Methods, systems, computer program products, and articles of manufacture for managing a manufacturing environment are described. An optimized schedule for operators is generated based on an optimization data structure, the optimization data structure comprising one or more manufacturing objectives and one or more resource constraints. The manufacturing activity is simulated based on the generated optimized schedule and an initial state data structure, the initial state data structure comprising a representation of an initial state of the manufacturing environment. The simulation results are analyzed to, for example, determine if the manufacturing objectives are satisfied.