Journal of Scientific & Industrial Research

Vol. 65, August 2006, pp. 619-624

Materials handling technology and significance of expert systems to select

appropriate handling equipments in engineering industries: A review
Thoguluva Raghavan Vijayaram*
Department of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Universiti Putra Malaysia,
UPM 43400 Serdang, Selangor Darul Ehsan, West Malaysia, Poskod: 43400, Malaysia
Received 22 August 2005; revised 13 April 2006; accepted 12 May 2006
This review discusses various handling equipments and the role of material handling systems in engineering industries.
Flow of material through ecosystem of an industrial society is the physical manifestation of its substance, productivity and
wealth. A brief explanation on the material handling interests and activities are also highlighted. Simulation models are
precisely given to generate the expert system software for handling systems.
Keywords: Automated flexible manufacturing system, Automated guided vehicle, Integrated manufacturing system,
Inventory control, Material handling equipment, Prototype expert system, Simulation model, Transit
movement

Introduction a business competes in the market place and early

Material handling (MH) system is applied for both
manufacturing and distribution operations. It does not
add value to product but it usually adds a significant
element of cost1. The three basic characteristics of
MH are picking up the load, transporting the load and
setting the load down2, 3. Production effectiveness can
be increased by having the right quality of material at
right places at the right time4, 5. One of the most
logical developments to evolve from the science of
MH is the unit load concept 6, 7. The handling of a
quantity is treated as a single mass, which is a simple
outcome of mechanically assisted handling8. The
traditional approach for handling selection has been to
entrust this task to process engineers9. MH design
problem requires combining the total logical and
physical aspects of material flow and then justify the
design from performance and economic
perspectives10. Generally, handling control systems
can be fully integrated into the business to gain the
maximum benefits from the investment. Testing the
design of a conventional or automated MH system is
essential to ensure that system will provide the
expected benefits after implementation11, 12.
History
MH technology is becoming increasingly important
to all types of business operations in today’s
competitive society13. It can change the way in which
____________
*E-mail: vijayaram1@gmail.com
identification of opportunities will become
increasingly important for the survival in the future14.
A prototype expert system has been developed to
identify a suitable conveyor solution from 76
conveyor types15. SEMH (selection of equipment for
MH) knowledge base system consists of 39 rules and
the knowledge base is divided into level of
mechanization and the equipment selection
knowledge base15. A prototype expert system for
industrial truck type selection have been developed
using a combination of forward and backward
chaining for inferencing15. MATHES (material
handling equipment selection expert system)15 has
been developed. A prototype knowledge based system
has been developed for robot selection using an expert
system shell (Kappa-pc)15. An integrated approach
has been developed to operation allocation (OA) and
material handling system selection (MHSS) in the
cellular manufacturing system15. The model
formulations can be used as a planning tool to
generate some of the design features of manufacturing
system. An algorithm is presented to solve the models
in three steps. Each iteration consists of solving the
model P (OA), followed by solving the model P
(MHSS), and then modifying the available choices of
MH equipment for part process combinations and
returning to P (OA)16. A hybrid knowledge based /
optimization system for automated selection of MH
selection have been developed. Kerni & Tsur17 has
developed six paradigms for knowledge-based system
620 J SCI IND RES VOL 65 AUGUST 2006

