Operations management assignment report writing: Importance of operations management 

Executive Summary

The importance of operations management in any kind of business organisation is known to all. The companies that did not follow planning in the operations management were not able to succeed as much as the companies that planned their operations and processes. The report takes the example of Toyota Motor Corporation and establishes the fact the in spite of the severe competition that exists in the automobile industry and in spite of the many downfall of the industry; the company has been able to make its mark on the globe. The company has made its global presence felt and it could very well be attributed to the excellent operations planning at both the assembly line and at the product and process level. The company uses the Just in Time techniques to reduce wastage and also aims at maintaining the highest possible quality by implementing Kaizen techniques. The Kanban which is also known as the signboard technique is also used for maintain the lean production in the company.

Toyota has been able to perform well as they have the most efficient process technology planning, capacity management planning, lean production techniques, continuous improvement strategies and supplier development techniques. The company would need to make some changes in the materials-processing, information-processing, customer-processing and also in the process technology related to volume and variety. The future outlook for the company appears o be bright but the company would have to make the changes in the technologies accordingly. Toyota appears to be the best possible example to demonstrate the operations management techniques as they have mastered the art of using the space, the capacity and also providing the highest possible quality.

Table of Contents

Executive Summary. 1

Introduction. 3

2.0 Company Background. 3

2.1 Background Information. 3

2.2 Main products and Customers. 4

2.3Current Scenario. 4

3.0 Identification of current organisational operations practices. 5

3.1 Process Technology Strategy. 5

3.2 Capacity Management 6

3.3Organisation and Systems development 7

3.4 Lean Production. 7

3.5 Performance and Improvement Strategy. 8

3.6 Supplier Development strategy. 8

4.1 Process Technology Strategy. 9

4.2 Capacity management 10

4.3 Organisations and systems development 10

4.4 Lean Production. 11

4.5 Performance and Improvement Strategy. 12

4.6 Supplier Development Strategy. 13

5.0 Main Factors affecting change in Operations management 14

5.1 Material processing technology. 14

5.2 Information-Processing technology. 15

5.3 Customer-Processing technology. 15

5.4 Process-Technology related to Volume and variety. 16

Conclusion. 17

Works Cited. 18

Introduction

Operations management would generally mean, converting the varieties of input into usable outputs by using the physical processes. The main aim of the operations management procedure would be to productively utilise the available resources,  create products that meet customer requirements and efficiently handle the processes without any chaos. The responsibility of the operations management is to ensure that the production in the company happens continuously and without any kind of interruptions.

The main six aspects of the operations management that the assignment handles are process and product design, capacity management,  organisations and systems development, lean production techniques,  performance and improvement strategy and supplier development strategy. All these six aspects are of utmost importance for all types of business organisations, be it manufacturing industry or service or retail industry. There has to be a proper planning of these six aspects to create a place in the market and sometimes also to gain competitive advantage.

The operations management would need to change the strategies if there is a significant change in the inputs that relate to material, labour, capital, information technology. The operations management would also need to implement a change if there is a change in the volume or variety demand of the product due to market factors. In such cases, the company may have to make a change in the process technology, the capacity , the information technology or in the way the processes are arranged.

This assignment aims to analyse the six main aspects of the operations management by putting forth the example of Toyota Motor Corporation which happens to be one of the largest automobile companies in the world. Toyota is known for the high quality products and for using the JIT and the Kanban techniques of operations management effectively. They have been able to implement these techniques in the assembly line and other places to progress.

2.0 Company Background

2.1 Background Information

The Toyota Motor Corporation has its headquarters in Toyota, Aichi Japan. The company was found in the year 1937 by Sakichi Toyoda. It established a plant in Honsha which began production in 1938. The company face financial crisis in the year 1950 and then the Toyota Motor Sales Co ltd is established. They established another plant  in Motomachi and in 1965 won the award for quality control for the first time for which it is known. It became the world’s one of the largest and Japan’s largest car producing companies. (Toyota, n.d.)

After the second World war, Toyota decide to come up with a small car which was a failure and made them suffer huge losses. After this Toyota worked towards a more comprehensive drive and introduce land cruiser to cater to the growing needs of the taxis in the economy. This vehicle was a huge success and changed the face of the company. Toyota also believed in providing top quality products and services which was evident in their production systems. They introduced many quality control techniques like Kanban, Kaizen which held them apart from their consumers.

