Research Article

Facility layout design, simulation, and optimization for Kaolin beneficiation plant using Flexsim

Authors

  • Abdulhakeem Hassan Nurudeen * Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Abuja. P.M.B 117, Abuja, Nigeria.
  • Ishaya Musa Dagwa Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Abuja. P.M.B 117, Abuja, Nigeria.
  • Iyenagbe Benjamin Ugheoke Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Abuja. P.M.B 117, Abuja, Nigeria.
  • Ibrahim Dauda Muhammad Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Abuja, Nigeria

https://doi.org/10.48313/mtei.v1i1.19

Abstract

Nigeria has huge deposits of kaolin spread across the country. Yet, Kaolin and its derivatives cost Nigeria around 14 million USD annually, and they have diverse industrial applications such as the manufacturing of paper, ceramics, cosmetics, medicine, paints, and porcelain. This loss of revenue is due to the under-tapping of the mineral due to the absence of beneficiation plants. Currently, the mining is primarily done crudely by artisan miners. Implementing modern manufacturing infrastructure requires adequate attention to cater to facility layout and future improvements, reduce costs, improve customer satisfaction, space utilization, etc. Simulation exercises proffer solutions to these problems in a virtual environment. This work reports a proposed facility layout design for kaolin beneficiation. The proposed plant was designed using Systematic Layout Planning (SLP) methodology and tested using FLEXSIM Simulation software to optimize the plant's production capacity. The results from the design showed that the optimized production plant had an annual production capacity of 95,328 tons, which was higher than the initial layout, with 69,120 tons per annum. The workstations utilization for the optimized layout showed better results than the initial layout design, with the optimized results showing improvements in the efficiency of the workstations as follows (after the simulation): fluid mixer1 had 73.77%, sedimentation tank had 18.44%, rotary drum dryer had 18.44%, packaging line had 63.87%, Screener_washer had 74.46%, and magnetic separator has 63.94% utilization.

Keywords

Facility layout Systematic layout planning Flexsim simulation Kaolin ore beneficiation

Author Biographies

  • Abdulhakeem Hassan Nurudeen, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Abuja. P.M.B 117, Abuja, Nigeria.

    Abdulhakeem Hassan Nurudeen is Lecturer and a PhD student of the Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Abuja, Nigeria

  • Ishaya Musa Dagwa, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Abuja. P.M.B 117, Abuja, Nigeria.

    Ishaya Musa Dagwa is a Professor Manufacturing Engineering, Mechanical Engineering Department, University of Abuja, Nigeria.

  • Iyenagbe Benjamin Ugheoke, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Abuja. P.M.B 117, Abuja, Nigeria.

    Professor of Materials and Production Engineering, Mechanical Engineering Department, University of Abuja, Nigeria

  • Ibrahim Dauda Muhammad, Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Abuja, Nigeria

    Ibrahim Dauda Muhammad is a Professor of Production and Industrial Engineering, Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Abuja, Nigeria

References (40)
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How to Cite

Nurudeen, A. H. ., Dagwa, I. M., Ugheoke, I. B., & Muhammad, I. D. (2024). Facility layout design, simulation, and optimization for Kaolin beneficiation plant using Flexsim. Mechanical Technology and Engineering Insights, 1(1), 15-28. https://doi.org/10.48313/mtei.v1i1.19

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