operations processes

Question 1

inputs

Answer 1

• labour
• energy
• raw materials
• machinery and technology

Question 2

capital-labour substitution

Answer 2

machinery and tech replacing people by doing the work they do

Question 3

transformed resources

Answer 3

• materials + intermediate goods
• information (internal + external)
• customers (needs & feedback)

Question 4

transforming resources

Answer 4

• human resources
• facilities

Question 5

materials (transformed resource)

Answer 5

• raw materials: wood or steel
• intermediate goods: goods manufactured and used in further processing

Question 6

information (transformed process)

Answer 6

1. external info: comes from outside the business as: market reports, media reports or gov stats
2. internal info: comes from within the business as: financial reports, quality reports & KPIs e.g lead times, inventory turnover & production data

Question 7

customers (transformed resource)

Answer 7

customers become transformed resources when their choices, needs & wants shape inputs

Question 8

Facilities (Transforming resources)

Answer 8

• number of facilities to be used
• location & its capacity
• zoning and restrictions
• energy and water reqs
• optimum plant design and process layout

Question 9

zoning

Answer 9

dividing of an area into zones to restrict the number and types of buildings and their uses

Question 10

process layout

Answer 10

the arrangement of machines such that the machines and equipment are grouped together by the function they perform

Question 11

influence of Volume

Answer 11

• mass production involves high volume: repetition in tech
• good volume flexibility: shorter lead times
• mismanagement leads to overproduction which causes wastage and increased inventory

Question 12

influence of variety

Answer 12

range of goods and services offered by a bus
- mix flexibility is the mix of products made, or services delivered through the informations process
- the greater the variety offered, the more the ops process needs to alow for greater variation

Question 13

influence of variation

Answer 13

variation is demand is about the amount of products desired by consumers

• an increase in demand requires an increase in inputs, HR, energy use: fast suppliers, flexible labour and high energy sources
  failure to meet increased demand can result in production delays leading to loss of sales as consumers purchase elsewhere
• important for businesses to forecast and quickly react to changes in demand

Question 14

influence of visibility (customer contact)

Answer 14

customer contact or feedback and their preferences shape what businesses make as they maximise sales
- customer contact can be direct (surveys, interviews) or indirect (sales data, market share)
- visibility and success of competitors plays an important role

Question 15

sequencing (helps w organising and ordering)

Answer 15

the order in which activities in the operations process occurs i.e order in which tasks need to be performed

Question 16

scheduling (helps w organising and ordering)

Answer 16

length of time activities take within ops process i.e time required for each task in the assembly process

Question 17

scheduling tools

Answer 17

Gantt Charts and Critical Path analysis (CPA)

Question 18

Gantt Charts

Answer 18

bar chart that shows both scheduled and completes work over a period of time

1. forces managers to plan the steps needed to complete a task
2. specify the time required for each task and makes it easy to monitor actual progress against planned activities

Question 19

Critical Path Analysis

Answer 19

A scheduling method that shows what tasks need to be done, how long they’ll take and the order to complete those tasks

Question 20

Technology (In the transformation process)

Answer 20

• increases the quality of products, allowing businesses to charge a higher price on their products
• shortens the production process and encourages the better use of raw materials, allowing ops process to be more cost-effective

Question 21

types of tech in the transformation process

Answer 21

office tech (computers, keyboards) manufacturing tech (robotics, computer aided design)

Question 22

task design

Answer 22

involves classifying job activities in ways that make it easy for an employee to successfully perform and complete the task.

Question 23

workplace/plant layout

Answer 23

arrangement of equipment, machinery and staff within the facility. largely influenced by level of customisation and quantity of goods/services. O.M manager needs to consider the best layout to ensure:
- enough physical space for volume of production
- effective use of equip + tech to minimise waste + cost

Question 24

process layout

Answer 24

arrangement of machines such that the machines and equipment are grouped together by the process they perform : allowing for specialised production processes

• deals with high-variety, low-volume production. Each product has a different sequence of production and the production is intermittent, moving from one dep to another

Question 25

product layout

Answer 25

arrangement of equipment relating to the sequence of tasks performed in manufacturing a product. Workstations and equipment are set out in order in which production occurs, allowing work to flow from station to station. e.g assembly line

Question 26

product production (mass production)

Answer 26

high volume manufacturing of goods with the same quality

Question 27

fixed position layout

Answer 27

where a product remains in one location due to its weight or size. It is more efficient to bring materials, equipment and employees to the location/site instead as the weight or size of the product makes it difficult to move during the production process - used for project production: deals with the layout requirements for large-scale, bulky activites

Question 28

office layout

Answer 28

allows work to be performed efficiently organised and in a safe environment. - used in manufacturing businesses and service businesses

Question 29

monitoring

Answer 29

process of measuring actual performance against planned performance. Effectiveness can be measured through key performance indicators (KPIs)

Question 30

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

Answer 30

- lead times/wait times - inventory turnover rates - IT and maintenance costs - Defect rates, repair rates and warranty claims

Question 31

control

Answer 31

occurs when KPIs are assessed against pre-determined targets and corrective action by making changes to the transformation process such as redesigning the facilities layouts or changing the level of tech used to correct problems or areas identified

Question 32

improvement

Answer 32

refers to the systematic reduction of inefficiencies and wastage, poor work processes and the elimination of bottlenecks, typically sought in time, process flows, quality, cost and efficiency

Question 33

features of improvement

Answer 33

- quality - time - process flows - cost - efficiency

Question 34

outputs

Answer 34

customer service: how well a business meets and exceeds the expectations of a customer in all aspects of its operations. - Is an intangible service provided to customers and develops a long-term relationship with the customer through direct/indirect contact and communication

Question 35

warranties

Answer 35

Promises made by businesses to correct any defects in their products or in the services they deliver. A good way to assess the effectiveness of O.P - indicates problems in O.P - allows O.M to identify a fault, find the source of the fault and rectify it