Operations methods

Job (one unique), Batch (groups then switch), Flow (continuous line).

Making a group of identical products together, then switching to a different product.

Nature of product, level of demand, available budget, workforce skill level, need for flexibility.

Products move continuously along a production line, non-stop — assembly lines and conveyor belts.

Making one unique product at a time, specially designed for each customer — tailor-made.

Costs increase, quality may improve, flexibility increases, worker motivation may improve.

Wedding cake, custom-built house, hand-made suit, piece of art.

Time lost resetting equipment between different batches — a key disadvantage.

Workforce skills and need for flexibility/variety.

Very low cost per unit (economies of scale); fast/efficient; consistent quality; meets high demand.

Huge start-up costs; no variety (standardised); boring for workers; if line breaks, everything stops.

Motivation and flexibility.

Can produce variety; cheaper per unit than job; flexible batch sizes; some skilled workers.

High quality/unique products; workers are motivated (see finished result); can charge premium prices; flexible.

Standardised, high volume, low cost per unit, consistent quality.

Slow/time-consuming; high labour costs; no economies of scale; hard to produce in large quantities.

Job production — one unique product at a time for each customer.

Time lost in changeovers; work-in-progress ties up money; repetitive for workers; not as efficient as flow.

High volume, low cost per unit, no variety (standardised).

Changeover time — resetting equipment for a different product.

Car assembly lines, bottling plants, smartphone manufacturing.

Bakery making 50 chocolate cookies, then switching to 50 vanilla ones.

Cost — economies of scale from continuous production.

Low volume, high cost per unit, high quality.

Flow production — continuous line for maximum efficiency and lowest cost.

Workers feel ownership/motivation; flexible (switch products quickly); quality improves; less WIP stock; isolated problems.

Product or major part of a product.

Traditional = one task (fast but repetitive). Cellular = multiple tasks (varied but needs training).

Organising production into small, self-contained teams (cells), each completing a whole product or major part.

Traditional = huge volumes. Cellular = flexibility and variety.

Workers are grouped into cells with all equipment needed, rather than products moving through sequential stages.

Needs multi-skilled workers (expensive training); duplicate equipment per cell; not ideal for mass production; reorganisation costs.

Quality — they see the whole product through from start to finish.

Improved worker motivation vs higher training costs — a clear trade-off.

Multi-skilled — they perform multiple tasks within their cell.

Lean production — reducing waste and improving flow.

Continuous improvement (kaizen) — always looking for ways to improve.

One cell makes tables start to finish, another cell makes chairs — each is self-contained.

Teams take responsibility for their whole product — ownership creates pride and accountability.

Mini-factories — each cell is self-contained with its own equipment and team.

Flexibility — empowering small groups to own the whole process.

Better motivation and quality vs higher training and equipment costs.

Each cell completes products fully, rather than items waiting between stages on a traditional line.

Keep working — problems are isolated, unlike a traditional line where one breakdown stops everything.

Independently — a problem in one cell doesn't stop the whole factory.

Falls; increases.

When a business grows bigger and its average cost per unit FALLS — more output = cheaper per unit.

Bulk buying discounts from suppliers — buy more, pay less per unit.

When a business gets TOO big and average costs start RISING — bigger isn't always better.

Optimal — below it, economies of scale apply; above it, diseconomies kick in.

Managerial, marketing.

Communication problems, coordination difficulties, motivation drops, slow decision-making, waste/inefficiency.

Using large-scale machinery and technology more efficiently — big machines produce more at lower cost per unit.

Fixed costs spread over more units, plus bulk buying discounts and specialist equipment becomes worthwhile.

Diseconomies if the business grows too fast or too big — argue both sides in 10-mark questions.

Workers feel like a small cog in a big machine — less personal connection to the company.

Banks offer lower interest rates to larger, safer businesses — cheaper borrowing.

Enjoys economies (costs fall) → diseconomies kick in (costs rise).

Motivation problems — workers feel disconnected in huge organisations.

The reduction in average cost per unit as a business increases its scale of production.

Average costs are at their lowest — the optimal scale of production.

Optimal size; lowest.

Hiring specialist managers for different departments — experts increase efficiency.

An increase in average cost per unit as a business grows beyond its optimal size.

Purchasing (bulk discounts), Technical (efficient machinery), Financial (cheaper borrowing), Managerial (specialists), Marketing (spread ad costs).

Lower price per tonne than a small workshop — purchasing economies of scale.

'Please Try Finding More Money' — Purchasing, Technical, Financial, Managerial, Marketing.

Some locations waste food because head office can't monitor every store closely — inefficiency.

Both sides: economies of scale benefits AND potential diseconomies if growth is too fast.

Purchasing, Technical, Financial, Managerial, Marketing economies.

The product or service meets or exceeds customer expectations.

Customer expectations.

Checking products at the END of production to find and remove faulty ones — reactive.

Building quality into EVERY stage of production — preventing defects rather than finding them.

Customer loyalty/repeat purchases, good reputation, fewer returns (lower costs), premium pricing, competitive advantage.

Proactive — building quality into every stage prevents defects.

QC = end. QA = prevent.

Complaints/returns, bad reviews, wasted materials/rework, loss of market share.

Higher prices — premium quality commands premium pricing.

Higher/premium prices — customers pay more for products they trust.

Every worker checks quality at their stage — defects caught before resources are wasted.

Problems are caught early (less wasted resources), rather than after production is complete.

Quality certifications — proving to customers the business meets international quality standards.

Higher costs — defective items waste resources and need fixing.

Into every stage of production.