What are the 3 sections of production control?

Production planning and control is concerned with directing production along the lines set by the planning department. Production planning and control may be defined as the planning, direction, and coordination of the firm’s material and physical facilities towards the attainment of predetermined production objectives in the most economical manner.

Production planning and control is a pre-determined process which includes the use of human resource, raw materials, machines etc. PPC is the technique to plan each and every step in a long series of separate operation. It helps to take the right decision at the right time and at the right place to achieve maximum efficiency.

Stages in Production Planning and Control(PPC)

1. Planning
2. Operations
3. Control

Scope or Classification of Production Planning and Control Functions

1. Materials
2. Methods
3. Machines and Equipment
4. Routing
5. Estimating
6. Loading and Scheduling
7. Dispatching
8. Progressing
9. Inspection
10. Evaluating or controlling
11. Cost Control

Production Planning

Preparation of a proper production plan is key within production planning and control. Orchestrating a plan allows production to have a schedule to follow, which can further improve the entire the process.

A production plan can determine:

• What is Going to be Produced
• Where it is Going to be Produced
• How it is Going to be Produced
• By Who it is Going to be Produced
• It involves the organisation of an overall manufacturing system to produce a product.
• The objective of production planning is to provide a physical system together with a set of operating guidelines for efficient conversion of raw materials, human skills, and other inputs into finished products.

The production plan is conducted through information about quantity and quality of raw materials, customer orders, and the overall budget. This is how the plan is able to generate multiple schedules and quickly translate them into labour requirements for machines, workers, or any materials. Overall, the production plan is the foundation for the entire manufacturing process and production planning and control software makes it much simpler.

Factors determining the production planning procedure

1. Volume of production
2. Nature of production processes
3. Nature of Operations

Production Control

Importance of Control Function

1. Provide for the production of parts, assemblies, and products of required quality and quantity at the required time.
2. Provide for optimum utilisation of all resources.
3. Co-ordinate, monitor and feedback to manufacturing management.
4. Achieve the broad objectives of low-cost production and reliable customer service.

Benefits of Production Control

1. Improvements in profits through the reduction in indirect costs, set up costs, reduction in scrap, inventory costs.
2. Competitive advantage reliable delivery to customers, lower production costs and greater pricing flexibility.

Elements of Production Control

1. Control of Planning
2. Control of Materials
3. Control of Tooling
4. Control of Manufacturing Capacity
5. Control of Activities
6. Control of quantity
7. Control of Material handling
8. Control of Information

Factors determining Production Control Procedures

1. Nature of production
2. Complexity of Operations
3. Magnitude of Operations

Objectives of Production Planning and Control

1.  To ensure safe and economical production process
2. To deliver quality goods in required quantities
3. To ensure production of quality products
4. To maximize efficiency by proper coordination in production process
5. To ensure maximum utilisation of all resources
6. To place the right man for the right job, at right time for right wages.
7. To maintain optimum inventory levels.
8. To maintain flexibility in manufacturing operations
9. To ensure effective cost reduction and cost control
10. To plan for plant capacities for future requirements.
11.  To effectively utilise plant to maximize productivity
12. To minimise labour turnover
13. To reduce the waiting time
14. To ensure proper delivery of goods

Main elements of Production Planning and Control

The following are main elements of Production Planning and Control:

1. Routing
2. Loading
3. Scheduling
4. Dispatching
5. Follow up
6. Inspection
7. Corrective

1. Routing: Once production plans are generated and ready to be executed, routing comes into play. It is about selection of path or route through which raw materials pass in order to make it into a finished product. The points to be noted while routing process are – full capacity of machines, economical and short route and availability of alternate routing. Setting up time for the process for each stage of route is to be fixed. Once overall sequence are fixed, then the standard time of operations are noted using work measurement technique.

