MANAGING PRODUCTION AND SERVICE OPERATIONS

Organizations are designed mainly to produce products or services. If these organizations

must survive and grow, the operations function must be taken in the most economical manner as
possible. As most companies are expected to make profits, any activity, including those for
operations must be managed to contribute to the accomplishment of such objectives.

PRODUCTION MANAGEMENT
PRODUCTION

According to Elwood Butta “production is a process by which goods or services are

created”.
Production involves the step by step conversion of one form of material into another
through chemical or mechanical process with a view to enhance the utility of the product or
services.

Inputs: Transformation Process: Outputs:

 Men  Product Design  Products
 Materials  Process Planning  Services
 Machines  Production Control
 Information  Maintenance
 Capital

Continuous:
 Inventory
 Quality
Environment  Cost

Feedback Information

Fig. 1.1 Schematic production system

PRODUCTION SYSTEM
The production system of an organization is that part, which produces products of an
organization. It is that activity whereby resources, flowing within a defined system, are combined
and transformed in a controlled manner to add value in accordance with the policies
communicated by management.

Characteristics of Production System

1. Production is an organized activity, so every production system has an objective.

 2. The system transforms the various inputs into useful outputs.
3. It does not operate in isolation from the other organization system.
4. There exists a feedback about the activities, which is essential to control and improve
system performance.

PRODUCTION MANAGEMENT

E.S. Buffa defines production management as, “Production management deals with
decision making related to production processes so that the resulting goods or services are
produced according to specifications, in the amount and by the schedule demanded and out of
minimum cost.”

Products (or services) management includes a wide range of management activities, ranging
from the time that there’s a new idea for a new product to eventually providing ongoing support to
customer who have purchased the new product. Every organization conducts management,
whether it’s done intentionally or unintentionally.

OBJECTIVES OF PRODUCTION MANAGEMENT

The objective of the production management is to produce goods and services of right
quality and quantity at the right time and right manufacturing cost.

1. Right Quality
The quality of product is established based upon the customers’ needs. The right quality is
not necessarily the best quality. It is determined by the cost of the product and the technical
characteristics as suited to the specific requirements.

2. Right Quantity
The manufacturing organization should produce the products in right number. If they
produced in excess of demand, the capital will block up in the form of inventory and if the quantity
is produced in short of demand, leads to shortage of products.

3. Right time
Timeliness of delivery is one of the important parameter to judge the effectiveness of
production department. So, the production department has to make the optimal utilization of input
resources to achieve its objective.

4. Right manufacturing cost

Manufacturing costs are established before the product is actually manufactured. Hence, all
attempts should be made to produce the products at pre-established cost, so as to reduce the
variation between actual and the standard (pre-established) cost.
 SERVICE OPERATIONS

WHAT IS OPERATION?

Operations refer to “any process that accepts inputs and uses resources to change those
inputs into useful ways”. The transformation process converts the inputs into final goods or
services.

Examples of final goods and service are as follows:

1. Industrial chemicals like methylene chloride, borax powder, phosphoric acid, etc., which
are produce by chemical manufacturing films;
2. Services like those for the construction of ports, high-rise buildings, roads, bridges, etc.,
which are produced by construction firms;
3. Electrical products like transformers, circuit breakers, switch gears, power capacitors,
etc., which are produced by electrical manufacturing firms;
4. Mechanical devices like forklifts, trucks, loaders, etc., which are produced by
manufacturing firms;
5. Engineering consultancy services like those for construction management and
supervision, project management services etc., which are produces by engineering
consultancy firms.

Operations in an organization can be categorized into manufacturing operations (a

conversion process that includes manufacturing yields a tangible output: a product) and service
operations.

SERVICE OPERATIONS

A service operation is an open transformation process that includes service yields an

intangible output (a deed, a performance, an effort) through the appropriate application of
resources (material, labor, information, and the consumer as well).
Service is characterized by intangible outputs, outputs that customers consumes
immediately, jobs that use more labor and less equipment, direct consumer contact, frequent
customer participation in the conversion process, and elementary methods for measuring
conversion activities and resource consumption. Some services are equipment based namely rail-
road services, telephone services and some are people based namely tax consultant services, hair
styling.

WHAT IS OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT?

An operation is an activity that needs to be managed by competent persons. Aldag and

Stearns accurately defined operations management as “the process of planning, organizing, and
controlling operations to reach objectives efficiently and effectively”. As the terms “planning”,
“organizing”, and “controlling” have already been discussed in the previous chapters, elaborations
on the terms “efficiency” and “effectiveness” will be made.

Efficiency is related to “the cost of doing something, or the resource utilization involved.”
When a person performs a job at lesser cost than when another person performs the same job, he
is more efficient than the other person.

Effectiveness refers to goal accomplishment. When one is able to reach his objective, say
produced 10,000 units in one month, he is said to be effective.

Operations management must be performed in coordination with the other functions like
those for marketing and finance although the specific activities of the operations divisions of firms
slightly differ from one produced products or services.

