Here is a term paper on ‘Production, Planning and Control’. Find paragraphs, long and short term papers on ‘Production Planning and Control’ especially written for school and college students.
Term Paper Contents:
- Term Paper on the Introduction to Production, Planning and Control
- Term Paper on the Scope of PPC
- Term Paper on the Phases of Production Planning and Control
- Term Paper on Continuous and Intermittent – Production
- Term Paper on Job Shop, Open Job Shop, Closed Job Shop
- Term Paper on How to Make PPC Effective?
Term Paper # 1. Introduction to Production, Planning and Control:
The production control is one of the very important problems of production management. Production is the conversion of raw materials into finished products and is also spoken of as manufacture of goods. In productive enterprises, it is essential that production is carried on in the best manner at the lowest cost, and the goods are of right quality and are produced at the proper time. This can be ensured only through proper planning of production. It should be noted that mere planning of production does not suffice.
The management will have to take all possible steps to see that the plans chalked out by the Planning Department are properly adhered to and the standards set are attained and improved. This is precisely the function of production control. Production control is thus concerned with direction and guiding production along the lines set by the Planning Department. It means by which actual performance of the productive apparatus is constantly evaluated in the light of plans formulated by the planners.
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Evidently, the fundamental object of production control is that the product shall be produced by the best and the cheapest methods, that it shall be of the required quality, and that it shall be produced at the right time. To achieve these objects, the management plans production in the advance of operations, sets the exact route or path of each individual item or part, fixes the starting and finishing dates for each item, assembly, or finished product, releases the necessary orders, and initiates the required follow-up to ensure the smooth functioning of the enterprise.
A production planning and control system has several functions to perform. These are broadly divided into three phases – planning phase, action phase and control phase. These three phases are sub-divided. Planning consists of prior planning and active planning.
Action phase leads to dispatching. Control phase is divided into progress reporting and corrective action. Prior planning is further sub-divided into forecasting, ordering and product design. Active planning consists of process planning and routing, material control, tool control, loading and scheduling. Corrective action is subdivided into two parts of expediting and re-planning.
Term Paper # 2. Scope of PPC:
The common belief is that the PPC is followed only in production or manufacturing organizations. This is far from truth. The principles of PPC may be applied to non- manufacturing situations as well. For example, it may be utilized to schedule operations in a restaurant kitchen to service orders by customers more efficiently. Moreover, the traffic department of an airline or railroad is engaged in production control when it decides to have equipment on hand in a particular city.
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The Registrar of a university is engaged in production control when he determines that a particular class- room will be used for a particular course in materials management at a particular hour. The manager of a retail store is engaged in production control when he determines that eight sales clerks will be needed on Saturdays but only six on week- days. The basic principles of PPC must be performed in the bank, wholesale house, department store, mail-order establishment, railroad, army, navy, governmental agency, or any other type of organization where many people work together.
Term Paper # 3. Phases of Production Planning and Control:
Planning Phase:
(i) Sales Forecasting:
Forecasting is a scientifically calculated guess. It is basic to all planning activity:
(i) Whether it is national, regional, organizational, or functional planning; and
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(ii) Whether it a long- range plan or a short- range plan.
In other words, forecasting means estimation of type, quantity and quality of future work, e.g. sales etc. Forecasting is a little more scientific than predicting and its scientific basis lies in studying past, present and future trends, present and future action and their effects. What happened in the past is relevant to what is happening now and what could happen in the future Thus forecasting takes into account all the three dimensions of time – past, present and future. The survival of a manufacturing enterprise depends on its ability to assess, with reasonable accuracy, the market trends several years ahead.
Forecast represents a commitment on the part of the sales department and each of its divisions of expected sales. It becomes a goal against which the effectiveness of the sales department will be measured. Forecasting plays a crucial role in the development of plans for the future. Sales budget forms the basis for manufacturing budget. It is the sales forecast that enables to determine production quantities, labor, equipment and raw material requirement.
Purpose of Sales Forecasting:
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The purpose of sales forecasting is to determine the volume of production and the production rate and also forms the basis for production budget, labor budget, material budget. It also suggests the need for plant expansion and emphasizes the need for product research development. It suggests the need for changes in production methods and helps establishing pricing policies. It helps deciding the extent of advertising, product distribution etc.
