IGNOU MBA MS-05 Solved Assignments 2010

Course Code : MS-5

Course Title : Management of Machines and Materials
Assignment Code : MS-5/SEM-I/2010
Coverage : All Blocks

Note: Please attempt all the questions and send it to the Coordinator of the study
Center you are attached with

1) Describe four activities performed by Operations Manager.

Solution: THE 4 ACTIVITIES PERFORMED BY OPERATING MANAGER ARE AS :

1. Operations management focuses on carefully managing the processes to produce

and distribute products and services. Usually, small businesses don't talk about
"operations management", but they carry out the activities that management
schools typically associate with the phrase "operations management." Major,
overall activities often include product creation, development, production and
distribution. (These activities are also associated with

2. Product Manager usually involve in regard to one or more closely related product
that is, a product line. Operations manager is in regard to all operations within the
organization.) Related activities include managing purchases, inventory control,
quality control, storage, logistics and evaluations.

3. A great deal of focus is on efficiency and effectiveness of processes. Therefore,

operations manager often includes substantial measurement and analysis of
internal processes. Ultimately, the nature of how operations manager carry out in
an organization depends very much on the nature of products or services in the
organization, for example, retail, manufacturing, wholesale, etc.

4. The major activities involved in the look out done by Operating Manager focused
on the operations of the entire organization, rather than managing a product or
service. Effective operations management depends a great deal on effective
management of facilities, such as buildings, computer systems, signage, lighting,
etc.

=============================================================

2) Explain product design. How does it influence the process design?

Solution: Product design can be defined as the idea generation, concept development,
testing and manufacturing or implementation of a physical object or service. Product
Designers conceptualize and evaluate ideas, making them tangible through products in a
more systematic approach. The role of a product designer encompasses many
characteristics of the marketing manager, product manager, industrial designer and design
engineer. The term is sometimes confused with industrial design, which defines the field
of a broader spectrum of design activities, such as service design, systems design,
interaction design as well as product design.[citation needed] The role of the product
designer combines art, science and technology to create tangible three-dimensional
goods. This evolving role has been facilitated by digital tools that allow designers to
communicate, visualize and analyze ideas in a way that would have taken greater
manpower in the past.

Product design influence the process design in many ways like it is possible to
separate product design and process design in manufacturing, it is impossible in
practice to separate service design and process design. This is because many
services (especially high visibility services) are such that the service and the
process are the same thing. Even in manufacturing industries there has recently
been considerable effort put into examining the overlap between product and
process design. There is a growing recognition that the design of products has a
major effect on the cost of making them. Many of the decisions taken during the
design of products (for example, choosing the material from which the product is
going to made, or the way in which the various components are fastened
together) will all define much of the cost of making it. The figure below shows
how the costs of the design process itself grow quite slowly, especially at the
start of the design activity, but the cost to which the design is committing the
organisation grown very quickly. It makes sense, therefore, to evaluate the
various choices which the designer faces in terms of their effect on
manufacturing cost as well as on the functionality of the product itself. Also, the
way in which product and process design overall has a significant effect on the
time between starting the initial concept design for the product and eventually
getting it to market.

Some operations do nothing but design products and services. They simply exist to
design products and services for other companies. Quite clearly then, the design activity
can be regarded as an operation in its own right. This point is made in Figure 4.3. So
many of the issues covered in the later chapters of the book can apply to the design
activity. For example, Chapter 6 looks at issues of vertical integration (this means how
much of the total set of activities necessary to produce something does a single
organisation want to do itself). Indeed any company must decide whether it is going to do
its own design or subcontract some parts of its to specialists. Chapter 11 deals with how
operations can manage the level of their capacity as demand fluctuates. Well, the demand
for designs within a business will fluctuate, so how do they manage the capacity of their
design activity? Similarly, the design activity will need to be planned, controlled and
improved.

==============================================================

3) Define job design. How has management viewed job design since the
industrial revolution?

Solution: JOB DESIGN is the process of putting together various elements to form a job,
bearing in mind organizational and individual worker requirements, as well as
considerations of health, safety, and ergonomics. The scientific management approach of
Frederick Winslow Taylor viewed job design as purely mechanistic, but the later human
relations movement rediscovered the importance of workers' relationship to their work
and stressed the importance of job satisfaction. Job design refers to the way that a set of
tasks, or an entire job, is organized. Job design helps to determine. It takes into account
all factors which affect the work, and organizes the content and tasks so that the whole
job is less likely to be a risk to the employee. Job design involves administrative areas
such as: job rotation, job enlargement, task/machine pacing, work breaks, and working
hours. A well designed job will encourage a variety of 'good' body positions, have
reasonable strength requirements, require a reasonable amount of mental activity, and
help foster feelings of achievement and self-esteem.

