What is FlexSim FlexSim is a powerful analysis tool that helps engineers and planners make intelligent decisions in the design and operation of a system. With FlexSim, you can build a 3D computer model of a real-life system, then study that system in either a shorter time frame or for less cost than with the actual system. As a “what-if” analysis tool, FlexSim provides quantitative feedback on a number of proposed solutions to help you quickly narrow in on the optimum solution. With FlexSim’s realistic graphical animation and extensive performance reports, you can identify problems and evaluate alternative solutions in a short amount of time. By using FlexSim to model a system before it is built, or to test operating policies before they are actually implemented, you will avoid many of the pitfalls that are often encountered in the startup of a new system. Improvements that previously took months or years of trial-and-error experimentation to achieve can now be attained in a matter of days and hours using FlexSim. Modeling In technical terms, FlexSim is classified as a discrete-event simulation software program. This means that it is used to model systems which change state at discrete points in time as a result of specific events. Common states might be classifications such as idle, busy, blocked or down. Some examples of events would be the arrival of customer orders, product movement, and machine breakdowns. The items being processed in a discrete-event simulation model are often physical products, but they might also be customers, paperwork, drawings, tasks, phone calls, electronic messages, etc. These items proceed through a series of processing, queuing and transportation steps in what is termed a process flow. Each step of the process may require one or more resources such as a machine, a conveyor, an operator, a vehicle or a tool of some sort. Some of these resources are stationary and some are mobile. Some resources are dedicated to a specific task and others must be shared across multiple tasks. FlexSim is a versatile tool that has been used to model a variety of systems across a number of different industries. FlexSim is successfully used by small and large organizations with industries ranging from food processing, automotive, aerospace, defense, financial services, express logistics, project management, engineering, consumer electronics, and many more. There are three basic problems that can all be solved with FlexSim: 1. Service problems – the need to process customers and their requests at the highest level of satisfaction for the lowest possible cost. 2. Manufacturing problems – the need to make the right product at the right time for the lowest possible cost. 3. Logistic problems – the need to get the right product to the right place at the right time for the lowest possible cost. Examples of How FlexSim is Used To give you ideas for possible projects, FlexSim has successfully been used to: - improve equipment utilization - reduce waiting time and queue sizes - allocate resources efficiently - eliminate stock-out problems - minimize negative effects of breakdowns - minimize negative effects of rejects and waste - study alternative investment ideas - determine part throughput times - study cost reduction plans - establish optimum batch sizes and part sequencing - resolve material handling issues - study effect of setup times and tool changeovers - optimize prioritization and dispatching logic for goods and services - train operators in overall system behavior and job related performance - demonstrate new tool design and capabilities - manage day-to-day operational decision making FlexSim has been used successfully in both system design studies and in the managing of systems on a day-to-day operational basis. FlexSim has also been used for training and educational purposes. A FlexSim training model can provide insight into the complex dependencies and dynamics of a real-life system. It can help operators and management not only learn how a system operates, but learn what happens when alternative procedures are implemented. FlexSim has been used to build interactive models that can be manipulated while the model is running in order to help teach and demonstrate the cause and effects inherent in system management. Visualization FlexSim is a highly visible technology that can be used by forward-thinking marketers to elevate their company’s image and to declare to the outside world that their company takes pride in how it operates. It is surprising how effective an animated simulation model can be for getting management’s attention and influencing their way of thinking. The animation displayed during a simulation provides a superb visual aid for demonstrating how the final system will perform. Getting Started Tutorial The standard FlexSim Users Manual provides a getting started section, in which you will become familiar with the advantages of using simulation in your company. You will also get an initial introduction to the FlexSim environment. You will build a simple simulation model, then experiment with the model to see what effect different scenarios may have on the behavior of the model. You may find it helpful to go through the standard FlexSim tutorial as FlexTerm is built upon it and uses the same concepts and terminology. FlexSim Terminology Before starting, it will be helpful to understand some of the basic terminology of the FlexSim software and how this terminology applies to general simulation concepts. FlexSim objects FlexSim objects simulate different types of resources in the simulation. An example is the Queue object, which acts as a storage or buffer area. The Queue can represent a line of people, a queue of idle processes on a CPU, a storage area on the floor of a factory, or a queue of waiting calls at a customer service center. Another example of a FlexSim object is the Processor object, which simulates a delay or processing time. This object can represent a machine in a factory, a bank teller servicing a customer, a mail employee sorting packages, etc. FlexSim objects are found in the [Object Library grid panel](Flexsim_Users_Manual.html). The grid is arranged by group. By default the most frequently used objects are shown. Flowitems Flowitems are the objects that move through your model. Flowitems can represent parts, pallets, assemblies, paper, containers, people, telephone calls, orders, or anything that moves through the process you are simulating. Flowitems can have processes performed on them and can be carried through the model by material handling resources. In FlexSim, flowitems are generated by a Source object. Once flowitems have passed through the model, they are sent to a Sink object. Itemtype The itemtype is a label that is placed on the flowitem that could represent a barcode number, product type, or part number. FlexSim is set up to use the itemtype as a reference in routing flowitems. Ports Every FlexSim object has an unlimited number of ports through which they communicate with other objects. There are three types of ports: input, output, and central. Input and output ports are used in the routing of flowitems. For example, a mail sorter places packages on one of several conveyors, depending on the destination of the package. To simulate this in FlexSim, you would connect the output ports of a Processor object to the input ports of several Conveyor objects, meaning once the Processor (mail sorter) has finished processing the flowitem (package), it sends it to a conveyor. Central ports are used to create references from one object to another. A common use for central ports is for referencing mobile objects such as operators, fork lifts, and cranes from fixed resources such as machines, queues, or conveyors. Ports are created and connected by clicking on one object and dragging to a second object while holding down different letters on the keyboard. If the letter “A” is held down while clicking-and-dragging, an output port will be created on the first object and an input port will be created on the second object. These two new ports will then be automatically connected. Holding down the “S” key will create a central port on both objects and connect the two new ports. Connections are broken and ports deleted by holding down the “Q” for input and output ports and the “W” key for central ports. The following table shows the keyboard letters used to make and break the two types of port connections. Output - Input Center Disconnect Q W ConnectA S Another way to connect objects is to use the Connect Objects mode  on the main toolbar. Having this mode selected allows you to create connections without holding the 'A' key. You can also create multiple connections in series. To do this, you hold 'A' or use Connect Objects mode , click an object, then click another object, then click another object, and so on. Model views FlexSim uses a 3D modeling environment. The default model view for building models is called an orthographic view. You can also view the model in a more realistic perspective view. It is generally easier to build the model's layout in the orthographic view, whereas the perspective view is more for presentation purposes. However, you may use any view option to build or run the model. You may open as many view windows as you want in FlexSim. Just remember that as more view windows are opened, the demand on computer resources increases. Read more about the [model views](Model_Views.html) to learn how to maneuver in the FlexSim environment.