OPERATION MANAGEMENT FRAMEWORK

Managing operations can be enclosed in a frame of general management functions.

Operation managers are concerned with planning, organizing, and controlling the activities
which affect human behavior through models.

 PLANNING. Activities that establishes a course of action and guide future decision-
making

This stage includes clarifying the role and focus of operations in the organization’s overall
strategy. It also involves planning, facility designing and using the conversion process.

 ORGANIZING. Activities that establishes a structure of tasks and authority.

Operation managers establish a structure of roles and the flow of information within the
operations subsystem. They determine the activities required to achieve the goals and assign
authority and responsibility for carrying them out.

 CONTROLLING. Activities that assure the actual performance in accordance with planned
performance.

To ensure that the plans for the operations subsystems are accomplished, the operations
manager must exercise control by measuring actual outputs and comparing them to planned
operations management. Controlling costs, quality, and schedules are the important functions
here.

 BEHAVIOR

Operation managers are concerned with how their efforts to plan, organize, and control
affect human behavior. They also want to know how the behavior of subordinates can affect
management’s planning, organizing, and controlling actions. Their interest lies in decision-making
behavior.

 MODELS

refers to the creation of representations of management problems and organizations in

order to determine outcomes of proposed courses of action. As operation managers plan, organize,
and control the conversion process, they encounter many problems and must make many
decisions. They can simplify their difficulties using models (like aggregate planning models for
examining how best to use existing capacity in short-term)

Types of Models in Production Operations and Management:

1. Verbal Models - express in words the relationships among variables.

2. Schematic Models - pictorial relationship among variables
3. Iconic Models - scaled physical replicas of objects or processes.
4. Mathematical Models - functional relationships among variables by using mathematical
symbols

OPERATIONS AND THE ENGINEER

The engineer manager is expected to produce some outputs at whatever management level
he is. If he is assigned as the manufacturing engineer, his function is “to determine and define the
equipment, tools, and process required to convert the design product into reality in an efficient
manner”.

The engineer in charge of operations in a construction firms is responsible for the actual
construction of whatever bridge or road his company has agreed to put up. He is required to do it
using the least-expensive and easiest methods. The engineer, as operations manager, must find
ways to contribute to the production of quality goods or services and the reduction of costs in his
department.

TRANSFORMATION PROCESS

The engineer manager must have some knowledge of the various types of transformation
process. They are as follows:

1. SERVICE PROCESSES

Service processes are those that refer to the provision of services to persons by hand with
machinery.
 Service factory. A service factory offers a limited mix of services which results to some
economies of scale operations. This is also affords the company to compete In terms of price and
speed producing the service. Ex: Jollibee and McDonald

Service Shop. A service shop provides mix of services. The layout are those for job shops or
fixed position and adaptable to various requirements.

Examples are Servitek and Megashell. Among the services provided by these shops are car
engine tune-up, wheel balancing, wheel alignment, change oil, etc.

Mass Service. A mass service company provides services to a large number of people
simultaneously. A unique processing method is, therefore, necessary to satisfy requirement. To be
able to serve many people, mass service companies offer limited mix of services.

Professional Services. These are companies that provide specialized services to other firms
or individuals. Examples of such firms are as follows:

1. Engineering or management consulting services

2. Advertising agencies
3. Accounting services
4. Legal services
5. Health services

2. MANUFACTURING PROCESSES
Manufacturing process are those that refer to the making of products by hand or with
machinery.

Job Shop Production. Job shop production are characterized by manufacturing of one or
few quantity of products designed and produced as per the specification of customers within
prefixed time and cost. The distinguishing feature of this is low volume and high variety of
products. A job shop comprises of general purpose machines arranged into different departments.
Each job demands unique technological requirements, demands processing on machines in a
certain sequence.

Batch Production. Batch production is defined by American Production and Inventory

Control Society (APICS) “as a form of manufacturing in which the job passes through the functional
departments in lots or batches and each lot may have a different routing.” It is characterized by the
manufacture of limited number of products produced at regular intervals and stocked awaiting
sales.

Mass Production. Manufacture of discrete parts or assemblies using a continuous process

are called mass production. This production system is justified by very large volume of production.
The machines are arranged in a line or product layout. Product and process standardization exists
and all outputs follow the same path.
 Continuous Production. Production facilities are arranged as per the sequence of
production operations from the first operations to the finished product. The items are made to
flow through the sequence of operations through material handling devices such as conveyors,
transfer devices, etc.

OBJECTIVES OF OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT

Objectives of operations management can be categorized into customer service and

resource utilization.

Customer Service
- Aspects of customer service: specification, cost and timing
- the operating system must provide something to a specification which can satisfy the
customer in terms of cost and timing. Thus, primary objective can be satisfied by providing
the ‘right thing at a right price at the right time’.

Resource Utilization
- is to utilize resources for the satisfaction of customer wants effectively, i.e., customer
service must be provided with the achievement of effective operations through efficient use
of resources. Inefficient use of resources or inadequate customer service leads to
commercial failure of an operating system.

