Table of Contents INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1 Introduction............................................................................................................................1 Customers, their expectations, operations objectives and process types................................3 Process Types.........................................................................................................................5 Process to achieve operations objectives................................................................................6 Recommendations..................................................................................................................8 CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................9 REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................10
INTRODUCTION Operations Management refers to the overall administration of practices involved in business to maximize the efficiency of an organisation. This aspect takes the conversion of raw materials as well as labour into various goods and services in a way that itenhance the profitability of the firm. The report below is based on the application of operations management in Aston Martin, which is an independent British manufacturer of grand tourers and luxury Sports cars. It covers the discussion about the organisation, its customers, their expectations and operations objectives required to fulfil these expectation(Smith, Maull and CL Ng, 2014). It also undertakes the process for operations and its contribution in achievement of the objectives. The report is also mention recommendations to enhance the ability of these processes in meeting operations objectives. Introduction Aston Martin is one of the most modern and acknowledged sports car brand which is recognised for its exceptional designs and unique heritage. It was founded by Lionel Martin and Robert Bamford in 1913 and provide its customers with extreme performance, style, comfort and luxury (ASTON MARTIN - THE COMPANY,2018). Large number of majordepartments areoperating within the firm across its enterprises worldwide, one of the mainunitsthat contributes in its success is the operationsdepartment. Operations Department and Operations Manager, both contribute in different and effective ways in the company that helps the firm in smooth running of operations and better achievement of objectives. Their roles are described below: Role of Operations Department:Optimum Utilisation of Resources:The Operations Department of Aston Martin is required to manageas well asutilise eachresourceoptimally. It is responsible for managing both the raw materialsandthe company'semployees. In addition, overseeing the inventory covers a major part of their role. Through such effective management it contributes in cost reductions and enhancement of efficiency and consistency(Hill and Hill, 2017). Quality Assurance:Another major function performed by the operations department is that they ensure the quality in the processes as well as the products before delivering it to 1
the customers. It determines the grounds on which the quality is ensured and properly monitors the functions of production of cars in the company. These grounds for a firm like Aston Martin are speed, reliability, comfort and safety in their cars(Hitt, Xu and Carnes, 2016). Apart from the operations department, the operations manager too has a prominent role to play in the company. Role of Operations Manager:Setting Up Goals:Theyare required to set up goals and policies fortheir department in Aston Martin.They undertake the setting up of objectives like better performance from employees and enhancement in the quality of their production and achievement of those targets to ensure efficiency in the process of production and distribution(Fredendall and Hill, 2016). Financial Management:Their contribution in the firm is not limited to goal setting. They play a major role in cost control, budget forecasting and keeping a financial track of the company. Any deviation from the set objectives is tracked and measures are taken to improve the financial facet of the company(Mahadevan, 2015). Four V's of Operations Management: Each company performs in a somewhat similar manner, however, the operations in production for a company like Aston Martinare more centralise and the product is followed from its inception till its completed and delivered. The differences in these operations processes are mentioned by the 4V's overview which is described below:Volume Dimension:This undertakes the volume of the product which is needed to satisfy its demand in the marketplace. Low volume indicates less repetitive processes and multitasking of employees whereas high volume enhances these repeatable processes which could be automated or standardised. If the production of cars would be at high volume, it would satisfy more demand.Variety Dimension:As the name indicates, this dimension relates with diversity and tends to focus on the variety of offerings that the firm could present in the market. High variety gives high flexibility to the firm and is in the correlation with the volume. This means higher the variety, the lower would be the volume. As an example, Aston Martin 2
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produces variety of cars for speed, luxury as well as comfort. If the firm introduces more varieties, the volume of production of these cars would be low.Variation Dimension:This dimension deals with the changes in demand due to external forces. For instance, as per the future anticipations, more millennials are opting for public transport rather than private, which in turn could cause variation in Aston Martin's processes of producing less speedy cars and more sedans to attract older group of customers. Visibility Dimension:This dimension undertakes the visibility of operations of the company to its customers. Aston Martin keeps sharing its production processes with its customers which attracts the customers and ensures transparency. Customers, their expectations, operations objectives and process types Aston Martin sells its cars worldwide, and there are variety of customers that purchase their cars. These customers are quite loyal to the firm and all the operations in the firm are dedicated to satisfy their expectations. The firm targets high-end customers which are loyal to buy sports cars. Moreover, another segment in which the company targets are business persons. This is because it provides comfort and luxury which are their prime demands alongside speed. However, the company is targeting customers beyond its traditional target market. It has planned new models as per the new age customers which demands enhancements in speed and safety. This would help the firm reach wider market segments. However, there are various customer expectations from the outputsin terms of the broad market criteriaof the company which are described below:Design:The major expectation of the customers from the company is the design it provides them in its cars. The products of the company are designed in the way that they could compete in the environment as well as fulfil the requirement of speed in their cars. Some of their finest recent works which possess exceptional designs are Aston Martin Vulcan, Aston Martin V8, Aston Martin DB11 and so forth (Marketing mix of Aston Martin,2018).Quality:This refers to the overall quality of the cars which is expected by the customers. It involves speed, reliability, safety and ease in functions. Customers expect a top notch 3