(ii) Process Planning:
In designing production processes, we delineate and describe the specific processes to be used in production. Process planning deals with determining the specific technologies and procedures required to produce a product or service. Process planning is intense for new products and services, but re-planning can also occur as capacity needs change, business or market conditions change, or technologically superior machines become available. The type of production processes to be selected must necessarily follow directly from the operations strategies. The design of products and the design of production processes are interrelated.
Knowledge about operations strategies, product/service designs, technologies of the production system, and markets are used to develop a detailed plan for producing products/services. The outputs of these studies are a complete determination of the individual technological process steps to be used and the linkages among the steps- the selection of equipment, design of buildings, and layout facilities; and the number of personnel required, their skill levels, and their supervision required.
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Once process planning has been completed, the fundamental structure and character of the operations function is set. This important activity determines in large measure the details of how products/services will be produced, and it positions production to be used by the business to capture world markets.
Who does process planning? Several departments such as manufacturing engineering, plant engineering, tool engineering, purchasing, industrial engineering, design engineering, and of course, production may be involved. Engineers are involved because the very nature of process planning is inseparable from the technology of production.
Information Required to do Process Planning:
The process planning requires the following information:
i. Quality of work to be done along with product specifications;
ii. Quality of work to be completed;
iii. Availability of equipments, tools and personnel;
iv. Sequence in which operations will be performed on the raw material;
v. Names of equipments on which the operations will be performed;
vi. Standard time for each operation;
vii. When the operations will be performed.
Process Planning Procedure:
The process planning procedure involves the following steps:
1. Selection of Process:
The selection of process depends upon:
(a) Current production commitments
(b) Delivery data
(c) Quantity to be produced
(d) Quality standards
2. Selection of Material:
The material should be of right quality and chemical composition as per the product specification. The shape and size of material should restrict the scrap.
3. Selection of Jigs, Fixtures and Other Special Attachments:
Jigs, Fixtures and other special attachments are supporting devices that are necessary to give higher production rate and to reduce cost of production per piece.
4. Selecting of Cutting Tools and Inspection Gauges:
Cutting tools and inspection gauges are necessary to reduce production time and inspect accurately and at a faster rate.
5. Make the Process Layout:
Make the process layout indicating every operation and the sequence in which each operation is to be carried out.
6. Find set-up time and standard time for each operation.
7. Manifest process planning by documents such as operation and route sheets that summarize the operations required, the preferred sequence of operations, auxiliary tools required, estimated operation times etc.
Economic Batch Quantity:
If the number of components to be produced is very large, they cannot be manufactured in one batch. Under such conditions it is required to find out the economic batch quantity.
The Economic Batch Quantity (EBQ) Formula for a single product is:
This expression is similar to that derived for the classical inventory model except for the fact that it takes into consideration production and consumption rates of the product.
(iii) Routing:
Routing refers to the process of the selection of the path or route over which each piece is to travel in being transformed from jaw material into finished product. Routing includes the planning of where and by whom work shall be done, the determination of the path that work shall follow, and the necessary sequence of operations. The object of routing is to find out the best and cheapest sequence of operations so that those working in the shop are instructed to carry the work through the workshop in a systematic and economic manner.
In some cases, it suffices to prescribe the order in which the product will pass through specified departments. In the case of products requiring more detailed planning, the particular machines and processes to be run production are also to be prescribed.
In the routing of the most comprehensive types, however, the sequence of detailed operations to be performed, the set-up of the special fixture, special tools to be used for each operation, and the feed and speed for each tool are also specified. The route clerk who is entrusted with the task of routing in the planning department can succeed at the job only if he has complete knowledge of the product, the manufacturing processes and the capacity and characteristics of every machine.
The following considerations must be kept in view while preparing a route card showing the route of the materials through various processes:
i. The machines in the plant should be operated at their full capacity.
ii. Where accuracy is important, the product should pass through work- stations that are manned by the ablest of the personnel.
iii. The route indicated in the card should be the shortest and the most economical of all possible routes.
Routing Procedure:
Routing follows various procedural steps as are described below:
1. The finished product is analyzed from the manufacturing point of view in order to decide how many components can be made in the plant and how many other will be purchased (Make/Buy decision) from outside through vendors, by subcontracting, etc. Make/Buy decision depends upon the workload in the plant, availability of equipment and personnel to manufacture all components, and the economy associated with making all components within the plant itself.
