Product Design/layout (week 6)

Question 1

What’s the difference between fixed position, cell, process and product layout?

Answer 1

Fixed position: large bulky projects (ships)

cell: process and orientated (prison)

Process: low volume, high variety

Product: factory farming

Question 2

What are the advantages/ disadvantages of fixed position layouts?

Answer 2

High mix and product flexibility, high staff task variety

high unit costs, scheduling of space difficult

Question 3

What are the advantages/ disadvantages of process layouts?

Answer 3

High mix and product flexibility, robust against disruptions, easy supervision of equipment

low facilities utilisation, high customer queuing, complex flow difficult to manage

Question 4

What are the advantages/ disadvantages of cell layouts?

Answer 4

Good compromise between cost and flexibility for high variety operations

Costly to change layout, can need more plant and equipment

Question 5

What are the advantages/ disadvantages of product layouts?

Answer 5

low unit costs for high volumes, specialisation opportunities, materials/customer movement is convenient

Low mix flexibility, NOT robust against disruption