Abstract
The paper concerns a flexible flowline scheduling problem, which arises in the footwear industry. Flexibility of the line allows for manufacturing simultaneously more products in lower quantities, but it also increases the complexity of the task of balancing the line, specially because the mix of products changes everyday. A simulation model to deal with the flexible line is developed and several job sequencing rules and different part input criteria are implemented. The impact of each rule on the quality of the schedules is measured, namely, according to makespan, productivity and average machine utilisation. Computational results concerning a real application are also presented. SIMPLE++ is the simulation language used.

Abstract
The nesting (or placement) problem is an NP-hard combinatorial problem with important industrial applications, e.g. in apparel or footwear industry. This paper describes a hardware infrastructure to accelerate the processing of the underlying geometric information. The system consists of an FPGA-based reconfigurable platform enhanced by an ASIC for the processing of irregular polygons. The paper discusses the need for such a platform, establishes the main design guidelines and describes the architecture and modes of operation of both the reconfigurable infrastructure and the dedicated IC.

Abstract
This paper describes an <> system to support decision making in the planning processes of Virtual Enterprises, viewed as networks of different units, namely plants, logistic centres and storage facilities. The system aims at improving customer due date calculation, and is intended to be a multi-site planning tool to co-ordinate local activities across the Virtual Enterprise network. It is based on the use of aggregate information and on a set of local rough capacity models. This work is part of a broader project with a particular focus on the microelectronics industry. Companies of this industry are a good example of Virtual Enterprises, where a quick response to the customers needs and to unpredictable changes in production conditions is considered a major factor for success.

Abstract
The purpose of this paper is to present a new view on the problem of capacity planning in a distributed network of enterprises, i.e. in a Virtual Enterprise (VE). This view is based on a distributed planning architecture, that takes into account the requirements and characteristics of local capacity models. In order to cope with the new emerging problems that the VE are encountering, we have been designing and investigating two generic architectures of Decision Support Systems (DSS) for VE planning with capacity checking, applicable to different scenarios of distributed networks of enterprises. The first architecture is hierarchical and is based on the existence of a global decision-maker. The second one is fully distributed and is based in a multi-agent co-operative environment. This work is part of a broader project with a particular focus on the semiconductor industry.

Abstract
This paper describes an attempt to design an "Order Promise" system to support decision making in the so-called Virtual Enterprises. In this framework, planning and control activities are very complex, and have to take place both within the enterprise and across the whole supply network in order to achieve high levels of performance. This work is part of a broader project with a particular focus on the microelectronics industry which is a good example of Virtual Enterprise, and where a quick response to the customers needs and to unpredictable changes in production conditions is considered a major factor for success. Copyright (C) 1998 IFAC.

Abstract
This paper introduces a conceptual modelling approach for supporting the requirements analysis and specification of information systems according to technical and socio-organisational perspectives, particularly in manufacturing enterprises. The approach is based in the so-called Techno-Organisational Development Ontologies that act as a conceptual core for perspectives mediation. A case study based on semi-conductor virtual enterprises is presented illustrating the validity of the approach.