Normal Process Flow of the Production System at Donner - Case Study Example

Operations Management: Donner Company PROCESS FLOW OF THE PRODUCTION SYSTEM AT DONNER [Figure NORMAL PROCESS FLOW OF THE PRODUCTION SYSTEM AT DONNER As per the understanding gained from the case, it has been noted that Donner Company is involved in a complex yet systematic process in the domain of production. Notably, the company creates printed circuits based on the specifications acquired from the customers, which is quite a unique aspect. The operational system of the company comprises of several stages, which includes the preparation stage, the procurement stage, the stage of image transferring, processing stage as well as the fabrication stage. The above Figure 1, depicts the process flow of the production process of the organization in its daily operations. Owing to its efficient operational approaches the company has established itself to be one of the most renowned units in the United States (Harvard Business School, “Donner Company”). In order to understand the operational efficacy of Donner it is important to analyze its information flow. The information flow approach of the company is provided hereunder. [Figure 2] ORDER SCHEDULING ON CNC DRILLING AND CNC ROUTER It will be crucial to mention that breakeven is the criteria, which is adopted by the company to decide the scheduling of the CNR drilling as well as CNC router. Order size on CNC Router CNC Drill CNC Router Set up time required for 1 order 240 150 Run time required for one circuit board 0.004 0.5 Circuits board for 1 order NC NC Time consume 240 + (0.004) * NC 150 + (0.5) * NC Note: *NC is the number of circuit boards in one order which is also the breakeven point * Time consume = Set up time + (Run Time) * (NC) Calculation 240 + (0.004) * NC = 150 + (0.5) * NC 90 = 0.49 NC NC = 184 (approx.) As per the perceived value from the above analysis, it can be said that when the size of the order made is more than 184 units, the company can implement the approach of CNC drilling. On the other hand, if the size of the order is less than 184 units, CNC routers will be most appropriate to be used. However, when the order size is equal to 184 either CNC drilling or CNC routers can be used (Harvard Business School, “Donner Company”). CAPACITY OF THE DRY FILM PHOTORESIST AREA Notably, as per the process diagram presented in figure 1, the use of film Photoresist is an integral part for the production process of the company. As per the result presented in exhibit 2 of the case provided, the capacity of the dry film photoresist area is 960 boards based on the order size of 60. However, it is believed that with the change in the order size the capacity of the dry film photoresist area also changes. To have a better comprehension in this context, the capacity can be calculated as per assumption with 8 as the size of the orders (Harvard Business School, “Donner Company”). For order size 8, the photoresist area capacity will be as follows. The change in the capacity of photoresist area is mainly in the domain of time taken to complete the operations. Dry Film Photoresist (DFPR) Tasks Set up time Run Time Total Time when order size is 8 Total Time when order size is 80 Panel Preparation 5 0.2 (5*1) + (0.2 * 1) 5.2 (5*1) + (0.2 * 10) 7 Exposing the panel 20 2 (20*1) + (2 * 1) 22 (20*1) + (2 * 10) 40 Develop 20 0.2 (20*1) + (0.2 * 1) 20.2 (20*1) + (0.2 * 10) 22 Electroplating 25 8.5 (25*1) + (8.5 * 1) 33.5 (25*1) + (8.5 * 10) 110 Strip DFPR 5 0.2 (5*1) + (0.2 * 1) 5.2 (5*1) + (0.2 * 10) 7 Etch & Tin Strip 10 0.2 (10*1) + (0.2 * 1) 10.2 (10*1) + (0.2 * 10) 12 Total 98.3 198 The above table suggests that with the increase or decrease in the size of the orders, the capacity of DFPR in terms of total time also increases or decreases considerably. MONTHLY PRODUCTION CAPACITY OF THE SYSTEM IF EVERY ORDER IS FOR ONE BOARD AND SYSTEM’S MONTHLY CAPACITY IF THEY RECEIVE ONLY ONE ORDER BUT FOR THE MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF BOARDS THEY CAN PRODUCE Notably, the monthly capacity of the entire system used by the company differs in terms of the approach it implements. If the company adopts manual drilling approach, its capacity would be as follows. Set up time Run time Drill Holes Time on one board Monthly Capacity 15 min 0.08 500 15+0.08 (500)= 55 i.e. 6 min on one board (480/ 6) *30 = 2400 When CNC drilling is used, the total capacity of the system will be as follows. Set up time Run time Drill Holes Time on one board Monthly Capacity 240 min 0.004 500 240+0.004(500)= 242 i.e. 2 min on one board (480/ 2) *30 = 7200 Notably, the capacity of the operation system of the company will be more, when it implements CNC drilling rather than manual drilling. Contextually, when the company receives single order for making maximum number of boards in a month, they need to use the CNC drilling and raise the capacity of the system (Harvard Business School, “Donner Company”). DONNER POSITION AND PROBLEMS As per the understanding gained from the case, the operations of the company have witnessed several ups and downs over the years. The company has been able to achieve an appreciative position for itself in the in electronic equipment sector. The strength of the company to move in accordance to the changing market trend has been among its key success factors. However, in the present day context, certain key operational issues have been noted within the business. The operational problems of the company were mainly in the form of regular interruption in the work process, inability to meet the expected quality of the products, delay in delivery of the products to the customers as well as lack of productivity among others (Harvard Business School, “Donner Company”). RATIONALE FOR THE EXISTENCE OF THE PROBLEMS The problems that exist in the operations of the company have affected its operational efficacy to a major extent. With regard to interruption in the work process, it can be stated that the company lacks in the domain of maintaining proper communication in the workplace. Again, the company lacks in proper scheduling of the work, which further hinders it from meeting the product delivery deadline to the end customers. Furthermore, the management of the company was also deemed to be ineffective with regard to acquiring the orders, which again adversely affected the quality of the products delivered (Harvard Business School, “Donner Company”). INFORMATION FLOWS WITHIN THE DONNER FACTORY Ineffective flow of communication is among the major problems in the company. It impacts the optimum utilization of the labor within the workplace and hence the productivity and overall process of operations gets hampered. The flow of information from the management to the lower subordinates is not quite effective, which again impacts the working process negatively (Harvard Business School, “Donner Company”). The process of information flow can be seen in fig 2 of the above section. RECOMMENDATIONS OF ACTIONS FOR IMPROVEMENT The company should focus more on improving the procurement process of the materials as well as proper use of the resources. This can be done with the help of proper inventory control. This aspect will ensure that the company can stay ahead in terms of production and hence meet the delivery deadline of the customers. The management of the company will also need to ensure proper and systematic scheduling of the work so that each of the tasks is completed within time. This will also reduce the complexity of the operations. Again communication is also seen as major issues in the business. In this regard, the management will need to establish effective communication within the workplace so that the work process should is not hampered. Action How Sensible Measurable Achievable Realistic Timed 1)improvement in inventory As per the need of the production department Can improve productivity Can be measures from the overall business performance Can be achieved through proper supervision and motoring Reasonable cost Throughout the year 2) Systematic scheduling As per the order size Can improve work process By measuring the productivity Can be achieved through proper supervision and motoring Reasonable cost Throughout the year 3) Implementation of proper communication channel As per the decisions of the management Can improve work process Can be measures from the overall business performance Can be achieved through proper supervision and motoring Reasonable cost Throughout the year Work Cited Harvard Business School, Donner Company. 1998. Web. 05 Sep. 2014. Read More