Operations Flashcards
Centralised inventory system
Decentralised inventory system
-Storing inventory In one central location in a large purpose warehouse
-Storing inventory where it is needed
In many smaller areas
Advantages/disadvantages
centralised inventory system
A+
-can store a massive amount of stock so inventory can be ordered in bulk,benefiting from economies of scale
-supplier deliver to one location reducing delivery costs
D+
-storing large amounts of stock may increase the chance of wastage
-high costs incurred due to specialist equipment and large storing facilities
Advantages and disadvantages of Decentralised inventory storage
Advantages
-order reflects actual usage of Stock
-Inventory always on hand when required
Disadvantages
Security not as affective resulting in lower security
-increased delivery costs due to only low amounts of inventory getting ordered
Just in time(JIT)
Advantages or disadvantages
A)
Less storage space required reducing costs
More responsive to changing external
D)
Stock being delivered consistently,increased delivery costs
May lose discounts as making small orders
(ecnomies of scale)
computerised inventory system
A/D
A)
-databases keep a hold of stock levels which automatically update
-accurate and constant monitoring of stock levels allow for inventory levels to be automatically reordered
D)
-cost a lot to maintain
-money and resources need to put in to train staff effectively
two types of production
Capital and Labour
Capital Intensive products Advantages and disadvantages
lower labour costs-no pay recruitment or training
greater consistency and standardisation
difficult to customise orders
high initial costs machinery is expensive
Labour intensive products Advantages and Disadvantages
Customised products are easier to make
less expensive machinery costs
increased chance of error
skilled workers take time to make
What is Quality Assurance
Quality is built into the production process
-mistakes are identified quickly reducing waste and saving money
-production low due to constant checks
can be expensive to regularly check production
What is Quality control
Products are inspected at the start and end of the production process
Reduces chance of poor quality products reaching customers
only some employees need to be trained as inspectors to look for faults
High wastage costs
Faults only found at the end of production
What is Benchmarking
A/D
Finding best practice in industry and copying the techniques
A
-can make the organisation more competitive
-provide a goal increasing in motivation
D
-difficult to gather information from competitors
time consuming to watch other competitors techniques
what is Quality circles
(advantages and disadvantages)
small groups of workers from different levels in the firm come together to discuss problems in production
Advantages
-employees feel valued, opinion is voiced and heard
-balanced view is heard as its employees of all different levels of the organisation
-employees will feel empowered
Disadvantages
allocating time for this without impacting business operations is difficult
Mystery shopper
Employed by the company to see if a customer will manage to break their standard
-Accurate representation as customer is a complete random disguised as customers
-only see a limited example based on their experience
Ethical operators
A/D
awards granted for being ethical
A)
-increase brand image
-businesses who are ethical attract more customers and staff
D)-audits are required to ensure standards are being meet which can be time consuming
-higher costs involved in being ethical i.e no child labour
Total quality control
continual improvement of process and system
products are respected and reliable providing edge
rigorous processes may be difficult to instil in initial stages
