The workload control concept: theory and practical extensions of Load Oriented Order Release

Workload control (WLC) has been elaborated in the early 1980s to a hierarchical production control concept for job shop manufacturing. In the 1990s the analytical research at the University of Groningen focused on assessing the strengths and weaknesses of this concept and on developing alternatives. Research at the University of Hannover focused on improving the practical applicability of the WLC concept. While the practical experiences confirm the strengths of the WLC concept, some extensions of the basic concept have been developed which may overcome some weaknesses suggested in literature. This paper aims at bringing the theoretical and practical knowledge regarding the WLC concept together. It gives a review and classification of strengths and weaknesses reported from analytical research and it discusses the extensions that have been developed based on practical experiences.