Inputs, Processes & Outputs
What are "inputs" in an operations system? Give one example.
The resources a business uses to produce goods/services, e.g. raw materials, labour, equipment, money.
Give ONE example of a manufacturing business.
Any business that produces a physical/tangible product. e.g. a car maker, a furniture manufacturer, a clothing factory.
Name ONE technology-based strategy a business could use to improve the efficiency or effectiveness of its operations.
Automated production lines, robotics, computer-aided design (CAD), computer-aided manufacturing (CAM), artificial intelligence, online services.
What is "quality control"?
Inspecting/checking outputs (often at the end of production) to identify and remove any defective products before they reach the customer.
What does "lean management" aim to do, broadly?
Eliminate waste of all kinds (time, materials, movement, overproduction, etc.) from the production process, to improve efficiency and effectiveness.
What are "outputs" in an operations system? Give one example.
The finished goods or services a business produces — e.g. a finished car, a haircut, a delivered pizza.
Give ONE example of a service business.
Any business that provides an intangible service. e.g. a hairdresser, a bank, a restaurant, an accountant.
What does "Just in Time" (JIT) mean as a materials strategy?
Materials/stock are ordered and delivered to arrive exactly when needed for production, rather than being stockpiled. Reducing the money and space tied up in inventory.
What is "quality assurance", and how is it different from quality control?
Quality assurance is a set of processes and standards built into every stage of production to prevent defects from occurring in the first place. Unlike quality control, which only checks for and catches defects after they occur.
In lean management, what does "takt time" refer to?
The pace/rate at which a product needs to be completed in order to meet customer demand (available production time ÷ customer demand) — it sets the "drumbeat" the production process should match.
In one or two sentences, explain the relationship between operations management and business objectives.
Operations management is about transforming inputs into outputs as efficiently and effectively as possible. The better this is managed, the more likely the business is to achieve its objectives (e.g. profit, market share, customer satisfaction).
Name ONE characteristic that is generally true of manufacturing businesses but not service businesses.
produces a tangible product; the output can be stored as inventory; the customer is usually not present during production.
What is a "master production schedule"?
A detailed plan showing what needs to be produced, in what quantities, and by when, based on forecast or actual customer demand.
What does "Total Quality Management" (TQM) involve?
A company-wide approach where every employee, at every stage of production, is responsible for continuously improving quality, with the goal of zero defects and complete customer satisfaction.
What is meant by "one-piece flow" in lean management?
Producing and moving one unit at a time through each step of the process, rather than in large batches, reduces waiting time and the amount of work-in-progress inventory sitting around.
A bakery buys flour, uses ovens and staff to bake bread, then sells the finished loaves. Identify ONE input, ONE process and ONE output in this example.
Input: flour (or staff/ovens). Process: baking the bread. Output: the finished loaves of bread.
Name ONE characteristic that is generally true of service businesses but not manufacturing businesses.
The output is intangible and can't be stored; the customer is often present or involved during the process; quality can be harder to standardise.
Explain the difference between "forecasting" and "materials requirement planning" (MRP) as materials strategies.
Forecasting predicts future customer demand based on past sales/trends. MRP is a (usually computerised) system that uses the master production schedule to work out exactly what materials and components are needed, and when, to meet that planned production.
Name the strategy businesses use to minimise waste in production, made up of three words starting with the same letter.
Reduce, reuse, recycle.
Name ONE global consideration a business might weigh up when deciding where to source materials or manufacture its products.
Global sourcing (buying materials/components from overseas), overseas manufacturing (making the product in another country), global outsourcing (paying an overseas third party to do the work).
Explain why classifying a business's operations into inputs, processes and outputs is useful for a manager trying to improve efficiency or effectiveness.
It helps the manager pinpoint exactly where a problem or inefficiency occurs (e.g., poor-quality inputs, a slow process, or an output that doesn't meet customer needs), so they can apply the right strategy to the right part of the system rather than guessing.
A furniture company manufactures its own furniture AND offers an in-home assembly service. Explain why this business shows BOTH manufacturing and service characteristics, giving one example of each from this scenario.
Manufacturing characteristic: it produces a tangible, storable product (the furniture itself). Service characteristic: the in-home assembly involves direct customer contact and can't be stored as inventory. It's delivered when it's performed.
A car manufacturer wants to reduce the money tied up in unsold parts sitting in its warehouse. Recommend ONE materials strategy that would help, and explain how it addresses the problem.
Just in Time (JIT) parts arrive only when needed for production, so the business isn't paying to buy and store large amounts of stock it isn't using yet.
A clothing manufacturer currently only inspects finished garments right before shipping, so defects are only caught at the very end of production. Recommend a change to how it manages quality that would catch problems earlier, and explain why it would help.
Move toward quality assurance, build quality checks and standards into each stage of production (not just the end), so defects are caught and fixed earlier, reducing wasted materials, time and cost on garments that are already finished before a fault is found.
A business moves its manufacturing overseas to cut costs. This creates a bigger carbon footprint from shipping products back to Australia. Identify the CSR (corporate social responsibility) consideration raised here, and the global consideration that led to it.
CSR consideration: the environmental sustainability impact / extra waste and emissions from the increased shipping. Global consideration: overseas manufacture (moving production to another country to reduce costs).