quality in their vehicles and providing this would help them cause satisfaction of these customers.Innovation:Apart from design and quality, amajor expectation of customers are the changesinducedwiththeongoingdemandsoftimeaswellastechnological advancements. They expect the firm to produce its products which are highly innovative and could provide them long term satisfaction in terms of advancements in features present in their products. Comfort:As one of the most prominent demands, comfort is required in Aston Martin's cars as customers tend to use the vehicles for long run and long distance purposes. Having wide comfort would enhance the customer experience as well as increase their trust and reliability on the firm's upcoming models(Kato and et. al., 2015). Customers demand may vary according to their immediate needs and natures, but their expectation of the outcome of the company are least likely to vary. To fulfil these demands, it is imperative that certain operations objectives be clearly stated that will define the standard of the company's operations. These objectives are described below:Quality of Operations:As per the company standards, quality in design could be effectively achieved by enhancing quality of operations. This could be a prominent operations objective for Aston Martin.The quality standards of the company are judged on the basis of design, cost, sustainability and overall performance of their operations as well as their cars. These aspects are required to be effectively achieved in a systematic and productive manner.Speed:Anotherobjective for the firm is speed in their operations and processes. This requires the firm to effectively attain a minimum span of time to manufacture and distribute their cars to the customers. Approximately, Aston Martin produces more than 5000carsinayearsince2008(ASTONMARTINDELIVERSRECORDSALES GROWTH IN 2017,2018). This could be a major objective in the firm to enhance its production processes. There are various ways in which the company could achieve speed in its processes.One way could be to identify and eliminate resources that are causing delay in the process of the company. For instance, ineffectiveness of equipments or legislations like Environmental Protection Act, 1990 which exerts pressure on the company to employ methods as well as produce cars in accordance to environmental 4
preservation.Another manner that would speed up the operations of Aston Martin could be that the firm employs Artificial Intelligence and Virtual Reality Gears that could ensure effective monitoring and aid in operation process and effectively help the firm in achieving the objective.Dependability:This considers the aspect of dependability of customers on the company's operations. It undertakes timely delivery, price, quality as well as cost to complete the operations. From a customer's point of view, it is crucial for the company that it keeps satisfying customers through consistent delivery, with pre-planned prices and effective customer services that would help in building up their trust in the firm and its future products. Achieving this operations objective would allow the firm to achieve its agenda of reaching new markets which enhanced reputation. Flexibility:Operations in a company are required to be flexible enough to deal with different requirements effectively and flexibly. For Aston Martin, it could be prominent that flexibility be ensured in the processes as well as their product lines in a way that adjustments could be made quickly to satisfy new demands. However, this objective has a close link with the speed. Although this aspect is would require the firm to produce variety of cars with top quality and adapt the operations as per the delivery schedules and dynamic conditions of the marketplace(Walker and et. al., 2015). Process Types There are various process types that Aston Martin could operate with in order to achieve their operations objectives. These types serve a range of operations objectives and helps companies to enhance their level of production and distribution. Some of the most appropriate process types for Aston Martin are described below: Batch Process:This approach is used by manufacturing company in which more than one item is manufactured by an organisation at the same time. It assists company to reduce setting up cost of machines and also reduce production cost to a certain level. This approach can only use in the repetitive work as machines are set in the starting and ends when the work gets completed. Importance of Batch Process:With the help of this process, Aston Martin can increase their quantity of work they are doing. Though this process is not flexible as there are repetitive task that are required to be performed by the workforce simultaneously. Company can rely on this for 5
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a longer period of time as chances of getting defective goods are less. Quality of goods would be perfect as all the work is done by the machines(Choi, Cheng, and Zhao, 2016). Jobbing Process:This process requires customized work for each customer according to their needs and preferences. Different companies apply jobbing process to make something unique for their clients by charging more monetary value. It differs from batch process as each product is individually designed and built successfully before the workforce moves on to the next product. Importance of Jobbing Process:Aston Martin could depend on this process as it ensures that no defective car would be produced and proper standards be followed by company to satisfy all the unmet needs of customers. Speed of the process is slow as it takes time because workforce will complete one product before moving on to another. It would help Aston Martin to increase their quality of products as every step is monitored and analysed by the Quality Managers. Continuous Process:It is a perpetual flow of production of goods in which it only stops when there is a requirement for maintenance or some other technical problems in the machines. It would help company to reduce their production time as goods are made continuously and can be use by company at any time. However, the process is rigid as repetitive tasks are required to be done by the employees simultaneously. Importance of Continuous Process:There are a less chances of getting a defective piece as most of the work is done by the machines and humans work is to check themachines timely. Aston Martin can not depend on this process for a longer period of time because if machines are not working properly then company would not beable toattain maximum utilisation of resources (Prashar, 2015). Out of these three most important and relevant process types, the firm must choose the one which effectively helps the company to accomplish its operations objectives. Batch Process is the one amongst the three that satisfies most requirements and has the ability to achieve all the operations objectives mentioned above. Process to achieve operations objectives As compared to the above mentioned process types, Batch Process is the most effective process which would help Aston Martin achieve its operations objectives. There are number of ways in which batch processing could achieve operations objectives. Effectiveness of Batch Processes: 6
