Business Management - Assignment Sample

BSc (Hons) Business Management
Assignment Brief
Module Title Operations Management
Module Credit
Value 20
Module Level 4
Module Code
Academic Year 2019-2020
Lecturer Harsha Subhashana
Learning
Outcomes
On successful completion of this module students will be able to:
1. Identify an operations process appropriate to a specific organisational context
including the use of Just-in-Time and Total Quality Management principles.
2. Apply knowledge of layout planning and work system processes in a business
organisation.
3. Understand the importance of inventory management policies for controlling
production costs.
4. Formulate a plan for using operations scheduling techniques when organising
work.
Issue Date
06/01/2020
Submission
Deadline
Assignment 1 (Case study): 08-02-2020 -
4pm
Assignment 2 (Essay): 14-03-2020 - 4pm
Signature of
assessor Harsha Subhashana
Page | 1

Module Aim
Operations management is concerned with the process by which organisations transform a range of
inputs into the outputs of goods and services purchased by customers. In particular, it focuses on
designing and controlling processes to ensure that its operations are efficient in terms of minimising
the use of resources and effective in terms of meeting customer requirements. It is thus the core
function of an organisation that can have a major impact on the long-term sustainability of the
business.
Assignment 1 (Case study):
Word count: 1000 words +/- 10%
Intended Learning Outcome: 1
Weightage: 25%
Using the below case study, clearly identify and discuss the key elements in the Kanban’s operation
process. Show convincing evidence of how the Kanban system is appropriate to a specific
manufacturing organisational context. Evidence provided must be specifically focused on the
overall production process, uninterrupted and effective manufacturing system including the use of
Just-in-Time and Total Quality Management principles.
Case study - The use of Just-in-Time and Total Quality Management principles
Case study has been adapted from https://elsmar.com/pdf_files/Toyota%20Kanban%20System.pdf
(Accessed 2019)
The Kanban system in the manufacturing company
Toyota Production System is one of the items in which Toyota Motor Co. instructs the suppliers.
This system is also called the Kanban system and has become well-known internationally for its
small quantity of stocks and thorough rationalization.
Toyota Production System has two major features, “Just-in-Time Production” and “Jidoka
(Automatic line stopping when something goes wrong)”.
The ideal state for producing goods is the one where machines, equipment and men perform waste
less operations which serve nothing but to increase added value. “Just-in-time production” was
thought out to convert this ideal state into practical one everywhere, between each operation, each
process, each line and each shop. In other words by “Just-in-time production” each process can
supply necessary parts in necessary volume at necessary time. On the other hand “Jidoka” means
that whenever an abnormal or defective condition arises, machines, equipment or general
conveyor lines can be supported by the judgment of these machines, equipment and line workers
Page | 2

themselves. In short “Jidoka” lies emphasis not on operating machines to full extent but on making
them stop by themselves as soon as machining defects happen in order to take necessary actions.
To make “just-in-time production” and “Jidoka” flexible to a workshop following conditions are
devised:
1) Hourly production at every process is leveled with respect to volumes and
specifications of products.
2) Attention is paid to prevent over production
3) Occurrence of abnormality can be easily identified by some means of indication
(buzzer or lamp)
Toyota Production System employ “Kanban” or a form of order card as working device. This is the
reason why the production system is called “Kanban System”
This system connects a supplier as a production process with each of Toyota’s plans and realizes to
minimize the work in process inventories, which every process in a shop used to keep in
considerable volume formally.
Page | 3

A real example of such production control system has been explained. The Fig. Shows the
production, process and uses of “Kanban” at the company a supplying carburetors.
The production process consist of the following steps:
1) Die Preparation 2) Die Casting
3) Fin Removal 4) Machining
5) Washing 6) Stock Store
7) Assembly Line 8) Goods store
Production order is given by “Kanban” or order cards which a subsequent process bring to the
preceding process. The preceding process produces what the subsequent process demands for. For
instance, as one can see in the third frame of Fig., the washing process brings a order cards to the
preceding machining process when washed products stock reaches below the prescribed level by
the demand from the subsequent assembling process. The machining process starts processing as
soon as it receives the order card. “Kanban” or order cards are circulated not only in a company but
also between different companies. Dispatch of carburetors of the company A is begun by the order
card from the engine assembly division of Toyota Motor Co. Then an order is given to the assembly
process for the types of carburetors that were removed from stock shelf and dispatched. In this way
orders are given to the preceding processes like chain reaction.
As one may have already noticed, following requirements must be met by production processes in
order to apply this “Kanban System” efficiently.
1. A production line must realize much shorter setup time than commonly can respond to
production order given every four hours or every hour for different kinds or specifications of
products.
(Example) Shortening of die setup time
a) It used to take fifty minutes to change a die of a resin moulding machine. By
improvement on twenty four points it now takes three minutes.
b) Formerly it had taken 90 minutes, 60 minutes and 26 minutes respectively to set up
50 die casting machines, 250 small stamping machines and 5 resin moulding
machines. At present it take less than one minute each.
Page | 4