methods of production

Cards (12)

  • To maximise profit, businesses need to operate so that they produce goods and services to meet a customers’ needs and wants.
  • Flow production
    • An assembly line produces standardised products.
  • Job production
    • Items are made individually.
  • Flow Production
    In flow production, an assembly line is used to build identical and standardised products.
    Assembly line
    • An assembly line is a series of workers and/or machines that each work on a specific part of the product.
  • Capital intensive
    • Flow production is usually more capital-intensive, meaning that there is more machinery and less labour used in production.
  • Mass market and low production cost
    • Flow production is best used in an industry that needs a low cost of production and provides for a large customer base.
  • Kaizen
    • The Japanese term kaizen means continuous improvement. 
    • The process focuses on workers continuously making small improvements for overall progress and productivity gains in a firm.
  • Cell production
    • Workers are grouped into multi-skilled teams within cells.
    • Different teams are assigned to different aspects of the production process.
    • A cell passes on completed products to the next cell in the production process.
  • Lean Production
    Lean production techniques are geared towards reducing waste during production.
  • Just in time (JIT) is a method for managing stock that aims to keep stock levels very low at all times.
  • Advantages of JIT
    • JIT can reduce costs because a business does not have to pay for storage space for the stock and the business is likely to have less unsold stock. 
    • Storage also adds other costs, for example damage to stock, stock insurance and security to protect the stock.
  • Disadvantages of JIT
    • JIT usually needs more frequent deliveries. More deliveries usually means higher transport and logistic costs.
    • High chance business will not be able to meet demand spikes