Manufacturers are always looking to optimize their operations, reduce costs and improve product quality. They make a schedule, but internal and external factors impact production. To meet deadlines and remove bottlenecks, they use production tracking. Projection tracking is more than…
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An ongoing goal in business is consistency in terms of labor assignments. The ability to spread the workload even across labor leads to greater productivity but also boosts morale, which in turn increases productivity. In manufacturing operations management, this is…
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As with any project, manufacturers are working with the triple constraint of time, cost and scope. One constraint that’s often overlooked is quality. Products have to be safe and meet customer requirements, including quality. Having a control plan helps production…
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Businesses are always looking for ways to improve efficiency. Manufacturers are no different, except in the areas in which they seek to standardize and streamline their production processes. One method they use is shop floor manufacturing. For those new to…
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Scheduling production, planning a budget and allocating resources only sets up manufacturing for success. Monitoring and controlling that process ensures that deadlines are met and costs aren’t exceeded. One way to keep track of the manufacturing process is with a…
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Manufacturers have a handful of processes they use to make their products. There are five types of manufacturing processes: repetitive, discrete, job shop, continuous process and batch process manufacturing. Let’s take a closer look at the last one, batch production….
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Manufacturers, as in all businesses, are constantly seeking efficiencies that reduce costs while maintaining the production of quality goods. This is, of course, easier said than done. However, manufacturers have methods, such as production efficiency, to help achieve these goals….
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Everything you need for your manufacturing process is a resource—people, materials, equipment, software, facilities, etc. Whatever you’re making, you need to manage those resources to do it. That process is called manufacturing resource planning (MRP II), and it’s a method…
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When you make something, you better ensure there’s nothing faulty about the product. If a customer buys your product and it doesn’t work, at best, you’ll lose a customer and at worst, you’ll be served with a lawsuit. Simply put,…
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Manufacturing is based on delivering quality and quantity products to the market on schedule. Using manufacturing KPIs can help you determine strengths and weaknesses that can direct you toward improvements in all phases of your production cycle. Manufacturing KPIs are…
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Businesses need to thrive, grow more profitably and stay competitive in a marketplace that is constantly changing. That means increasing their output to the greatest extent possible. The process of achieving that goal is called capacity management. To understand capacity…
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The relationship between supply and demand is Economics 101. Whether a business is manufacturing or managing a warehouse, understanding demand management goes a long way to ensure that stock levels are always balanced with customer needs. This requires first an…
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Producing things isn’t cheap. There are many costs that occur during production that it can be hard to track them all. These costs are what is called manufacturing overhead. Let’s define manufacturing overhead, look at the manufacturing overhead formula and…
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