2. A parts list and a bill of material is prepared showing name of the part, quantity, material specifications, amount of materials required, etc. The necessary material, thus, can be procured.
3. From production standards – machine capacities, machine characteristics and the operations that must be performed at each stage of manufacture are established and listed in proper sequence on an operation and route sheet. The place where these operations will be performed is also decided.
4. Determination of the lot size or the number of components to be manufactured in one lot or batch is the next consideration. In the case of an order from a particular customer, it is generally equal to a number within 10% of the order quantity. In other cases the principle of economic batch quantity can be applied.
5. Standard scrap factor and the place where scrap is very likely to occur are identified. The actual scrap in each batch can be recorded on the control chart.
6. The cost of the component is analyzed and estimated through the information obtained in steps 1 to 5 above. The cost consists of material and labor charges, and other specific and general indirect expenses.
(iv) Scheduling and Control of Production:
Once the planning to meet sales is over and a set of decisions have been formulated, the next step is the implementation of the decisions through detailed plans and schedules. Schedules are prepared for the use of facilities like equipment and manpower.
Scheduling and Control of production emphasize on:
i. The determination of the amount of each product to be manufactured if there are products of different types and sizes;
ii. Decision about the deployment of work force and equipment to achieve the target production rate;
iii. Determination of individual work assignments;
iv. Setting up the information system to provide feedback and accurately the actual output duly compared with the scheduled one.
Generally, first of all the order is scheduled, then it is dispatched for necessary operation and lastly the progress of the order is tracked to ensure that the scheduled is being met. This stage is known as control of production.
Scheduling:
Scheduling refers to the process of preparing a time target for all production operations including setup and other preparation time in executing a production order in the manufacturing organization.
Scheduling covers the following areas in particular:
i. Assign job to a particular work center/machine
ii. Time of assignment of job and its completion
iii. Allocation of resources like manpower and materials
iv. Time sequence of operations
v. Feedback and control function to take care of deviations
Factors Affecting Scheduling:
The factors internal and external to the organization affect production scheduling and must be considered before establishing the scheduling plan. The external factors include the customer’s demand, customer’s delivery dates, and stock of goods already lying with the dealer and retailer.
The internal factors include stock of finished goods with the firm, time internal to process finished goods from raw material, availability of equipment and machinery, their total capacity and specifications, availability of materials, their quantity and specifications and availability of manpower (number, type and kind of skills), additional manufacturing facilities if required, and feasibility of economic production runs.
Selection Criteria for the Type of Scheduling:
There are various types of scheduling systems. Selection of a particular system depends on a number of factors.
Some of these are given below:
i. Available infrastructure like machine capacity and number;
ii. Type of layout like process and product types;
iii. Volumes of production like low volume or high volume;
iv. Type of products – standardized and non-standardized
v. Type of production systems like job-shop, and mass production
vi. Priority of Job
vii. Time schedules like operation, waiting and delivery time
viii. Cost aspects like set-up cost, change- over cost, etc.
Each system of scheduling has its merits and demerits. Hence there is nothing like an ideal system or a best system of scheduling. The relevant aspect is to select the most appropriate system of scheduling that suits a particular production background and working environment.
The ability to select the most appropriate system depends on the professional and conceptual skill of managers. As the time and working conditions change we may also change even the existing scheduling system accordingly. Thus scheduling is a dynamic system.
Action Phase:
Dispatching:
Dispatching is the process of issuing the factory order that authorizes a particular shop to take up the processing of a given job on an assigned plant or machine. Factory order involves shop- wise issue of job cards/work tickets, process sheets, specification, drawings limits and tolerances, master films like PCB masters and any other useful information and forms.
Dispatching also involves issue of instructions/order to the materials department to supply materials and. components to the production floor. These orders and documents are also released to the shop as per the time- table specified by the release- time schedule.
Dispatching also involves period review of progress of production. The Dispatcher is the ‘initiator’ of production activities.
His activities are:
i. Receive and issue work tickets/job cards to all groups/shops concerned.
ii. Receive and release requisition forms for materials, tools, and facilities.
iii. Issue’ move order’, authorizing transport department to move stock, work-in- progress from one department/section to another
iv. Issue orders for machine set-up and operation.
v. Keep track of progress of production through tools like ‘progress control boards’.