2.2 Main products and Customers

Toyota seeks to build in cars to cater to the needs of  the people in all parts of the world. They provide travellers safety first priority and employ the quality check for safety measures at all possible places. Toyota produces two types of cars which include conventional engine cars and hybrid engine cars. They aim to provide car solutions to all categories of people who need small cars also unlike some of their competitors who would cater to the needs for medium and large vehicles. Toyota produced approximately 8,000,000 units in a year and provides employment to around 340000 staff members. They are mainly involved in manufacturing of automobiles and their parts, wheel chair that is all wheel drive and vehicle maintenance automatic lift. Apart from the automobile sector, Toyota is also involved in housing sector, Financial services sector, biotechnology sector and afforestation, marine industry and e-business sector, etc. (Toyota, n.d.)

2.3Current Scenario

Toyota Motor Corporations appear to have a very bright future and looks very promising. The current sales of the company has been up topping 1,2 and 3 million marks in the years 2008, 2010 and 2011 respectively. Toyota has made its worldwide presence felt and has manufacturing and assembly lines available at most of the developed countries in the world. They have expanded wings into countries like Australia, US, India, UK, South Africa, Poland, etc.  They are one of the leading car manufacturers in the world and they keep the safety of passengers as their top priority. (Toyota, n.d.)  Even though in the financial year 2011, there was no significant increase that was noticed in the net revenues of the company but there was an increase in the operating income by 217.4% for the overall company and for Toyota, the net income increased by 94.9%.  The positive thing to note was that the overseas vehicle sales increased by 6.3%. (Annual Report , 2011)

3.0 Identification of current organisational operations practices

3.1 Process Technology Strategy

A process layout is a format where the similar equipments and functions are clubbed together and the operations are performed according to the predefined sequence. A product layout is the format where the operations that are involved in making of a product are arranged in a sequence to avail optimum results. A group technology means keeping a group of non-similar machines in the work centre to work on the products that have similar shapes and sizes. In a fixed position layout, the product remains at a single place and the machines and processes that are required to produce the product move to the product.

Standardised work systems are followed in Toyota so that the managers and the top management are able to identify the loopholes and wastage immediately and make arrangements for improvement. Depicted below is the plant layout of Toyota motor Corporation at Miyata which handles the molding, the welded parts, the press body and assembly.

Source: (Toyota Motor Kyushu Inc., n.d.)

They are all set to reduce the waste in the product design process. The product design process in Toyota Motor Corporations has been explained below.

Source: (Obara and Wilburn, n.d.)

3.2 Capacity Management

Toyota Motor Corporation was fighting with lack of space problem when they redesigned the and they started using “Just In Time” manufacturing system. They used the U-manufacturing system concept and made maximum utilisation of available space and capacity. They could not produce large batch sizes but they used the small batch manufacturing system. This would allow Toyota to overcome the problem of space but utilise the other available capacities to the maximum. (Yu-Lee, 2002)

In Toyota Common process lines are used for production where common machines were used for many product lines. But after they have started using the multi machine and multi process handling. Here the worker and the machine both handled more than one operations together to reduce the lead times.

Source (Dillon, 1989)

3.3Organisation and Systems development

Toyota used Just in time system as they wanted to eliminate waste completely and using and producing just the amount that is necessary. The JIT concept was so deeply rooted in the assembly line systems of Toyota that they knew exactly how many vehicles of different colours, types and accessories would be assembled in a single day. (Obara and Wilburn, n.d.)

The Just In time concept helps the company to reduce the wastage of time and resources in waiting,  wastage of resources in transportation,  wastage of processing,  wastage of inventory and movement, wastage of reprocess and defects and wastage that occur due to over production. They use the one-piece continuous flow for production system. (Obara and Wilburn, n.d.)

3.4 Lean Production

The application of lean concepts in the system would mean optimising the usage of time, resources and available techniques. (Slack and Chambers, 2008) The various tools of Lean production are standardised production system, Jidoka,  Kanban, Kaizen, etc.

