Operations Management

the development and administration of the activities involved in transforming resources into goods and services

Manufacturing

the activities and processes used in making tangible products; also called production

Production

the activities and processes used in making tangible products; also called manufacturing

Operations

the activities and processes used in making both tangible and intangible products 

Inputs

the resources—such as labor, money, materials, and energy—that are converted into outputs

Outputs

the goods, services, and ideas that result from the conversion of inputs

Standardization

the making of identical interchangeable components or products

Modular Design

the creation of an item in self-contained units or models that can be combined or interchanged to create different products

Customization

making products to meet a particular customer’s needs or wants

Capacity

the maximum load that an organizational unit can carry or operate    

Fixed-Position Layout

a layout that brings all resources required to create the product to a central location

Project Organization

a company using a fixed-position layout because it is typically involved in large, complex projects such as construction or exploration

Process Layout

a layout that organizes the transformation process into departments that group related processes

Intermittent Organizations

organizations that deal with products of a lesser magnitude than do project organizations; their products are not necessarily unique but posses a significant number of differences 

Product Layout

a layout requiring that production be broken down into relatively simple tasks assigned to workers, who are usually positioned along an assembly line

Continuous Management Organizations

companies that use continuously running assembly lines, creating products with many similar characteristics 

Computer-Assisted Design (CAD)

the design of components, products, and processes on computers instead of paper

Computer-Assisted Manufacturing (CAM)

manufacturing that employs specialized computer systems to actually guide and control transformation processes

Flexible Manufacturing

the direction of machinery by computers to adapt to different versions of similar operations 

Computer-Integrated Manufacturing (CIM)

a complete system that designs products, manages machines and materials, and controls the operations function

Supply Chain Management

connecting and integrating all parties or members of the distribution system in order to satisfy customers

Purchasing

the buying of all the materials needed by the organization; also called procurement

Inventory

all raw materials, components, completed or partially completed products, and pieces of equipment a firm uses

Inventory Control

the process of determining how many supplies and goods are needed and keeping track of quantities on hand, where each item is, and who is responsible for it

Economic Order Quantity (EOQ) Model

a model that identifies the optimum number of items to order to minimize the costs of managing—ordering, storing, and using—them 

Just-In-Time (JIT) Inventory Management

a technique using smaller quantities of materials that arrive “just in time” for use in the transformation process and therefore require less storage space and other inventory management expense

Material-Requirements Planning (MPR)

a planning system that schedules the precise quantity of materials needed to make the product 

Routing

the sequence of operations through which the product must pass 

Scheduling

the assignment of required tasks to departments or even specific machines, workers, or teams

Quality Control

the processes an organization uses to maintain its established quality standards

Total Quality Management (TQM)

a philosophy that uniform commitment to quality in all areas of an organization will promote a culture that meets customers’ perceptions of quality 

Statistical Process Control

a system in which management collects and analyzes information about the production process to pinpoint quality problems in the production system

ISO 9000

a series of quality-assurance standards designed by the International Organization of Standardization (ISO) to ensure consistent product quality under many circumstances

ISO 14000

a comprehensive set of environmental standards that encourages companies to conduct business in a cleaner, safer, and less wasteful way; provides a uniform set of standards globally