2. Loading and scheduling: The next step within production planning and control is scheduling. Loading and Scheduling are concerned with preparation of workloads and fixing of starting and completing date of each operation. On the basis of the performance of each machine, loading and scheduling tasks are completed. This is when the production plan is almost completed and ready to be enacted. Scheduling differs from planning by diving into the details of the production process.

3. Dispatching: Dispatching is the step in which all of the work on paper is then turned into production. Dispatching is the routine of setting productive activities in motion through the release of orders and instructions, in accordance with previously planned time and sequence, embodied in route sheet and schedule charts. It is here that the orders are released.

Dispatching requires coordination among all the departments concerned. This is obtained through varied degrees of centralised control. Under centralised control, dispatch clerks, centrally located, release all orders including the movement of materials and tools necessary for the operations.

4. Expediting / Follow-up: Once dispatching is applied, expediting is the final step within the production control process. It is a control tool which brings an idea on breaking up, delay, rectifying error etc., during the progress of work. This feature conducts analysis on production and keeps track of any inefficiencies and waste that is created and attempts to locate ways to further improve the process. As this process is completed, the entire cycle restarts and production comes closer and closer to reaching maximum efficiency.

5. Inspection: Inspection is done to find out the quality of executed work processes.

6. Corrective: At evaluation process, a thorough analysis is done and corrective measures are taken in the weaker spots. Corrective action is needed to make effective system of production planning and control. By resorting to corrective measures, the production manager maintains full control over the production activities. For instance, routing may be defective and the schedules may be unrealistic and rigid. The production manager should try to rectify the routes and lay down realistic and flexible schedules.

Workload of machines and workers should also be determined scientifically. If schedules are not being met, the causes should be fully investigated.

Stages of Production Planning & Control

Production Planning & Control is done in three stages namely;

1. Pre-planning
2. Planning
3. Control.

Stage 1: Pre-Planning

Under this phase of production planning, basic ground work on the product design, layout design and work flow are prepared. The operations relating to the availability scope and capacity of men, money materials, machines, time are estimated.

Stage 2: Planning

This is a phase where a complete analysis on routing, estimating and scheduling is done. It also tries to find out the areas of concern for short time and long time so that prominent planning can be prepared.

Stage 3: Control

Under this phase, the functions included are dispatching, follow up, inspection and evaluation. It tries to analyse the expedition of work in progress. This is one of the important phases of the Production Planning and Control.

The Production/Operations Management Cycle

Functions of Production Planning & Control department

Limitations of Production Planning Control(PPC)

1. Based on assumptions
2. Employees may resist changes
3. Time-consuming process
4. Difficult due to change in environmental factors

Production Planning and Control(PPC) in different production systems

PPC in Job Production

It involves the manufacture of products to meet specific customer requirements of special orders. The quantity order is usually small.

Examples are:- Credit and debit cards, Smart cards, boilers, steam engines, processing equipment, material handling equipments etc.

Types of Job production

1. A small number of products produced only once
2. A small number of products produced intermittently when the need arises
3. A small number of products produced periodically at known interval of time.

PPC is difficult in job production due to following reasons:

1. Every job order is of a different nature
2. Specific job orders are assigned to different workstations
3. Scheduling is dependent on the assessment of production times and estimating is based on judgments.

PPC in Batch Production

Batch production is the manufacture of a number of identical articles either to meet a specific order or to satisfy continuous demand.

Types of Batch Production

1. A batch produced only once
2. A batch produced repeatedly at irregular intervals when the need arises.
3. A batch produced periodically at known intervals, to satisfy continuous demand.

PPC in Continuous Production

Continuous production is normally associated with large quantities of production and with a high rate of demand.

Types of Continuous Production

1. Mass production
2. Flow production

PPC in Process Industry

The main task of PPC in the process industry is to maintain a continuous and uniform flow of work at the predetermined rate in order to utilise the plant and equipments fully and to complete the production in time.

