3.3.1

Question 1

efficiency

Answer 1

how well a business uses its resources

Question 2

what does efficiency depend on?

Answer 2

-how well employees are managed
-how good the suppliers are
-the level of investment in machinery and technology
-the way in which products are produced
-level of waste can be reduced by using lean production

Question 3

lean production

Answer 3

an approach to production that aims to minimise waste

Question 4

forms of business waste

Answer 4

-when production exceeds demand
-faulty products
-holding stock, products can get damaged or stolen

Question 5

Just-In-Time production

Answer 5

holds as little stock as possible, items are ordered just in time to be used

Question 6

Kaizen

Answer 6

means continuous improvement, it is an approach to production that aims to achieve change from a series of small steps

Question 7

what are the benefits of JIT?

Answer 7

-reduces waste
-more space for goods
-products will be fresher

Question 8

what are the drawbacks of JIT?

Answer 8

-suppliers must be able to respond very quickly
-cannot afford for anything to go wrong

Question 9

what are the benefits of Kaizen?

Answer 9

-can learn from employees
-employees can be motivated

Question 10

what are the drawbacks of Kaizen?

Answer 10

-can take a long time to improve
-not everyone wants to take part

Question 11

what is the definition of production?

Answer 11

process of changing inputs (e.g. raw materials) into a finished good/service that can be sold

Question 12

what is the definition of job production?

Answer 12

a method of production in which a product is supplied to meet the exact requirements of a customer

Question 13

what is the definition of flow production?

Answer 13

occurs when an item moves continuously from one stage of the process to another

Question 14

what are the advantages of job production?

Answer 14

-gain an advantage over larger rivals
-can justify higher prices
-when you can’t afford the technology to mass produce you can easily create personal products

Question 15

what are the disadvantages of job production?

Answer 15

-can’t mass produce
-expensive
-time consuming
-requires skilled employees that need a lot of training
-hard to get a profit

Question 16

what is an example of job production?

Answer 16

-garden design
-tailor

Question 17

what are the advantages of flow production?

Answer 17

-allows firms to produce large volumes and sell large numbers
-allows specialisation, different parts of production has specialised workers
-relatively cheap per unit

Question 18

what are the disadvantages of flow production?

Answer 18

-set up costs are high
-can be repetitive and boring
-initial costs are high
-it’s risky
-may lack flexibility
-specialism and division of labour can lead to boredom

Question 19

what are some examples of flow production?

Answer 19

-car factory
-MacDonald’s