Production, Productivity & Efficiency Flashcards
what is production?
the transformation of resources into finished goods/services
what are the main methods of production?
job, batch, flow, and cell production
what determines the method of production for a business?
the level of output required to be produces
the nature of the product
whether it is standardised or customises
the level of automation used in production
what is job production?
producing one item at a time, as ordered by the customer
what are the advantages of job production?
high quality,
motivated and skilled workers,
customised products can be produced
what are the disadvantages of job production?
production is slow,
Labour costs are high
what is batch production?
groups of the same product are produced, before moving on to a group oof different products
what are the advantages of batch production?
production can take place as the previous batch starts running out
what are the disadvantages of Batch production?
requires careful coordination to avoid shortages, money is tied up in stock as products need to be stored
what is flow production?
continuous manufacturing of standardised products, usually on a production line
what are the advantages of flow production?
low unit cost due to economies of scale,
rapid production
usually highly automated (capital intensive)
what are the disadvantages of flow production?
customisation is difficult
capital equipment is expensive
what is cell production?
involves workers being organised into multi-skilled teams, with each team responsible for a particular part of the production process
what are the advantages of cell production?
more efficient than other methods as workers share their skills and expertise
what are the disadvantages of cell production?
requires extensive reorganisation of production process
what is productivity?
the output per input (person or machine) per hour
what is the labour productivity?
the measure of the output per worker during a specified period of time
how can you calculate labour productivity?
output / number of workers
