ops management, Operation Management

Assignment Help:
Case study: Implementing Operations Management Tools in UK SMEs
The
intense competition in the current business environment has forced both the service and
manufacturing industries to re
-
examine their methods of doing business. In recent years,
even well
-
known names in manufacturing and service sectors have struggled with
growing
competition from emerging companies who use superior manufacturing practices and use of
quality initiatives in the form of
materials requirement planning
(MRP),
just
-
in
-
time
(
JIT
)
and
theory of constraints (
TOC
)
.
You have been appointed as a
production manager in a U.K. based company specialised in
manufacture of piston for internal combustion engine made from Aluminium (Al) and
Magnesium (Mg) alloys. The company has a production capacity of 500 pistons per day, in a
complete process from cast
ing to assembly and quality control. Four different types of
pistons are produced two of which have been launched within past two years.
The production process takes place in two separate areas of the factory. In one area, the Al
and Mg alloys are cast wh
ile the casings are machined and finished in another area. A total
of
5
0 people are at work in this plant. The main raw materials, Al and Mg alloys, are sourced
directly from two different suppliers from within the U.K. located about 150 miles away. Other
small parts required for the piston is sourced from a supplier from the US.
Parts are held in a large central store, however, difficulty is often found in obtaining
components in a specified time. The company very often faces part shortages at assembly
wh
ich leads to high “Work In Progress” (WIP).
The company is currently using the materials requirement planning (MRP) inventory
management system. For the last couple of years the top management of the company has
been considering to switch to just
-
in
-
time
(JIT) inventory management system which is a
complex decision, requiring careful examination of each system and its possible impact on a
variety of factors. Your immediate task is to undertake a comparative analysis of these two
popular inventory managemen
t practices and provide a report indicating a number of
benefits and critical
factors
so that upper management can make a decision on whether or
not to switch to JIT. Your report should include important factors such as:
1.
Critical
elements and
criteria for
judging level of success
of
the systems
;
2.
Critical
factors
for implementation;
3.
Implementation stages and cost;
4.
Limitations of the system
s

Related Discussions:- ops management

Explain what entry mode would you use, You are the Vice-President for Inter...

You are the Vice-President for International Development of a small U.S. pharmaceutical company (located in Emeryville, California) which specializes in the development of new medi

Explain critical path consists of only five activities, You are working on ...

You are working on a project that has 12 activities. You determine that the critical path consists of only five activities. You then compute the variances for the five critical pat

Explain increased rigidity in organizational culture, According to the expe...

According to the experts, the 2020 organizations will possess one of the following characteristics: a. Heavily analytical approaches to problem-solving b. Increased rigidity in org

What are the primary external organizational considerations, Do you think t...

Do you think these primary external organizational considerations are the same across all industries, or do different industries (like manufacturing vs. health care) have different

Explain decision alternatices and various levels of demand, The following p...

The following payoff table provides profits based on various possible decision alternatices and various levels of demand at Amber Gardner's software firm

Find loan payment than the lease payment, Sutton Corporation, which has a z...

Sutton Corporation, which has a zero tax rate due to tax loss carry-forwards, is considering a 5-year, $6,000,000 bank loan to finance service equipment. The loan has an interest r

Describe census of population as a measure of education, 1. Education is of...

1. Education is often used as an indicator of a person's socioeconomic status. Historically, the number of years of schooling completed has been recorded in the census of populatio

Explain the impact of increasing fuel prices on logistics, Describe the imp...

Describe the impact of increasing fuel prices on logistics network design

Explain a popular concept in healthcare administration, A popular concept i...

A popular concept in healthcare administration these days is the service line. Let us put you in the CFO position for this question. For your own hospital, are you in favor of serv

Write Your Message!

Captcha
Free Assignment Quote

Assured A++ Grade

Get guaranteed satisfaction & time on delivery in every assignment order you paid with us! We ensure premium quality solution document along with free turntin report!

All rights reserved! Copyrights ©2019-2020 ExpertsMind IT Educational Pvt Ltd