by A product is an article obtained by the transformation of raw material and is marketed/sold by the manufacturer, i.e., a product is a salable item. It may be a consumer product such as cigarettes, televisions or an Industrial product, e.g., a lathe, an overhead bridge crane, etc. Development is carried out after applied research which follows pure research.
Product Development concerns the most economically feasible method for applying the principles identified through Research. Development involves design/redesign and fabrication of new or modified product and then testing it to find its usefulness.
Standardization:
Standards are at the base of all mass production. They make possible thousands of different articles to be placed within the reach of everybody. When one purchases a new spark plug for a scooter or car, he knows that it will screw into the engine head all right. Why? Because spark plug threads are standardized Standards convey the sense that there are only certain specific sizes made and sold. Standards are carefully established specifications for products, materials, etc.
Standardization means producing maximum variety of products from the minimum variety of (i.e., standardized) materials, parts, tools and processes. Standardization is one way which leads to economical products. Standardization usually means that non-standard products will not be produced-except when a customer orders them to be made. Standardization is the process of establishing standards or units of measure by which extent, quality, quantity, value, performance, etc., may be compared and measured.
Standardization procedure:
Steps involved:
(a) With the help of market research, sales statistics, etc. decide what to sell in future.
(b) Then, define a standard range of products.
(c) From the range, ask the designer to develop minimum variety of components to match the range.
Introduce new materials, components, etc. if necessary.
An approach to standardization necessitates the classification of materials and component parts.
Classification:
‘Classification’ is of great value in material and component standardization. Classification aims at, systematically, grouping items, together by their common features and subdividing them by their special features. A system of classification and coding is necessary for the design of new products within the range defined.
Such a system should readily:
(i) Identify and locate identical items.
(ii) Facilitate the use of standard items in new designs.
(iii) Identify substitutes in case of stock outs.
(iv) Help developing Group Technology.
(v) Aid to improve parts location in the store.
Classification procedure involves the following steps:
(i) Define all items.
(ii) Classify each item according to its basic characteristics.
(iii) Identify each item by allocating to it some meaningful code number.
Simplification:
The concept of simplification is closely related to standardization. Simplification is the process of reducing the variety of products manufactured (known as variety reduction). Simplification is concerned with the reduction of product range, assemblies, parts, materials and design. A manufacturer may reduce the number of different types of radio sets from a dozen to three or four to simplify his range. Simplification makes a product, assembly or design, simpler, less complex or less difficult.
Simplification removes the superfluous. It decreases variety of sizes; for example a garment factory making tea-shirts in sizes 16,16¼, 16½ ,16¾ ,17,17¼ etc., can eliminate superfluous sizes such as 16¼,16¾,17¼, etc., and thus simplify its production line. A production line is generally simplified when it possesses unnecessary complexity and confusion. Often variety reduction will reveal that a subassembly or component needs simplification.
Variety reduction:
(i) Variety reduction consists in identifying the existing variety and then removing unnecessary items from the system.
(ii) Classification and codification help locating and identifying all items (i.e., products, materials, components, etc.).
The availability of suitable standards assists in simplification.
Advantages:
(1) Simplification involves fewer, parts, varieties and changes in products; this reduces manufacturing operations and risk of obsolescence.
Since simplification reduces variety, volume of remaining products may be increased. Simplification provides quick delivery and better after-sales service. Simplification reduces inventory and thus results in better inventory control. Generally speaking, simplification implies fewer parts and fewer the parts, the lower the production costs. Thus, simplification reduces price of a product. Simplification improves product quality.
- Specialization:
Specialization is the natural outcome of the application of standardization and simplification. Specialization means concentrating efforts on a particular field of action or towards a specific attempt. A worker is said to be specialized in a work when he acquires skill and proficiency in it by concentrating solely on it (i.e., on that particular work or job).
A mechanic, brick-layer or an engineer is a specialist in his field. A factory producing spark plugs only is a specialist in its production. Specialization as applied to human activities on shop floor can be defined as ‘Division of Labour’. This means that if a worker instead of completing the full product performs one small operation on the product and attains proficiency in that one activity, he becomes a specialist in that.
Advantages:
(1) Workers achieve a high state of skill and proficiency.
(2) They take smaller times to complete the activity in which they are specialized.
(3) Thus they raise their salaries and their standard of living.
Limitation:
(1) Specialized labour and equipment are not flexible, i.e., they cannot be used for other purposes.
(2) Specialization may result in monotony.
Applications:
(1) Specialization is universal in application; it is a rule rather than exception in today’s industry.
(2) Specialization has been applied to;
(i) Products,
(ii) Processes,
(iii) Individuals,
(iv) Companies,
(v) Jobs, and
(vi) Equipment, etc.
Diversification:
Diversification is just contrary to simplification. Diversification means addition of new products or introduction of established products into new markets. This tends to increase complexity of the methods of manufacturing, because, sometimes consumers like to have variety in type, size, colour and quality of products being manufactured.
This adds to the cost characteristic of the production which is of varied nature. The extent to which diversification programme can be carried out must be determined by market analysis of probable volume at varying levels of diversification compared with production cost of the volumes obtainable at those various levels.
Industries generally expand. An automobile concern may think in terms of diversifying in its own product lines, an aircraft concern may like to expand in the field of propulsion or electronics, and so on. Diversification adds to the classes of consumers served, by developing new technical knowledge.
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