Dispatch Procedure:
The product is broken into different components and components into operations.
The various steps of dispatch procedure for each operation are listed as follows:
(a) Store Issue Order – Authorize stores to deliver required raw material.
(b) Tool order – Authorize tool store to release the necessary tools. The tool room attendant can collect the tools.
(c) Job Order – Instruct the worker to proceed with the operation
(d) Time Ticket – It records the beginning and end time of the operations and forms the basis for worker’s pay.
(e) Inspection Order – Notify the inspectors to carry out necessary instructions and report the quality of the component.
(f) Move order – Authorize the movement of materials and components from one facility to another for further operations.
Centralized and Decentralized Dispatching:
Dispatching function may be categorized into Centralized and Decentralized Dispatching.
In a Centralized dispatch system, a central dispatching department, orders directly to the work stations and maintains a full record of the features and capacity of each equipment and work load against each machine. The shop supervisor receives the orders and runs his machines accordingly. The supervisor can also give suggestions as regards loading of man and machines under him. A centralized system achieves a greater degree of over control and effective coordination between different facilities.
In a Decentralized dispatching system the shop supervisor performs the dispatch functions. He determines the sequence of handling different orders. He dispatches the orders and materials to each equipment and worker, and is required to complete the work within the prescribed duration. In case he suspects delays, with due reasons of the same he informs the production control department.
Level of Dispatch Office:
Dispatching can be introduced at different levels either at Plant Manager’s level, shop Superintendent’s level, at the level of the shop Supervisor or at a Specialist’s level. Dispatching, at the level of the Plant Manager though keeps him informed about all the plant activities and seeks his guidance but the Plant Manager does not have enough time to go through each and every detail carefully and is time consuming for the information to pass down the line to the workers. Similar is the situation with the Shop Superintendent.
Dispatching at the level of the Shop Supervisor’s level seems to be appropriate because higher levels are not disturbed. Moreover, the shop supervisor knows best about his shop and thus dispatching can be more effective and the schedule is passed on to the workers in no time. Introducing dispatching at the level of a Specialist relieves the shop supervisor of the clerical work. This system provides extra manpower and special guidance and advice. It increases efficiency and achieves effective coordination.
Control Phase:
Progress Control:
Once the actual production has commenced, it becomes necessary to watch carefully the progress of the work so that if deviations take place, timely correction action can be taken. Progress control refers to the attempts to achieve the established standards i.e. at certain level of efficiency or a certain volume of production in a specified duration. The progress control system should be such that it provides timely, adequate and accurate information about the progress made, delays and under- or overloading.
Steps in Progress Control:
A progress control must have the following steps:
(a) Establishing a system to watch and record the progress of the operating facility;
(b) Prepare a report of the work progress or work accomplishment
(c) Transmits report to control group for necessary control action, and accounting group for recording material and labor expenditures.
(d) The control group interprets information contained in the progress report
(e) Take corrective action, if needed.
(a) System to Record the Work Progress/Accomplishment:
Managers usually use progress charts to record work progress/accomplishment. They compare the work progress against the established standards, and identify the deviations; thus progress charts draw attention for an action or investigation.
The chart construction may have the following forms:
1. The Gantt Charts:
The Gantt Charts can be used to visually display the workloads in each work center in a department. Gantt chart is used to compare the weekly schedule for five work centers in a model shop. The jobs scheduled to be worked on during the week are displayed with their represented with their code names or numbers (A, B, C, etc.) beginning times, and ending times, which are represented by an open bar. As work progresses on a job, a solid bar shows how the work center is performing to the schedule. A vertical arrow indicates the time of the review.
Machine changeovers, machine maintenance, and other planned non-production work are indicated by an X. Blank spaces indicate planned ideal time at the work center; work crews are not required during these periods and may be shifted to other work centers, or other jobs may be shifted into these time slots later.
Supervisors and production planners can see with a glance at the Gantt chart the progress of the work centers toward their schedules. Gantt charts are found in most factories and service operations, and they are very useful for coordinating a diversity of schedules of work teams, work centers, and activities of projects.