Requirements of effective PPC System

1. Sound organisation structure
2. Information feedback system
3. Standardisation of materials, tools, equipments, labour, quality, workmanship etc.
4. Trained personnel
5. Flexibility
6. Appropriate management policies
7. Accurate assessment of manufacturing lead time and procurements lead time.
8. Plant capacity should be adequate to meet the demand.

Production planning and control is a costly device as its implementation requires separate persons to perform the functions of planning, dispatching, executing, etc. Small firms cannot afford to use the services of specialists for the effective performance of these functions

Production planning and control offers capabilities that can aid your manufacturing facility by improving overall production efficiency while also minimising waste, ultimately allowing your facility to utilize resources to its fullest. The process of production planning and control is a continuous one since control starts where planning ends and planning starts where control ends.

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Importance

The success of business operations heavily depend on the practices and standards being followed. A best practice for quality control and quality assurance, integrating production control into the businesses strategy can help increase production efficiency. Additionally, below are a few other reasons why you should implement production control as a business process:

• Ensure equipment and product quality – Optimizing production processes helps proactively identify bottlenecks in the procedure including equipment that prevents businesses from operating normally. A good production control technique ensures that targeted outputs are met, right on schedule, and according to standards.
• Regulate inventory control – An efficient production control system helps businesses manage inventory better. This enables inventory managers to purchase materials accurately and avoid discrepancy in the number of stocks.
• Increase productivity – Utilizing production control techniques lessens unproductive time spent by employees. When equipment is in a good condition and production schedules are right on track, manufacturing targets are fulfilled efficiently.
• Lower production costs – Appropriately-designed production controls and techniques, along with the assurance of efficient equipment, ability to effectively manage inventory, and increased employee productivity—all these can lead to major cost savings for businesses.
• Improve customer experience – All the above-mentioned importance and benefits not only help businesses internally, they also translate to an enhanced customer experience. An organization’s reputation strengthens when final products consistently meet customer expectations.

4 Steps in Production Control

The steps considered in the production control system can vary per specific industry or business. However, it should involve the following major stages that also relates to the whole process of production planning and control:

1. Routing

Routing is the first step of production planning and control. This part of the process involves defining the path of the operation from start to end. It should specify all the raw materials needed, resources such as labor and machine, the targeted quantity, and the place of the production.

The main goal of routing is to identify the most efficient and cost-effective sequence in the process of manufacturing the goods.

2. Scheduling

As the name suggests, the scheduling step is the production part where all the time-related conditions are stated. It should arrange the manufacturing schedule in order of priority, and include the start and end date of each task involved in the operations.

Scheduling is considered as the time-table of the production process.

3. Dispatching

The third step, dispatching—is the stage where actual production is started; it implements the activities indicated in the routing and scheduling stages.

Dispatching can be classified as either centralized—where orders are provided by a specific authority; or decentralized—where instructions are issued by all involved business units.

4. Follow-Up

Follow-up evaluates the effectiveness of the whole production control system. In this step, bottlenecks, delays, and inefficiencies are identified and addressed. Follow-up is also the part where production managers compare the final production result against the predicted schedule and product quantity.

Follow-up allows businesses to determine whether the process can still be improved with the goal of achieving greater manufacturing output in the production.

5. Inspection

Inspection is not an official step of the production control process but performing regular or random audits is sometimes necessary to ensure that internal best practices and industry standards are consistently complied with.

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Production Control Example

Company ABC, a major electronic gadget producer based in San Francisco, has recently seen an influx of consumer demand for their flagship mobile product. According to the inventory records, the demand for the product, paired with international supply chain disruptions, forecasts product supply shortage by the end of the year if the issue is not properly addressed.

Because of this, product managers and manufacturing managers of Company ABC quickly optimized their production control techniques. Aside from immediately consulting their backup plans for secondary and tertiary material suppliers, they also recognized the need to hire additional people to avoid manpower shortages from further affecting their manufacturing schedule.

Random inspections are also conducted throughout the succeeding months to ensure an accurate product quality and product quantity.