Thanks for viewing the post! Just for background information, I have used Solver in the past in school. However, the problems were not that difficult.

Currently, I am fighting upper management for my value stream production requirements. So far, scheduling has produced a capacity model (simple) showing that we need an additional machine in a cell. Management used a contractor for a time study and the consultant also stated we needed an additional machine. Still not convinced, management has asked for additional proof, using a Lean tool called a work combination table. The tool breaks down the part into smaller functions consisting of hands on work, automated tasks and walking.

Here is the problem:
One operator per shift
Four machines
Six Parts that have differing requirements between the operator and machine involving 13 steps
Each step might involve time for hand, automated and walking times.
The schedule is rigid for the week.

Example, for the week, there are different shipping requirements for each part:
Part A: 55
Part B: 6
Part C: 40
Part D: 15
Part E: 15
Part F: 2

I have seen several examples of minimizing the time to build a part through multiple machines, but the conflict in this is the operator. The operator can only do one operation at a time, so parts are started at different times and come off the machines at different times. I think we can meet the demand by adding an operator per shift and I started trying to use solver, but I am not sure how to set it up. Ultimately, I need to know how many days it takes to meet the schedule.

Should I give up and do this by hand using a cascading schedule chart typical production is about 100 parts per week. The issue there is knowing how to optmimize between the parts, I can't assume we should run all part A to start. It would be a mixture per machine per day.

Any input would help!