5 Important Functions of Production Control are described below:
1. Basic planning for developing policy decisions, stock holdings, delivery periods for customers, etc.
2. Pre-production planning that includes capacity planning and also controlling the receiving of orders
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3. Ordering of make-and-buy items including direct ordering, requirements planning and stock control
4. Manufacturing control, including:
(a) Shop load analysis
(b) Shortage control
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(c) Avoidance of potential delays
(d) Production scheduling
(e) Maintenance of progress records
5. Inventory management and store keeping
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Organizations that offer competitive delivery dates to their customers are bound to attract more business and show a healthy growth. When making such offers, organizations have to take into consideration the sequence of activities associated with manufacturing and delivering the product. This production chart then needs to be matched with the quoted delivery period.
To avoid making unrealistic commitments on delivery dates, there is a need to balance factory capacity with load. This is done through order intake control. Balancing factory capacity with load is not possible in isolation. Systematic capacity planning is done by forecasting the volume of business and adjusting the factory capacity with the projected load.
However, the task doesn’t end here. Continuous and systematic efforts need to be maintained to ensure on-time deliveries. Some reasons for not meeting the delivery dates could be:
(a) Insufficient manufacturing capacity
(b) Scarcity or non-availability of materials, tools, fixtures, etc.
(c) Inadequate specifications or instructions
(d) Unforeseen circumstances, e.g., breakdown of machinery, absenteeism, labour problems, quality issues, etc.
(e) Production sequence not meeting plan requirements
Ordering, which involves the decision on make or buy, requirements planning and stock control, is the function that ensures material availability at the right time. In cases where confirmed orders for the manufacture of specific products in specific quantities are received, the direct ordering technique is used. For situations in which the same material is used for the manufacture of goods for different customers, the requirements planning technique is used.
This is followed by an assessment of the future demand for the same material. Analysing historical demand trends and taking averages maintain stock control. To reduce the frequency of stock-outs, the shortage control procedure proves efficient in stock control. This involves a regular cheque on the availability of material a few hours or days before they are issued from the store. This technique also helps in balancing the stock and work-in-progress.
The shop load analysis technique proves useful in getting the optimum use of plant and manpower. Load on each section when balanced with capacity, helps us to identify under and overload situations. As a result, plant and manpower resources can be redeployed to balance the distribution of load and ensure optimum utility.
Pre-emptive action needs to be taken to reduce, possible delays caused by unforeseen circumstances like machine breakdown, labour unrest or rejection. Routine preventive maintenance makes provision for delays caused by absenteeism or rejection. It also helps in identifying reasons for the delay and measures that could alleviate the problem.
Frequent absenteeism can be tackled by boosting the morale of workers. Otherwise, proper production scheduling can reduce production delays.
The last important function of production control is that of maintaining the MIS records, gathering data and building a historical database. This could form the basis of future organizational and production planning successes.