Need & Types of Production and Operations Management

Need

• Supervision and control of transformation process for achieving good results.
• Determining the production process by designing the product. The inputs are transformed into goods and services.
• Deciding and procuring various inputs such as material, labour, land, equipment, capital.

Types of Production and Operations Management

Unit or Job type of production

This type of production is most commonly observed when you produce one single unit of a product. A typical example of the same will be tailored outfits which are made just for you or a cake which is made just like you want it.

Features of Unit production or Job Production:

• Depends a lot on skill
• Dependency is more on manual work than mechanical work
• Customer service and customer management plays and important role

Batch Production:

Batch production pertains to repetitive production. It refers to the production of goods, the quantity of which is known in advance. Under batch system the work is divided into operations and one operation is done at a time. After completing the work on one operation it is passed on to the next operation and so on till the product is complete. Batch production may be explained with the help of an example. A company wants to manufacture 50 electric motors. The work will be divided into different operations. The first operation on all the motors will be completed in the first batch and then it will pass on to the next operation.

The second group of operators will complete the second operation before passing to the next and so on. Under job production the same operators will manufacture full machine and not one operation only. Batch production can fetch the benefits of repetitive production to a considerable degree, provided the batch is of a sufficient quantity. Thus batch production may be defined as the manufacture of a product in small or large batches or lots by a series of operations, each operation being carried out on the whole batch before any subsequent operation is operated.

Mass Production or Flow production

One of the best examples of mass production is the manufacturing process adopted by Ford. Mass production is also known as flow production or assembly line production. It is one of the most common types of products used in the automobile industry and is also used in industries where continuous production is required.

An Assembly line or mass production plant typically focus on specialization. There are multiple workstations installed and the assembly line goes through all the workstations turn by turn. The work is done in a specialized manner and each workstation is responsible for one single type of work. As a result, these workstations are very efficient and production due to which the whole assembly line becomes productive and efficient.

Products which are manufactured using mass production are very standardized products. High sophistication is used in the manufacturing of these products. If 1000 products are manufactured using mass production, each one of them should be exactly the same. There should be no deviation in the product manufactured.

Features of Mass Production

• Mass production is generally used to dole out huge volumes of the product
• It is used only if the product is standardized
• Demand does not play a major role in a Mass production. However, production capacity determines the success of a mass production.
• Mass production requires huge initial investment and the working capital demand is huge too.

Continuous Production System

the items are produced for the stocks and not for specific orders. Before planning manufacturing to stock, a sales forecast is made to estimate likely demand of the product and a master schedule is prepared to adjust the sales forecast according to past orders and level of inventory. Here the inputs are standardized and a standard set of processes and sequence of processes can be adopted. Due to this routing and scheduling for the whole process can be standardized.

After setting of master production schedule, a detailed planning is carried on. Basic manufacturing information and bills of material are recorded. Information for machine load charts, equipment, personnel and material needs is tabulated. In continuous manufacturing systems each production run manufactures in large lot sizes and the production process is carried on in a definite sequence of operations in a pre-determined order. In process storage is not necessary which in turn reduces material handling and transportation facilities. First in first out priority rules are followed in the system. In short, here the input-output characteristics are standardized allowing for standardization of operations and their sequence.

• This system does not involve diverse work, due to which routing standardized route and schedule sheets are prepared.
• In case of standard products meant for mass production, master route sheets are prepared for more effective co- ordination of various departments.
• Scheduling is required to rate the output of various standard products in their order of priority, operations and correct sequence to meet sales, requirements.
• Work relating to dispatching and follow-up is usually simple. Dispatch schedules can be prepared well in advance in such systems.