Batch processes are effective when it comes to provide speed, quality as well as dependability in the operations of Aston Martin. The ways in which it achieves the effectiveness in these objectives are described below: It promotes speed in the process as the cars are produced in batches which hinders the possibility of delay as continuous processes and repetitive works are required to be done by the employees. It would provide the firm with speed in manufacturing, assembling, painting as well as giving an overall finish to cars of the company(Jacobs, Chase and Lummus, 2014). There are various sections that produce one type of component that are later assembled in further stages. The employees are trained well enough which could benefit the company in reducing time which requires to give them more educational and training programs. Communication too is an integral part of the process and helps each compartment to coordinate with one another. Such, simultaneous processes and expertise allow the workforce to accomplish the process with maximum speed and limited wastage of time and resources(Gunasekaran, Irani and Papadopoulos, 2014). It also maintains the quality required and expected in the cars of Aston Martin. This is becauseanessentialrequirementofbatchprocessistheemploymentoflatest technologies and equipments to achieve the purpose effectively. Any inconsistency in the machines are immediately communicated in the company which helps them in replacing the equipments and continue with the operations(Kundu and et. al., 2015). Chances of production of faulty products are less as replication of exact products are performed by the machines and monitor by the employees as well as quality managers. Moreover, in the last stages, each component is assembled and their efficiencies are monitored. With such close monitoring, the chances of ineffectiveness and carelessness are eliminated which would help the firm in presenting top quality products to its customers worldwide. Batch processes enhances dependability in the operations and ensures customers' reliance on the firm's commitments as well as products. With effective design, proper finishings and focus on the quality, the cars developed through batch processing would eradicate the possibility of unnecessary cost incurred to regulate the processes and enhance the quality. With premium quality, this process would enable Aston Martin to quote appropriate pricing for its products which would be accepted by its customers seeing such enhanced standards. In time production would help the firm in achieving timely delivery that would 7
satisfy the customers and ensure their long-term engagement with the firm(Swink and et. al., 2017). Recommendations To enhance the performance in operations and better achieve the objectives, it is imperative that some changes be induced in the operations of this process which would help the firm in enhancing its overall efficiency in terms of speed, quality, dependability as well as flexibility. Introduction of Artificial Intelligence in the production system would allow the firm to speed upand reduce the possibility of breaks in the processes of production. It will help the firm in overcoming internal challenges and reach the depth of production beyond human reach. For instance, the firm could introduce Artificial Intelligence systems as well as automated robots that would enable the firm to shift on to mass production going on 24x7 with very little monitoring.This would ensure cost benefit of hiring more employees as well reduce wastage with latest technological methods that are being employed using AI (The Future of Artificial Intelligence in Manufacturing Industries, 2018). Toenhance the qualityof the products and introduce new spectrum that is considered with speed being an ultimate requirement. The future of super cars is filled with new innovations which develops new challenges for Aston Martin to fulfil. Aerodynamic efficiencies in vehicles is a new and emerging facet which would help the firm in enhancing its quality of cars. There are various software which could help the firm in achieving this requirement. One of the most reliable examples will be about theuse SIMULIA PowerFLOW. This software works on Lattice Boltzmann-based physics which enhances itsperformance and predictionsas it accurately forecasts the real-world scenarios with complex use of geometry. It is beneficial in terms of elimination of possibility of errors as each simulation helps in achieving accurate airflow evolution around the car, through engine bay as well as underbody (Automotive: Aerodynamic Efficiency. 2018). Toenhance the flexibilityin the process, the firm must set up a different functional unit which specialises in developing products with specific requirements of the customers. This would enhance the agility in the process as well as would help the firm in effectively 8
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ensuring the achievement of all of its operations objectives in a better and appropriate manner. Moreover, with this, the firm would be able to penetrate deeper in the market and enhance its market share by attracting new customers and building more relationships in the world. Flexible productions would also build a strong competitive image of the firm in the market which would ensure its long term sustainability and better competence for the current standards of auto-mobile industry as well as for the future(McCrie, 2015). CONCLUSION Through this report, it is concluded that operations management is imperative for a company to enhance its customer experience as well as well as fulfil its operations objectives. There are various processes such as batch, jobbing and continuous processes which effectively help the firm in achieving the objectives it laid down for its operations. It is imperative that that these processes be flexible, promotes speed, enhances quality and are dependable for long term success of the firm. Batch process could effectively serve the purpose in accomplishment of all the mentioned operations objectives. Lastly, it is required for any company to induce changes in itsproductionanddistributionmethodstobetterachieveitsobjectivesandensureits sustainability in the market and build a strong competitive image. 9
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