FUNCTIONS OF PRODUCTION AND OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT

Production and operations management that are concerned with the conversion of inputs
into outputs, using physical resources, so as to provide the desired utilities to the customer while
meeting the other organizational objectives of effectiveness, efficiency and adoptability. It
distinguishes itself from other functions such as personnel, marketing, finance, etc., by its primary
concern for conversion by using physical resources.

Following are the activities which are listed under production and operations management
functions:

1. Location of facilities
Location of facilities for operations is a long-term capacity decision which involves a
long term commitment about the geographically static factors that affect a business
organization. It is an important strategic level decision-making for an organization. It deals
with the questions such as where our main operations should be based?

2. Plant layouts and materials management

Plant layout refers to the physical arrangement of facilities. It is the configuration of
departments, work centers and equipment in the conversion process. The overall objective
of the plant layout is to design a physical arrangement that meets the required output
quality and quantity most economically.
 Materials management refers to “approach that seeks efficiency of the operation
through integration of all material acquisition, movement, and storage activities in the firm.

3. Product design
Product design deals with conversion of ideas into reality.

4. Process design
Process design is a macroscopic decision-making of an overall process route for
converting the raw material into finished goods. These decisions encompass the selection of
a process, choice of technology, process flow analysis and layout of the facilities.

5. Production and planning control

Production planning and control can be defined as the process of planning the
production in advance, setting the exact route of each item, fixing the starting and finishing
dates for each item, to give production orders to shops and to follow up the progress of
products according to orders.

Main functions of production planning and control:

o Planning is deciding in advance what to do, how to do it, when to do it and who is to
do it.
o Routing may be defined as the selection of path which each part of the product will
follow, which being transformed from raw material to finished products
o Scheduling is defined as the fixation of time and date for each operation as well as it
determines the sequence of operations to be followed.
o Dispatching is release of orders and instruction for the starting of production for any
item in acceptance with the route sheet and schedule charts.
o Follow-up is to report daily the progress of work in each shop in a prescribed
performance and to investigate the causes of deviations from the planned
performance.

6. Quality control
Quality Control (QC) may be defined as a system that is used to maintain a desired
level of quality in a product or service.

7. Materials management
Materials management is that aspect of management function which is primarily
concerned with the acquisition, control and use of materials needed and flow of goods and
services connected with the production process having some predetermined objectives in
view.

8. Maintenance management.

The main objectives of maintenance management are:

 1. To achieve minimum breakdown and to keep the plant in good working condition at
the lowest possible cost.
2. To keep the machines and other facilities in such a condition that permits them to
be used at their optimal capacity without interruption.
3. To ensure the availability of the machines, buildings and services required by other
sections of the factory for the performance of their functions at optimal return on
investment

DEVELOPING PRODUCTS

Sources of Ideas

Ideas can come from many sources, for example:

1. Complaints from current customers (Customer and Customer Satisfaction)

2. Requests for Proposals from large business, government agencies etc.
3. Modifications to current products(Innovation)
4. Suggestions from employees, customers, suppliers, etc. (Creative Thinking)

FACTORS IN PRODUCT/SERVICE PRODUCTION

 Product/Service Distribution
 Direct distribution methods include your providing your products and services
directly to your customer. Direct methods are, for example, direct mail, retail, catalogs,
or even over the Internet.
 Indirect methods include having a middleman. Indirect methods include, for
example, using wholesalers and distributors, or retailers (the middleman is a large chain
of retail stores).

 Advertising and Promotion

Advertising and promotion of products and services are often some of the most under-
rated activities by new business owners. Many people strongly believe that if they build it,
buyers will come. In this increasingly expanding and competitive marketplace, you must ensure
your products and services are prominently in the minds of your customers and clients. This
requires ongoing advertising and promotion.

 Sales
Even if your products and services are prominently in the minds of your customers and
clients, you need to facilitate the process of their buying your product and services. This often
requires cultivating an ongoing relationship with customers and clients to understand their
needs, explain how your products and services can meet those needs, and facilitate the “closing”
of the sale, that is, where they sign “on the dotted line”.

 Warranties

Customers are increasingly knowledgeable and intelligent in their buying habits.

Depending on the nature of the product or service, a warranty (or promise of ongoing repair
and/or support for some period of time) can greatly reassure customers when considering the
purchase of your products.

 Customer satisfaction

(note that nonprofits might use the term “clients” rather than “customers”)

Increasing competition (whether for profit or nonprofit) is forcing businesses to pay much
more attention to satisfy customers. It may help the reader to notice the role of the customer
satisfaction in the overall context of the product or service development and management.

Prepared by:

Juana Abetria
Aura Karissa Alcantara
Ranijames Bangay
Chester Carlo Brizuela
Ron de Guzman
BSCE 4 – 1

CENG - Engineering Management

Engr. Cene M. Bago

Instructor