Question 1
The economic order quantity is the optimum amount of inventory that a company should order at any given time. It is essential to be aware of the kind of orders you need to make for a year to avoid unnecessary spending. The company will need to place the order twice each year.
Question 2
The company does not carry the proper amount of the main raw material inventory because it uses excess money on storage and transport. That is why the company is making losses and not progressing.
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Question 3
Having too much inventory can cost a lot of storage fees. Keeping the company's stock at the right amount depending on the client's demand will help save the money used for storage and channel it towards other essential parts of growing the business, which will help protect the company immediately. Going with this, my company needs to reduce its inventory, especially the one stored in the rented warehouse, by selling it and using it to improve the company (Friesike et al., 2019). It is crucial to have an inventory forecast. The company can track and manage the inventory output flow and the storage level to be able to plan for their customer's demand. Monitoring the inventory will help the company keep up with the sales, which will help save the company
Question 4
The product mix are products that a firm gives as an offer for sales. It needs improvement or adjustment because of the competition in the market here; the competitors give new products, or even the customers change in their preference. I would recommend that the product mix be adjusted and add more products to our customers. Expanding the line means we add another product which will serve our customers better. We can add bendable glass as our new product. This is because this type of glass can be made using aluminum, which is our main product.
Question 5
The plant has been facing low productivity due to the tie it takes to change colors in the anodizing tank, and this needs to be improved by adding shifts and so that there is more time for the anodizing process. There is also a need to add more anodizing tanks, which will help put more aluminum for anodization.
Question 6
It is vital to make sure that you limit waste production to make the manufacturing process leaner. Different methods can be used to make sure this is done. The elimination of the products' overproduction will help reduce the waste as this can result in excess inventory that will need storage, and there will be so much wasted material. The best way to do this is to ensure that the company produces what is required by the clients (Friesike et al., 2019). In my company, there is a lot of wasted time because of the low production waiting on the color change in the anodizing tank, and the employees are idle most of the time, which leads to a waste of labor and energy. We should work on the way to reduce this to make the process leaner.
The inventory waste should be eliminated to make the process leaner. Here, the waste is produced by unprocessed inventory, including the misuse of storage fees and even waste in transporting the list. Moving the products from place to place has no value addition to the stock as reducing the transportation cost will help make the process leaner. This can be done by having the plant closed to the production area and the warehouse.
Question 7
There is so much tension in the company between the management and the workers' union that the union is unwilling to let the workers train for other jobs in the factory. There is a need to offer career development for the workers so that the management can redesign the manufacturing process. Considering other skills of the workers can help them grow, and they can showcase their unused talents. This can help them to adjust to new roles in the factory and bring more value. Promoting dialogue and communication between the union and the management will help the management set expectations and offer the employees a chance to express themselves. They should be allowed to ask questions and get clarifications where they don't understand their roles. The management should be open to what they expect from the workers, which will help redesign the manufacturing process. (Moeuf et al., 2018)
Question 8
Improving the manufacturing process helps to enhance the productivity of any company. Taking time to review the workflow helps to increase the manufacturing process. It is essential to check how the employees are behaving in the company. Checking on the availability of the resources used to improve the workflow will bring the desired results. Employees must be trained often. Technology changes every other day as it is crucial to invest in constant training to improve the manufacturing process, which will help improve productivity. Sometimes, the delay in the manufacturing process can be brought about by having too many unused machinery. The machines tend to clutter the company, and sometimes they use a lot of money to service and yet they are not in use. Therefore, it is vital to eliminate the machinery that is unused to improve the manufacturing process (Friesike et al., 2019).
Question 9
It is essential to get quality tools that will help reduce the defect rated in the bending and hole-punching process as this will help the company save a lot. The pin punch will help the connectors be driven in and out of the holes without causing any defects. The center punch can be used to mark the exact place that needs the hole punching.
Question 10
No, the company is not in a position to produce products that meets Ford’s specification because as it is, they cannot provide quality products as they do not have enough resources to do it. The company is also using simple and inexpensive equipment that may not be able to meet produce products that Ford’s specifications. There is also so much tension between the workers and the management. This can lead to the delivery of substandard products because those handling the processes are not in a pleasant working environment.
References
Friesike, S., Flath, C. M., Wirth, M., & Thiesse, F. (2019). Creativity and productivity in product design for additive manufacturing: Mechanisms and platform outcomes of remixing. Journal of Operations Management , 65 (8), 735-752.
Moeuf, A., Pellerin, R., Lamouri, S., Tamayo-Giraldo, S., & Barbaray, R. (2018). The industrial management of SMEs in the era of Industry 4.0. International Journal of Production Research , 56 (3), 1118-1136.