The concept of lean production concepts in Toyota Production System is implemented using various tools. The production planning is done based on JIT and Heijunka, Quality is maintained thorough Jidoka, pull execution using Kanban and continuous improvement using the techniques of Kaizen. Jidoka ensures quality production and reduces the need for continuous supervision thus saving time and resources. The word Kanban literally means sign board where the inventory requirements are planned so  accurately that there is no extra stock of inventory remains and there is also no delay due to the non-availability of the inventory. (Heizer and Render, 2008)

3.5 Performance and Improvement Strategy

Kaizen is a Japanese word that means continuous improvement in the process design implementation and production systems.  It involves two components which include maintenance and improvement. The purpose of Kaizen is to maintain the technological and operating standards and utilise the capacity to the optimum level. But the most important aspect of the Kaizen is not only to implement the tools but also to maintain its continuity. The management has to be committed enough to train their employees to follow the principles of Kaizen which would be always advantageous in long-run. The implementation of Kaizen principles would also involve some costs and so the company must make sure that they make the optimum utilisation of the Kaizen tools and techniques.

Toyota sets an example for maintaining the Kaizan Principles. They have the top level management committed to pursue the quality goals,  they have trained the team to understand the importance of quality services,  the staff that are hired are committed and skilled, the staff are trained continuously  and they have adopted  the principles of Kaizen in the manufacturing process and the production system.

3.6 Supplier Development strategy

Suppliers are very important stakeholders for any company. He model below describes how an enterprise can create value by satisfying all the stakeholders.

Source: (Rainey, 2006)

At Toyota, the company is very successfully using the V4L framework which means variety, velocity, variability and visibility to maintain the suppliers. In the Variety steps, before placing an order with the supplier, the company has to ensure that the supplier provides the right kind of product variety and the components provided by that particular supplier ensure quality manufacturing. During the velocity step, the company has to ensure that the supplier has to make the component availability match with the requirements of the assembly line. Variability concept ensures that since the company is using the JIT concept for inventory and logistics, the suppliers are able to manage the variation in orders. The visibility ensures that the supplier and the manufacturers have a transparent relation and they have discussed their problems first and both of them are well informed about each other. By using the V4L techniques, Toyota has been able to create a very good relation with the supplier who have been constantly supplying them top quality products. (Iyer, Seshadri and Vasher, n.d.)

4.1 Process Technology Strategy

Toyota has been implementing the following model. They have firstly concentrated on creating a continuous flow of operations with the help of standardisation.

Source: (Hayes and Wheelwright, n.d.)

The manufacturing process that is used in Toyota is very high tech and they are using the best possible technologies available. So, they have made and defined their processes properly. They have integrated the manufacturing technology with the processes and the systems. They have developed the general capabilities to handle the processes and the technologies. They have developed the holistic Decision-making process to handle the operation and the designs at the process and the product level. (Hayes and Wheelwright, n.d.) They have been utilising the workforce and machine capabilities to enhance production. They use the pull technique for logistics and work on the minimum lead time concept.

4.2 Capacity management

When ratio of operation which means the number of hours when the machines are put into work are analysed in Toyota, it could be observed that the ratio comes to about 100%. This means that Toyota has been utilising all the available capacity. They are well aware of the fact that excess capacity is an economic loss to the company. So, they do not give any way to the losses. Therefore, at the production hours some of the machines are seen idle, this is not because the capacity has to remain idle, but may be because the machines’ ratio of operation has surpassed the desired level. There is always a continuous flow of operation in the production system and with short lead times and small batches. They operate on zero inventory level. (Japan management association, n.d.)  The U-Configuration of equipments help them to operate many machines in a much smoother way.

4.3 Organisations and systems development

The JIT system that has been employed in Toyota Motor Corporations has been depicted by the picture below.

Source: (Amasaka, n.d.)

The new JIT technology that has been employed at Toyota emphasise on improvement of quality while reducing the storage. TMC is planning to increase the level of quality from product quality to business quality and then finally to corporate management Quality. This new model shows that sales, productions and engineering are placed in the front line of the Toyota Production System and the manufacturing system is planned accordingly. The new JIT system emphasises on quality control not only on the Toyota Production system but also in the Toyota marketing system and Toyota Development system. They are trying to develop and implement a scientific TQM techniques so that the production is not delayed at any point of time and also the quality of the product and the services is also not compromised.

