export (add-on), you can also transfer recorded workflows into an MTM analysis.
Define a variant space, for example conservative, moderate, and ambitious, and formulate hypotheses such as 20 percent fewer routes, 30 percent less WIP, or 25 percent less changeover time. A compact scenario matrix with a few high-impact factors such as batch size, material supply, and staffing mix shows how robust the results are against the assumptions. Recalculate the takt with 10 to 20 percent more or less demand, play through disruption levels or missing-part rates, and watch when buffers tip over or the bottleneck shifts.
In assembly layout planning, you rework variants in Halocline with no training required and without CAD data, using the library. Position and angle grids help with precise placement: you rotate tables, swap racks, or adjust material supply. Consistent naming of the variants and recorded assumptions ensure comparability and make the decision traceable later on.
The walkthrough in VR at 1:1 scale creates transparency on the shopfloor before any hardware exists. Planning, assembly, logistics, and occupational safety see the same layout and check fields of view and grasping areas, routes, passage widths, and collisions. Labels anchor feedback directly at the object. This means fewer misunderstandings between teams and faster approvals.
You iterate layouts without CAD data, use the library, and place objects on the grid. This makes routes, grip heights, and material paths immediately tangible, bottlenecks stand out, and corrections are quick. You analyze processes by running through them in VR and recording them: walking routes, measuring distances, evaluating routes and times, and identifying problematic object movements with the ergonomics analysis based on the key indicator method. Screenshots and measured values serve as evidence. At Siemens in Karlsruhe, workstation design with Halocline became 4x faster.
The effects can be quantified. A worked example: if you save 10 m of walking per cycle, that's about 7 s. Over 400 cycles per shift, this adds up to around 47 minutes less walking time per person. If the spread of cycle times also drops, for example from 15 to 8 percent, output becomes more stable. A more compact material supply can save floor space without violating passage widths. A simple ROI picture emerges when you value the hours saved per year at the wage rate and volume and set them against the investment.
For the decision, you compile the assumptions, the metrics from the tabular report, the differences between variants, and screenshots for each variant. Stakeholders see effects and side effects at a glance, and you have a traceable basis for pilot, implementation, and monitoring.
Want to validate your layout faster? Get started for free with Halocline Free and build your first workstation in 3D. For process analysis and the ergonomics check, get in touch and we'll show you the right scope.