Table 1Material handling interests and activities20, 21

Areas of interest Activities
i) Packing at the suppliers plants i) Handling and storage methods
ii) Loading at suppliers docks ii) Loading and unloading techniques; methods
iii) Transportation from suppliers iii) Packing (consumer and protective)
iv) Unloading activities at our plant iv) Testing packaging, loading, and handling methods
v) Receiving operations v) Setting specifications and standards for handling,
vi) Storage of both material and supplies packing, and storage
vii) Issuing material to production vi) Equipment feasibility studies
viii) In-process storage and handling vii) Handling and storage equipment selection
viii) Auxiliary equipment evaluation and selection
ix) Work place, Intra-departmental handling and Inter-
ix) Selection of containers (shop, packing, shipping)
departmental handling
x) Handling equipment repair and maintenance policy and
x) Intra-plant handling
procedure
xi) Handling related to auxiliary functions xi) Damage prevention (material and product)
xii) Packaging (consumer) xii) Safety
xiii) Warehousing of finished goods xiii) Training
xiv) Packing (protective) xiv) Surveys to uncover saving opportunities
xv) Loading and shipping xv) Handling costs and cost control methods
xvi) Transportation to customer xvi) Keeping up to date on equipment, methods, procedures,
xvii) Inter-plant transportation etc
xviii) Related record keeping xvii) Related paperwork, control and communication systems

in industrial engineering. A knowledge base is artificial intelligence in the decision-making

proposed for determining most appropriate
architecture suitable for the given application.
A decision model and methodology have been
developed for the selection of bulk MH equipment18.
The model accounts for economics, characteristics of
the equipment, environmental characteristics and
compatability between equipment types. A multi
attribute MH equipment selection called as MHAD
introduces fuzzy information and axioms approach
and uses it in the selection of MH equipment18.
MHAD consists of a database, a rule-based system,
having multi-attribute decision-making models18. The
most important factor influencing the selection is
effective use of labour, providing system flexibility,
increasing productivity, decreasing lead-time and
cost. MH equipment selection have been developed
by fuzzy multi criteria decision-making methods18.
Fuzzy multi criteria decision making methodology is
used to aggregate the rating attitudes of decision
makers (DMs) and trade-off various selection criteria
to find ranking values of fuzzy suitability indices. A
hypothetical problem is designed and coded into
TURBO C Programming language to obtain the final
ranking of the alternatives automatically. MHESA
(material handling equipment selection advisor) is
knowledge-based expert system for assessing material
handling equipment selection and analytical hierarchy
process (AHP) model to choose the most favourable
equipment type18. MHESA can automate design of a
MH equipment selection system, and provides
process18.
Material Handling
MH maintains product quality by reducing damage
and providing protection of materials. It promotes
safety and improves working conditions19. MH
promotes productivity, increases use of facilities,
reduces weight and controls inventory (Table 1)20, 21.
Benefits and Advantages
There is an upward trend in most industry segments
that reflects the growing labour force required to
service and maintain increasingly complex
equipment22. In-transit movements, either from
supplier to plant, from plant to plant, or in-plant, have
a tendency to increase the level of the damage that
occurs to the product being handled23. Since scrap and
rework can be costly, one should make every attempt
to prevent such losses by the proper training of
material handlers and by getting good data on the
costs of the damage due to materials handling.
Factory and warehouse space becomes more costly
each year. It is even more costly when reviewed from
the standpoint of the dislocations and lost time that
occur when a move is made or when plant expansion
takes place24. MH is a vital part of layout planning,
but of equal importance is MH interdependency that
is found in both production scheduling and inventory
control25. The most important of MH project is the
safety of the worker26. Expert materials handling
 VIJAYARAM: MATERIAL HANDLING SYSTEMS IN ENGINEERING INDUSTRIES 621