4.4 Lean Production

The production system at Toyota ensures that they use lean production concepts to maximise its production.

Source: (Obara and Wilburn, n.d.)

The model above describes the lean production system that is followed at Toyota. For Toyota, they have made all arrangements to bring out more from less. They have been employing procedures to simplify the procedures, eliminate the wastage and speed up the production. The five main areas of lean production that Toyota is concentrating on are cost, safety, delivery, commitment and quality.  By using the Just In time technique Toyota is saving on time and cost and also ensuring timely deliveries. Because of this, the company also follows activity based costing. (Kee, 2003) The JIT concept also reduces wastage. By 0using the people and the teamwork, they are all set to work on the morale of the employees and make them all the more committed towards organisation goals. By using Jidoka and Kaizen techniques, the company wants to maximise the productivity while ensuring top quality at each and every step. So, it could easily be said that when it comes to the lean production operations management technique, Toyota leads the way and sets examples for many other companies.

4.5 Performance and Improvement Strategy

The principles of the Toyota Production System are to reduce set uptimes, make the production in small batches, skilled employees and employee empowerment, quality maintenance and check up points established at every possible place,  high level of technology usage and maintenance,  pull production which means reduced lead times and less holding costs and finally supplier involvement in the Kaizen techniques. In order to succeed in the present competitive world, Toyota has to train and empower its employees to put in efforts and make small changes to implement the quality control techniques. All the employees in the company are dedicated to work towards maintaining and improve their work environment.

Source: (Liker and Franz, n.d.)

The 4ps model is the model that is used by Toyota to improve continuously. The four steps of the model involves making strategies firstly, then eliminating all kinds of wastage. Then they have to assign authorities and powers to the people and the partners who are strategic assets to the company and finally following up on all the processes. (Liker and Franz, n.d.)

4.6 Supplier Development Strategy

Toyota has been taking many proactive steps like the CCC21 program which ensures reduction of wastage and increase in the efficiency. The following are some of the steps that Toyota has taken with the help of the suppliers to comply to the highest quality needs of the company. The steps are

• They have created quality awareness amongst the suppliers to ensure quality product components with the help of innovative programs like Jishuken.
• They have developed a supplier support centre to ensure that suppliers queries are given due respect and the relationship with the supplier is cordial which would maximise the impacts.
• At Toyota, customer needs are aligned with the production system. So, the suppliers have to support the flexible planning system to ensure the best possible services to the customers.
• The suppliers are made aware of the general systems of work and the work flow of the company so that they can match their supplies accordingly.
• Communication level is very high with the suppliers to ensure that there is no scope for any misunderstandings.
• Suppliers are supported during low times to make the relationship a stable one. (Iyer, Seshadri and Vasher, 2009)

5.0 Main Factors affecting change in Operations management

Operations management mainly comprises of three process,  that include input, processing and output. Any significant change in the inputs would certainly result in a change in the processes and also in the output, thus a total change in the operations management procedure. The inputs to the operations are materials, labour, capital, physical machines and information technology, etc. (Gupta and Boyd, 2008) Also, when the company is operating in an international arena, there are sometimes when the company has to make changes in the operations to adjust to the national culture. (Pagell, Katz and Sheu, 2005)

5.1 Material processing technology

There are various types of material processing that are Robotics, Automated Guided Vehicles (AGV), Flexible Manufacturing systems (FMS), Computer Numerically controlled machines (CNC), computer integrated manufacturing (CIM), etc. With the advent of technologies, the companies are using more and more advanced technologies. This innovation feature is going to continue in the coming years. Any change in the material processing technology would certainly cause a change in the entire process and so, the companies are trying to choose their material processing technology carefully.

