Job Grouping with Minimum Setup in PCB Assembly

We consider the machine setup problem of printed circuit board (PCB) assembly as a combination of a job grouping problem and a minimum setup problem. We formulate the problem as a MIP-model, where the objective is to minimize the weighted sum of the number of setup occasions and the total number of component feeder changes. We also present and evaluate hybrid algorithms based on both grouping and minimum setup heuristics. The best results are achieved by a method which uses both these strategies simultaneously.