Table 2Classification of MH equipment38, 39

Conveyers Chute conveyor, Wheel conveyor, Roller conveyor, Gravity roller conveyor, Live (powered) roller conveyor, Chain
conveyor, Slat conveyor, Flat belt conveyor, Magnetic belt conveyor, Toughed belt conveyor, Bucket conveyor,
Vibrating conveyor, Screw conveyor, Pneumatic conveyor, Dilute-phase pneumatic conveyor, Carrier-system pneumatic
conveyor, Vertical lift conveyor, Reciprocating vertical conveyor, Cart-on-track conveyor, Tow conveyor, Trolley
conveyor, Power-and-free conveyor, Monorail, Sortation conveyor, Diverter, Pop-up device, Sliding shoe device, Tilting
device, Cross-belt transfer device
Cranes Jib crane, Bridge crane, Gantry crane, Stacker crane
Trucks Industrial trucks, Hand truck, Two-wheeled hand truck, Dolly, Floor hand truck, Pallet jack, Manual pallet jack, Powered
pallet jack, Walkie stacker, Manual walkie stacker, Powered walkie stacker, Pallet truck, Platform truck, Walkie
platform truck, Rider platform truck, Counterbalanced lift truck, Sit-down counterbalanced lift truck, Stand-up
counterbalanced lift truck, Narrow-aisle straddle truck, Narrow-aisle reach truck, Turret truck, Operator-down turret
truck, Operator-up turret truck, Order picker, Side loader, Tractor-trailer, Personnel and burden carrier
AGV Tow AGV (automatic guided vehicles), Unit load AGV, Assembly AGV, Light load AGV, Fork AGV

practice requires each job involving the movement of
materials to become safe every time it is performed27.
Efficient MH has following factors: 1) Improves
production operations and indirect to direct labour
handling ratios; 2) Reduces damage due to MH and
maximum space utilization; 3) Reduces accident rate
and severity of injury; 4) Minimizes unit cost and
hence minimizes project cost and optimizes quality;
5) Promotes the effective use of people, equipment,
space and energy and provides for employee’s
convenience, safety and comfort; 6) Controls project
costs, archives the production standard, builds
flexibility in the plan and reduces or eliminates
excessive inventory; 7) Achieves miscellaneous goals
to use work cells which will reduce inventory and
material handling and to build visual management
system into the design to improve factory
management; and 8) To design for first-in-first-out
inventory for inventory control.
Role of Material Handling Systems in Industry
MH engineering automates materials movement at
all stages of the economy. In hard goods
manufacturing industries, the complexity of MH
operations has been approached in a list of statement
handling oriented productivity improvements28. This
pattern has matured into automated flexible
manufacturing system (FMS) and the integrated
manufacturing system (IMS) or automated
factory28-30. Conveyers and automated vehicles move
warp beams, quills bales and cloth rolls in the basic
mills. Robots pick spinning frames and tie yarn31.
Automated system operates the dying and printing of
cloth. Computers control looms and direct weaving
patterns32. It has also control on sewing machines.
Automated monorails are being used to move, work
stations in garment factories33-35. The flexibility of
computer control has again permitted application of
MH automation in a very random scheduling
environment36. Manufacturing material handling
automation has been the result of the programming
control technology37.
Classification of Available Material Handling Equipment
MH equipment is broadly classified into 5 major
categories (Table 2) 38, 39 as follows: i) Transport; ii)
Positioning; iii) Unit load formation; iv) Storage; and
v) Identification and control.
Application of Material Handling System
MH systems are having greater applications in the
manufacturing engineering industries like mechanical,
metallurgical, chemical, automotive and in aerospace
industries40-42, and used to handle heavy weight
components in the assembly workshops43, 44. Some of
the important engineering operations requiring MH
systems are arc welding, metal coating, metal
bending, metal sealing, plasma cutting operation,
assembling operation, palletizing, packaging,
measuring and inspection, spot welding, pressure
joining and riveting, laser welding and cutting, water
jet cutting, deburring, polishing and grinding, paper
manufacturing industries, metal casting industries,
heat treatment industries and rolling mills45-47.
Classification of Material Handling Equipment Selection
System
Recent advances in the development of MH
equipment selection system have affected most of
manufacturing industries. Handling equipment is used
for movement and storage of materials within a
facility or at a site. MH is classified into categories
such as transport, storage and identification and
control equipments47. Each class of this handling
equipment is used for a particular application, which
622 J SCI IND RES VOL 65 AUGUST 2006