For Toyota, they are using the all possible technologies as they have one of the most advanced manufacturing systems for the cars in place. Also, they are using the JIT concept in their materials procurement method. So, they would have to have updated technology and processes so that they do not lose out on time. In the coming years,  as the customers would be needing more and more advanced features in the cars, there would be a serious need for Toyota to make arrangement for the advanced accessories and the relevant technologies to handle them.  For example with the new norms for carbon emissions for the automobile industry, there would be a need to change the materials processing technology as hybrid technologies would be required to handle the new regulations. (Venkatakrishnan, 2005)

5.2 Information-Processing technology

The information technology is experiencing a dramatic shift in the recent times. All the companies are trying to use high-tech solutions to aid the workings and also aid to the comforts of the employees. For this purpose the companies are conducting workshops for training and support. All the stakeholders that include customers, suppliers, employees, management and Government, require updated information about the company. The employees do need to have proper technologies to handle all types of information and generate the required results.

 For Toyota, they have been using the most advanced technologies for telecommunications and Information technology. Since, Toyota has a global presence and they have to support the customers and employees that are present in global arena.  (Bae and Salomon, 2010)The demands for high tech and instant support is going to continue in the coming years and therefore Toyota would need to support the demand by making appropriate updations in the technologies. Due to a rise in the fuel prices and economic slowdown there was a downturn that was witnessed in the industry. The customers are demanding Green cars and energy cars for which the company has to make suitable arrangements. (Zacks Equity research, 2012)

5.3 Customer-Processing technology

In the present world of competition, there is a serious need to have customer processing technology,  as it is of utmost importance to retain the customers. So, there would be a need to have an appropriate customer-processing technology. (Mol and Birkinshaw, 2010) Also, in the internet world, the customers are demanding 24 hours support. So, there is need for the companies to use the latest technologies. Any change in the Information-processing technology would cause a major change in the work practices of the employees and the way the customers interact with the company. So, companies would have to plan and choose the technologies accordingly and then they need to train the employees to handle the technology and provide super assistance to the customers worldwide  to handle the updation.

For Toyota, they are one of the most customer-oriented companies in the world. So, they do have a proper technology  and process to handle the customer queries. In the coming decade this feature would need further advancement as the customers are becoming more and more demanding and are getting access to higher and higher technologies.  The graph plotted below denotes the new car registrations in EU countries. So, the may not be as large as in the previous years, still the database of customers for the company is increasing and so the company would need to have proper technology support to handle the customers. (ipmd.net, 2012)

Source: (ipmd.net, 2012)

5.4 Process-Technology related to Volume and variety

The process-technology that is used in the manufacturing and also in service industry has to be chosen with utmost care. If there is a major fluctuation in the volume and variety of the products and also in the services, then the changes have to be implemented accordingly. (Johnston, 1999) There are also some products and services where the demand is seasonal. So, in those places, arrangements are done accordingly. When, there is a major change in the demand, either the capacities have to go idle or the capacity becomes short. So, the companies have to make arrangement accordingly.

For Toyota, since they are using the JIT concept there would not be much change in the process technology when the volume and variety changes as they are already operating at zero inventory. The graph below shows that there would be a major change in the demand in a particular variety of vehicles and people would be interested more in hybrid and electronic cars than in the traditional fuel running vehicles. (KPMG, 2012)

Source: (KPMG, 2012)

Conclusion

Toyota has been able to manage all front of operations management very effectively. The process technology that Toyota uses ensures a continuous flow of production. The process design and the facility design layout have been planned and the arrangements have been made to use multi machines for a single product very effectively. They have been using the standardised ways of operations management.

For capacity management, they use the U-shape of machine arrangement as they want to make the optimum usage of space. The machine usage ratio for every machine is generally 100% if not more, which speaks highly of the maximum capacity utilisation.

For Lean production techniques, the company has been using the Jidoka and the Kanban techniques. They are making production in small batches and operate at zero level of inventory which means the products are manufactured as and when demands are placed.

For organisation system and production  techniques, the company is using the JIT concept which means that they are more concerned about maintaining the quality of the products and do not want to go in after quantity.

The performance and improvement strategy of the company concentrates on the 4 important Ps of the business. These P’s are philosophy, process, people and problem solving. Toyota has made appropriate strategies and designed appropriate processes by involving the people and empowering them to handle the problems.

Finally the suppliers of the company also form an important part and at Toyota the suppliers development is done through supplier relationship management. The suppliers are chosen carefully and they are made to feel a part of the company and make sure that they adhere to the company quality and time norms.

So, it could be easily concluded that Toyota could be the best possible example to understand the importance of the operations management procedures.

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