Management viewed job design since the industrial revolution in the approaches to Job
Design USING SOCIO TECHNICAL SYSTEMS There are three important approaches
to job design, viz., Engineering approach, Human approach and The Job characteristic
approach. Engineering Approach
The most important single element in the Engineering approaches, proposed by FW
Taylor and others, was the task idea, "The work of every workman is fully planned out by
the management at least one day in advance and each man receives in most cases
complete written instructions, describing in detail the task which he is to accomplish . . .
This task specifies not only what is to be done but how it is to be done and the exact time
allowed for doing it." The principles offered by scientific management to job design can
be summarized thus:
l Work should be scientifically studied. As advocated fragmentation and reutilization of
work to reap the advantages of specialisation.
l Work should be arranged so that workers can be efficient.
l Employees selected for work should be matched to the demands of the job.
l Employees should be trained to perform the job.
l Monetary compensation should be used to reward successful performance of the job.
These principles to job design seem to be quite rational and appealing because they point
towards increased organisational performance. Specialisation and routinisation over a
period of time result in job incumbents becoming experts rather quickly, leading to higher
levels of output. Despite the assumed gains in efficiency, behavioural scientists have
found that some job incumbents dislike specialised and routine jobs.

Human Relations Approach

The human relations approach recognised the need to design jobs in an interesting
manner. In the past two decades much work has been directed to changing jobs so that
job incumbents can satisfy their needs for growth, recognition and responsibilility,
enhancing need satisfaction through what is called job enrichment. One widely publicised
approach to job enrichment uses what is called job characteristics model and this has
been explained separately in the ensuing section.
Two types of factors, viz. (i) motivators like achievements, recognition, work itself,
responsibility, advancement and growth and (ii) hygiene factors (which merely maintain
the employee on the job and in the organization) like working conditions, organisational
policies, inter-personnel relations, pay and job security. The employee is dissatisfied with
the job if maintenance factors to the required degree are not introduced into the job. But,
the employee may not be satisfied even if the required maintenance factors are provided.
The employee will be satisfied with his job and he will be more productive if motivators
are introduced into the job content. As such, he asserts that the job designer has to
introduce hygienic factors adequately to reduce dissatisfaction and build motivating
factors. Thus, THE emphasis is on the psychological needs of the employees in designing
jobs.

The Job Characteristics Approach

The Job Characteristics Theory states that employees will work hard when they are
rewarded for the work they do and when the work gives them satisfaction. Hence, they
suggest that motivation, satisfaction and performance should be integrated in the job
design. According to this approach, any job can be described in terms of five core job
dimensions which are defined as follows:
(a) Skill variety: The degree to which the job requires that workers use a variety of
different activities, talents and skills in order to successfully complete the job
requirements.
(b) Task identity: The degree to which the job allows workers to complete whole tasks
from start to finish, rather than disjointed portions of the job.
(c) Task significance: The degree to which the job significantly impacts the lives of
others both within and outside the workplace.
(d) Autonomy: The degree to which the job allows workers freedom in planning and
scheduling and the methods used to complete the job.
(e) Feedback: The degree to which the job itself provides workers with clear, direct and
understandable knowledge of their performance.
All of the job dimensions impact workers psychologically. The first three dimensions
affect whether or not workers view their job as meaningful. Autonomy determines the
extent of responsibility workers feel. Feedback allows for feelings of satisfaction for a job
well done by providing knowledge of results.
The core job dimensions can be combined into a single predictive index called the
Motivating Potential Score. Its computation is as follows:
Motivating Skill variety + Task identity + Task significance
potential = x Autonomy x Feedback
score
Jobs that are high on motivating potential must be high at least in one of the three factors
that lead to meaningful work and must be high in both autonomy and feedback and vice
versa. These three critical psychological states lead to the outcome such as (a) high
internal work motivation, (b) high growth satisfaction, (c) high quality work
performance, (d) high general job satisfaction, (e) high work effectiveness and (f) low
absenteeism and turnover . The model says that internal rewards are obtained by an
individual when he learns that he personally has performed well on a task that he cares
about.

===============================================================

4) Explain aggregate production planning. Give an example from two wheeler

industry.

Solution:

The 1 st activity in Production Planning is the determination of the requirements for the
planning horizon. Demand forecasting plays an important role in the conduct of these three
tasks. Managers thus need to be aware of the various factors that would affect the accuracy
of the demand and sales forecast.

Activity 1 involves the conduct of the following tasks:

ACTIVITY 1

Tasks

Description

1 Draw up the sales forecast for each product or service over the appropriate planning
period

2 Combine the individual product / service demands into one aggregate demand

3 Transform the aggregate demand for each time period into staff, process, and other
elements of productive capacity

There are company factors that could influence the level of demand for the firm's products.
These internal factors include the company's marketing effort; the product design itself; the
strategies to improve customer service; and the quality and price of the product.

There are also external factors or marketplace factors that significantly affect demand such
as the level of competition or possible reaction by competitors to a firm's business strategy;
the perception of consumers about the products and the consumer behavior as affected by
their socio-demographic profile. Lastly, there are random factors that could affect the
accuracy of demand forecasts such as the overall condition of the economy and the
occurrence of business cycle.