Table 3Existing software package and expert system

Sl No Software package of expert system Year Reference
1 SEMH (Selection of equipment for material handling) 1984 15
2 Prototype expert system for industrial truck type selection 1987 15
3 MATHES (Material handling equipment selection expert system) 1988 15
4 MAHDE 1988 15
5 MHES (Material handling equipment selection) 1989 15
6 MATHES II (Material handling equipment selection expert system) 1990 15
7 EXCITE (Expert consultant for in plant transportation equipment) 1990 15
8 EMHES (Expert system for material handling equipment selection) 1992 18
9 ICMESE (Intelligent consultant system for material handling equipment) 1996 48
10 MASHES (Material handling selection expert system) 1997 48

mainly depends on the mass and size of the handling
material. Transport equipment is used to move the
items from one location to another. Some examples of
transport equipment are conveyors, cranes, and
industrial trucks48.
Software Package and Expert Systems for Selecting
Appropriate Material Handling Equipment Systems
Various researchers have developed different MH
system selection software packages (Table 3) 15, 18, 48.
Principles involved in MH equipment selection expert
systems are as follows49: 1) Planning; 2) System; 3)
Material flow; 4) Simplification; 5) Gravity; 6) Space
utilization; 7) Unit size; 8) Mechanization; 9)
Automation; 10) Equipment selection; 11)
Standardization; 12) Adaptability; 13) Dead weight;
14) Utilization; 15) Maintenance; 16) Control; 17)
Performance; and 18) Safety.
General Methods Available for Material Handling Equipment
16, 50-54
Selection Programme Development
The following methods are available for
developing the handling equipment selection software
program: i) Mixed integer programming; ii) Hybrid
knowledge-based optimization system; iii) Weighted
evaluation method; iv) Expected value creation; v) If-
then rules; vi) Analytical hierarchy process and
dividing weight; vii) Rationalization procedure; viii)
Fuzzy multi-criteria decision-making methods; ix)
Fuzzy information axiom approach; and x) 0-1 integer
programming formulation.
Simulation Models and Industrial Engineering Aspects on
Material Handling Equipment Selection
Stochastic simulation, systems simulation or just
plain simulation has come to mean the technique of
preparing a model of a real-life situation and then
performing a series of sampling experiments upon the
model55-57. Observing the behaviour of the model then
forms the basis for predicting the behaviour of the
real-life situation- and subsequently it is useful in
controlling the real situation58. Simulation models
may be classified in several different ways according
to how closely they appear to typify the real
situation59. Models that include all the characteristics
of the real situation are called as isomorphic.
Simulation models are further classified as:
Iconic Models
Iconic models appear similar to the subject of
inquiry, and are characterized by the use of some
metric transformation or scaling. Such models (globe,
still photos etc.) describe static or dynamic things at a
point in time.
Analog Models
Analog models are characterized by the use of a
convenient transformation of one set of properties for
another set of properties in accordance with certain
specified rules60, 61. Such models are flow charts,
schedule boards, plant layouts, etc.
Symbolic Models
Symbolic models are characterized by the fact that
the components of the subject of inquiry, and the
interrelationship among them, are represented by
symbols, mathematics and logic62, 63. In order to
identify the particular homorphic, symbolic model
used in systems simulation, one more stratification is
required. This is done by the solution mode numerical
methods and Monte Carlo methods.
Conclusions
Appropriate selection of material handling system
reduces rework, time and increases the production
effectiveness by increasing the profit and application
of expert systems in the manufacturing engineering
industries. Material handling system helps to choose
 VIJAYARAM: MATERIAL HANDLING SYSTEMS IN ENGINEERING INDUSTRIES
exact handling equipment based on the variables like
weight and size. Expert systems software can be
developed and they vary on the principles, models and
the solution methods.
Acknowledgements
Author thanks the Department of Mechanical and
Manufacturing Engineering, Faculty of Engineering,
Universiti Putra Malaysia, Malaysia for
encouragement to publish this paper.
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