2. Curve Chart:
A Curve Chart is a graph between two variables (like number of days and number of items produced) marked along X and Y axis. As the days pass, the number of items being produced is marked over the graph. When all such points are joined they indicate the production trend. Curve charts show the past data and are not readily adaptable to current or future action.
3. Mechanical Charts:
Mechanical charts include wall charts, visible index files and other scheduling devices like Produce-Tool board, Board master, Sched-U-Graph, etc. that are commercially available. The equipments have added signaling devices like pegs, strings, clips, etc. to focus the attention on the situations needing corrective action.
4. Bar Chart:
The Bar Chart consists of a number of bars. Each bar has its length proportional to the activity duration. A bar chart is generally used to point out and analyze interrelated data which otherwise is difficult to read.
(b) Prepare a Report of the Work Progress or Work Accomplishment:
The progress report should consist of the information relating to job identification, time of report and work completed in order to evaluate actual performance against the plan and to take correction action. Progress can be at the fixed intervals of time or after the work has been completed, or after each stage of the work is completed depending upon the size of the work.
(c) Transmission of Report:
The progress report may be transmitted by using any one of the systems including written system, oral system (like telephone, radio, etc.), and electronic system (Telautograph, teletype equipment etc.)
(d) Interpretation:
After the progress report is transmission the control group interprets information contained in the progress report for taking correction action
(e) Corrective Action:
Several internal and external factors require taking corrective action. The external factors are beyond the control of the organization and include change in the priority of orders due to the arrival of some new orders or due to the cancellation of a few previous orders; delay in receiving equipments, tools, or raw material due to strike or theft at the vendor’s end or due to the reason that the raw material which arrived earlier was substandard and hence, was returned for replacement; unexpected rush orders.
The internal factors arise within the organization and are within the control of the organization. These factors include labor turnover or mass absenteeism, lack of necessary instructions and materials, late starting of the work, tea breaks, etc.
Term Paper # 4. Continuous and Intermittent – Production:
Continuous production involves a continuous physical flow of material and makes use of special purpose machines. It produces standardized items in bulk quantities. Chemical processing, cigarette manufacturing, and cement manufacturing are examples of industries engaged in continuous production.
Continuous production system can be divided into two parts:
i. Mass and flow line production,
ii. Continuous or process production
An intermittent production system makes use of general- purpose machines and produces components of heterogeneous nature and in small quantities. Machine shops repair and maintenance shops, welding shops, etc. are example of intermittent production. Intermittent production can be categorized into batch production and job production.
Features of Mass and Flow Production:
Mass production involves the production of items on large scale, employing very specialized machines and processes. Items like screws and plastic products are made in mass production and their cycle of manufacture involves one or more operations on the raw material one machines. Items like air-conditions, T.V. sets and motor cycles come under flow production. These items are manufactured in continuous stages from process to process and involve a continuous and steady flow of materials.
Mass and flow production involves:
i. Scope for considerable division of labor;
ii. Machinery is laid as per the sequence of production material handling is reduce to minimum;
iii. Very little time is spent on resetting of machines;
iv. The flow of work is balanced;
v. Work cycles are short and of repetitive nature;
vi. Time study can be applied to advantage, to different operations;
vii. Work-in-progress is small as compared to intermittent production;
viii. Procedures, tools and material handling need proper attention;
ix. Plant layout and facilities are designed to suit production requirements;
x. Flow production is preferred where there is a continuous and regular product demand;
xi. It offers lowest product cost per unit.
Features of Continuous or Process Production:
Continuous or process production is applied where the product consumes fast electricity, petrol, chemicals etc. and has continuous demand.
This type of production has following features:
i. Plant layout is as per the requirements of production;
ii. All products undergo the same process. Raw material enters at one point and leaves as finished product at another;
iii. Material handling is automatic;
iv. Both semi-skilled and skill workers are employed;
v. Outputs and inputs are, respectively, measured and regulated, using sophisticated controls;
vi. Machinery employed is one built to the needs;
vii. Good plant maintenance and effective quality control are the essential requirements.
Batch Production:
Batch production is a very common type of production where articles are manufactured in batches as per the specific order procured. Drugs, clothes, paints, parts manufactured on, turret lathes, forging machines and sheet metal presses are a few examples of batch production.
In batch production division of labor is possible and flow of material is intermittent. Plant layout is of the process type. In batch production, automation of processes and mechanization of material handling may be resorted to. Proper maintenance of equipment and machinery is essential. Process and product planning is done for each batch. For batch production expediting and correction action are very necessary and requires the development of a good production control system.
