A method for employing a plurality of automated machines to deposit composite material includes a first tool located in a first station and a second tool located in a second station. The first station and the second station are located on a production line. The first station includes at least one automated machine of the plurality of automated machines and the second station includes at least two automated machines of the plurality of automated machines. At least one of the automated machines is movable from the second station to the first station. The method includes monitoring machine capacity and workload requirements of the plurality of automated machines. The method further includes determining an efficiency threshold based upon the machine capacity and workload requirements. The method further includes reallocating at least one of the automated machines from the second station to the first station once the efficiency threshold is met.

A method for allocating resources to machines of a production facility comprises: receiving forecast data indicating planned demands for the resources and a demand deviation for each resource; generating a new demand for each resource from the planned demand and the demand deviation of the resource in several iterations; assigning capacities to the new demands in each iteration by determining resource-machine combinations, wherein a priority is determined for each resource and each machine based on a set of priority rules, wherein the resource-machine combinations are determined by combining the resources and the machines according to the priorities; and generating a roll-out plan assigning resource-machine combinations to be rolled out to future time periods, wherein the roll-out plan is generated from the resource-machine combinations of different iterations and an estimated roll-out time for each resource-machine combination such that a total number of the resource-machine combinations to be rolled-out is minimized.

A technique for determining scheduling priorities of jobs of different types to facilitate workload management in a clustered processing environment having a plurality of managed resource types is provided. The technique includes allocating shares of multiple managed resource types to users and user groups of the clustered processing environment. The technique also includes assigning a job priority for a subsequent job submitted by a user or group, wherein the calculated job priority is based on a type attribute of the subsequent job and the number of the user's or group's remaining shares of at least one managed resource type of the multiple of managed resource types.

Apparatuses and methods for operating at least two tools in a first and at least a second processing area, wherein in each processing area a number of machining locations is assigned to the tool by which first components carried by a component web are conveyed along a track through the first and the at least second processing area, wherein the total number of tools in the apparatus is less than the number of machining locations in each processing area, wherein the track comprises a number of partial paths corresponding to the number of machining locations, wherein the tool of each processing area is adapted such as to couple respective second components to respective first components at each associated machining location in its processing area, and wherein the apparatus comprises a control unit adapted to operate in response to a conveying movement of the component web along the track.