Question

What are the TWO primary philosophies discussed in Chapter 8 – Operations Management that are used to help manage operations in the supply chain. Provide the main objectives for each of the two philosophies.

Answer 1

Answer:

As background to the answer, it is germane to note that Supply chain management is one of the most crucial task for any global organisation. It speaks to the position of the company and distribution of its product all the way from the producer to the end user.                                                                                                                           

The two philosophies which are used to help manage operations in supply chain are:

1. Just in time philosophy and
2. Lean Philosophy    

Explanation:

1. Just in time philosophy: This originally referred to the production of goods to meet customer demand exactly, in time, quality and quantity, whether the `customer' is the final purchaser of the product or another process further along the production line.                                                       It has now come to mean producing with minimum waste. "Waste" is taken in its most general sense and includes time and resources as well as materials.

It main objectives are:

• Continuous improvement
• Eliminating waste.
• Good housekeeping- workplace cleanliness and organisation.
• Set-up time reduction

     2.  Lean is a concept, a philosophy, a practice, and a set of tools all wrapped in one. For more than 5 decades, businesses have invested time and money adopting the principles of Lean (while originated at Toyota Corporation for manufacturing operations, the principles of Lean have since spread to many types of businesses and functional areas).

It's core objectives are:

• the biggest objectives of Lean Philosophy is to reduce costs and improve customer service
• A Lean organization focuses on providing the best quality within the shortest possible lead time, while minimizing waste throughout your processes (waste being classified as any resource that is not being used properly)

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