Job Order Production:
There are products manufactured to meet the special requirement of customers for large projects, e.g. ship building/large engineering construction, etc. These are special type and are one-time jobs.
Job order production has the following characteristics:
i. Flow of material and parts from one location to another is intermittent or discontinuous;
ii. Mechanization and division of labor is not economical; each job order is different from the previous as regards its type, specifications, quality and quantity;
iii. Product design takes a lot of time;
iv. Prior planning becomes difficult;
v. Schedule is prepared for each component of the product, giving the starting and finishing time;
vi. General- purpose machinery and a flexible layout are preferred;
vii. Skilled workers and factor made special attachments or accessories do the needful;
viii. High degree of control is essential;
ix. Products like special purpose equipment, an uncommon material handling device, a special heat treatment furnace, a large turbo-generator, a special electronic equipment, etc., are job order production items;
x. The number of items to be manufactured is very small; it may even be one item.
Term Paper # 5. Job Shop, Open Job Shop, Closed Job Shop:
A job shop consists of a number of machine centers, each with a fundamentally different activity. Job shops handle a variety of jobs, where each job is different. In batch production though there is continuous demand for products, the rate of production exceeds that of demand, and hence there are batches. In batch production, jobs are predictable. Job shop is a different proposition, where jobs and demand both are unpredictable. Job shop handles the unique jobs each time with a unique set of operations and processing time.
Job shop machines are general -purpose machines organized department wise. The sequencing of each job is unique, depending upon the technological requirement. Job shop is a complex waiting line system- a job exists from a machine to wait on a new machine because of other jobs. Each machine has a waiting line of jobs. The converse is also true. Machines may wait for the job but no job is forthcoming. Planning here is a process of prioritizing the jobs at each machine to seek the desired objectives.
The facilities in the job shop are limited, and the jobs crowd up demanding individual processing sequences. It gives rise to some peculiar problems: flow pattern problems, WIP inventories, counting of jobs, long completion time and certain unpredictable problems.
The work in this area mainly relates to static job or flow shop. However, in a large shop, the possible sequences are many. It requires further research work. More work has been in the area of dispatching rules using simulation in a dynamic environment.
Scheduling has implications for both the costs and effectiveness. So, right frequency of scheduling with these twin objectives is a major research area these days.
Closed Job Shop:
A closed job shop is one that is closed to job orders from outside the organization. The machine shop of a big concern making automobile parts is an example of a closed job shop. It produces inventorial items of standard design, which have demand in the market. The same items are produced repetitively in cycles.
Open Job Shop:
Open Job Shop produces to order and a similar order may never be repeated. An open job shop makes products as per the requirements of the customer. There may be even one product/project. The difference between open job shop and a large project is one the scale and complexity of the product.
Term Paper # 6. How to Make PPC Effective?
In order to make the planning and control of production effective, it is essential to have:
(i) A complete knowledge of the products to be manufactured. This knowledge is also the more important in plants manufacturing to customers’ orders;
(ii) A knowledge of the number and types of each production machine and processing unit which would be required together with their feeds, speeds and productive capabilities;
(iii) A knowledge of the time required to complete each part and finished product as a whole; a knowledge of the sequence of operations, too, is essential;
(iv) A knowledge of materials required, their stock positions, and the time required to get new supplies and the rate and quantity of the consumption of materials;
(v) A knowledge of the availability of labor and their productive capacities;
(vi) A knowledge of the manufacturing operations for each part, the proper tools, jigs, and fixtures for each part, and their availability;
(vii) Standardization of materials, tools and equipment, quality, requirements, inspections, procedure of operations, production standards for employee and their remuneration, reports on production performance;
(viii) A committed labor force which understands the scheduled operations and has interests in, and aptitude for, doing the required work;
(ix) Recognition by the management of the need for production planning and control;
(x) A separate production planning and control department which is manned by efficient, qualified and experienced staff; and delegation of authority and responsibility to the people in the planning and control department;
(xi) A system which really works well when the production planning and control department functions in close cooperation with other related departments – with the sales, purchase, finance, maintenance and costing departments;
(xii) Modern techniques of reporting, control and other related facilities.