PLANT LOCATION & PLANT LAYOUT - Pharmaceutical Engineering B. Pharm Third Semester PDF Notes

 PLANT LOCATION & PLANT LAYOUT

Contents

•       Plant location

•       Plant layout

•       Utilities and services

Learning objectives

•       Understand the plant location

•       Designin the plant layout

•       Discuss the utilities and services

PLANT LOCATION:

• A plant should be located at a place where inhabitants are interested in its success, the product can be sold profitably and production cost is minimum – DR. Vishweshwarya.
• A plant location is often result of compromise among conflicting social, economic and geographical conditions – Lansburg.

The principle factors to be considered for the location of a plant:

·         Availability of Raw materials

·         Nearness to Potential market

·         Supply of Labour

·         Transportation facilities

·         Availability of Utilities : Water, Fuel, Power

·         Suitability of Climate & Land

·         Local Community Considerations

·         Political Strategic Considerations

·         Environmental Impact, And Effluent Disposal.

Availability of Raw Materials:

·         The Availability And Price Of Suitable Raw Materials Will Often Determine The Site Location. Plants Producing Bulk Chemicals Are Best Located Close To The Source Of The Major Raw Material.

·         EX: Soda Ash Plant Should Be Located Near The Salt Lakes Or Near Sea, Where Sodium Chloride Is Available Abundantly.

Nearness to Potential Market:

·         For Materials That Are Produced In Bulk Quantities: Such As Cement, Mineral Acids and Fertilizers, the Plant Should Be Located Close To the Primary Market.

Supply of Labour :

·         Local Trade Union Customs And Restrictive Practices Will Have To Be Considered When Assessing The Availability And Suitability Of The Labour For Recruitment And Training.

·         An Adequate Pool of Unskilled Labour Available Locally.

Transportation Facilities:

·         The Transport Of Materials And Products To And From Plant Will Be An Overriding Consideration.

·         If Practicable, A Site Should Be Selected That Is Close to At Least Two Major Forms Of Transport: Road, Rail, Waterway Or A Seaport.

Availability of Utilities: Water, Fuel, Power:

·         The Word “Utilities” Is Now Generally Used For The Ancillary Services Needed In The Operation Of Any Production Process.

·         Electricity: Power Required For Electrochemical Processes, Motors, Lightings, And General Use.

·         Steam For Process Heating: The Steams Required For The Process Are Generated In The Tube Boilers Using Most Economic Fuel.

·         Water For General Use: The Water Required For The General Purpose Will Be Taken From Local Water Supplies.

Suitability of Climate & Land:

·         Adverse Climatic Conditions at Site Will Increase Costs. Abnormally Low Temperatures Will Require The Provision Of Additional Insulation And Special Heating For Equipment And Piping.

·         Sufficient Suitable Land Must Be Available For The Proposed Plant And Future Expansion. The Land Should Be Ideally Flat, Well Drained and Have Load-Bearing Characteristics. A Full Site Evaluation Should Be Made To Determine The Need For Piling Or Other Foundations.

Local Community Considerations:

·         The Proposed Plant Must Fit In With and Be Acceptable To the Local Community. Full Consideration Must Be Given To The Safe Location of The Plant. So That It Does Not Impose A Significant Additional Risk To The Community.

Political and Strategic Considerations:

·         Capital Grants, Tax Concessions, And Other Inducements Are Often Given By Governments To Direct New Investment To Preferred Locations; Such As Areas Of High Unemployment. The Availability Of Such Grants Can Be The Overriding Consideration In Site Selection.

Environmental Impact, And Effluent Disposal:

·         All Industrial Processes Produce Waste Products, And Full Consideration Must Be Given To The Difficulties And Coat Of Their Disposal. The Disposal Of Toxic And Harmful Effluents Will Be Covered By Local Regulations, And The Appropriate Authorities Must Be Consulted During The Initial Site Survey To Determine The Standards That Must Be Met.

LAYOUT PLANNING:

·         Layout planning in manufacturing and service organizations involves the physical arrangement of various resources available in the system to improve the performance of the operating system, thereby providing better customer service.

Plant layout begins with plant location and continues through 3 further levels:

·         Layout of department with in site.

·         Layout of items with in the department.

·         Layout of individual work place.

Objectives of Plant Layout:

·         Economies of materials, facilitation of manufacturing and handling of goods.

·         Proper and efficient use of floor space.

·         Ensure proper flow of goods and processes without any delay.

·         Provision of supervision and control.

Objectives of Plant Layout:

·         Careful planning to avoid changes and re-layout of a plant.

·         Provision of safety to workers.

·         Meet quality and capacity requirement in the most economical manner.

·         Provision of adequate medical facilities and refreshment facilities.

·         Have enough of material handling space.

·         Space for future expansion.

Implications of Layout Planning:

·         The relationship between “volume-variety-flow” provides crucial inputs to the layout problem.

·         As the flow becomes more cumbersome, the type of layout may significantly influence the ability of the operations manager to effectively plan and control operations on the shop floor.

Types of Layouts:

·         Over the years, operations management and practitioners have evolved four major types of layouts.

Types of Layouts:

·         Process Layout

·         Product Layout

·         Group Technology Layout

·         Fixed Position Layout

Process Layout:

·         A process layout is an arrangement of resources on the basis of the process characteristics of the resources available.

·         Product layout has a disorganized flow.

·         Process layout is normally used when the production volume is not sufficient to justify a product layout. Typically, job shops employ process layouts due to the variety of products manufactured and their low production volumes.

Product Layout:

·         In a product layout, the resources are placed to follow exactly the process sequence dictated by a product. Eg. Tablet production

·         The product layout is selected when the volume of production of a product is high such that a separate production line to manufacture it can be justified. 

Group Technology Layout:

·         Its combination of Process and product layouts. Group Technology Layout is a philosophy that seeks to exploit the commonality in manufacturing and uses this as the basis for grouping components and resources. The GT is often known as Cellular Manufacturing.

Fixed Position Layout:

·         Fixed Position Layout are typically employed in large – project type organizations. Eg. Ships building

Utilities and services

•       Process utility systems are the systems that are designed to satisfy the requirements of the production processes.

•       Pharma industry requires the following services:

–      Power (Purchased and self-generating)

–      Lighting (Natural and artificial)

–      Water (Purified [RO, distillation, ultrafiltration], WFI), Storage

–      Air conditioning: Tablets, Softgel caps, sterile products

–      Air: Filtered air, HEPA,

–      Gases: Nitrogen, Helium

–      Vacuum system: Drying

–      Dust collection: Removal of air born particles

–      Effluent treatment: for waste remaining

Summary

•       A plant should be located at a place where inhabitants are interested in its success, the product can be sold profitably and production cost is minimum

•       Layout planning in manufacturing and service organizations involves the physical arrangement of various resources available in the system to improve the performance of the operating system, thereby providing better customer service.

•       Process utility systems are the systems that are designed to satisfy the requirements of the production processes.

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