Activity 2 How to Meet the Requirements

The next major activity involves the identification of the alternatives that the firm may
employ to meet production forecasts as well as the constraints and costs involved.
Specifically, this activity involves the following tasks:

ACTIVITY 2

Tasks

Description

1 Develop alternative resource schemes to meet the cumulative capacity requirements

2 Identify the most appropriate plan that meets aggregate demand at the lowest operating
cost

Once the most appropriate plan has been selected, then the firm evaluates the plan and
later on finalizes it for implementation. For more efficient and effective planning process,
the formation of a production planning team composed of managers from manufacturing,
marketing, purchasing and finance, is recommended.

What are the inputs to the production planning process?

To be able to perform the aggregate planning process, the following information should be
available to this production planning team. These data include the following:

• Materials / purchasing Information

• Operations / manufacturing Information

• Engineering / process Designs

• Sales, marketing and distribution Information

• Financial and accounting information

• Human resources information

How do you address the demand fluctuations?

There are three basic production planning strategies that the company can choose from to
address demand fluctuations. These are the (1) Chase Demand strategy, (2) Level
Production strategy, and the (3) Mixed Strategy.

Strategy Description

Demand Chase Strategy Matches the production rate to the order or demand rate through
the hiring and firing of employees as the order rate varies

Level Production Strategy Maintains a stable workforce working at a constant production

rate with the shortages and surpluses being absorbed by any of the following: • Changing
the inventory levels • Allow order backlogs (commit to the customer that you will deliver
the product (s) at a much later date) • Employ marketing strategies (e.g. promotional
activities)
Mixed Strategy The strategies here could include combination of any of the following: •
Having a stable workforce but employ variable work hours (e.g., increase no. of shifts,
flexible work schedules or overtime) • Subcontracting / outsourcing

• Changing inventory levels

Source: Dilworth, James B. Production and Operations Management: Manufacturing and

Services . Fifth Edition. McGraw-Hill, Inc. 1993

What are the important considerations in selecting the production planning strategy?

Demand Chase Strategy

Specific Methods Costs Remarks

Hire additional workers as demand increases Employment costs for advertising, travel,
interviewing, training, and others

Shift premium costs if additional shift is added Skilled workers may not be available when
needed

Layoff workers as demand decreases Cost of severance pay & increases in unemployment
insurance costs The company must have adequate capital investment in equipment for the
peak work force level

Level Production Strategy

Specific Methods Costs Remarks

Produce in earlier period and hold until product is needed Cost of holding inventory Service
operations cannot hold service inventory

Offer to deliver the product or service later, when capacity is available Delay in receipt of
revenue, at minimum; company may lose customers Manufacturing companies with
perishable products often use this method

Exert special marketing efforts to shift the demand to slack period Advertising costs,
discounts, other promotional programs Exemplifies the inter-relationship

among functions within an organization

Mixed Strategy

Specific Methods Costs Remarks

Work additional work hours without changing the workforce size Overtime premium pay The
time available for maintenance work without interrupting production is reduced

Staff for high production levels so that overtime is not necessary Excess personnel wages
during period of slack demand Work force may be used for deferred maintenance during
periods of low demand

Subcontract work to outside firms Continuing company overhead; subcontractor's overhead

and profits The capacity of other firms can be utilized, but there is less control of schedules
and quality levels

Revise make-or-buy decisions to purchase items when capacity is fully loaded Waste of
company skills, tooling and equipment unutilized in slack periods These methods require
capital investments sufficient for the peak production rate, that will be underutilized in slack
periods

How can you monitor effectiveness of your production plans?

The important considerations in monitoring the effectiveness of your production plan are
shown below:

Systems and Procedures

Consideration Present? Remarks

(if any)

Yes No

• Is there a current documentation of production planning and control systems and

procedures? Has this been communicated to all concerned?

• Does production planning and control have a formal monitoring system to maintain and
update master scheduling records?

• Is there a system of coordination between sales forecasts to be prepared in sufficient

detail so that these maybe readily translated to specific production plans?

Production Planning

Consideration Present? Remarks

(if any)

Yes No

• Does production planning and control prepare a master production schedule with all the
production assignments and time allocation?

• Do the production schedules permit adequate planning of purchases and inventory levels?

• Are there signs of significant lost time or low rate of worker productivity? Are the numbers
of such orders appear to be significant?

Production Control

Consideration Present? Remarks

(if any)

Yes No

• Can the status of any order or work in progress be readily determined?

• Do actual production levels deviate significantly in comparison with planned schedules?

• Do actual shipments of orders almost always occur according to schedule?

• Are essential production control records and reports maintained to cover current and
future production loads?

Two - Wheelers Annual Review January 2009

Published by: CRISIL Ltd.

Published: Jan. 30, 2009 - 84 Pages

Table of Contents

Sections

Two-wheeler growth prospects affected by weak finance scenario and nearing urban
saturation

Executive summary

1.0 Demand review and outlook

2.0 Profitability - Review and outlook

Box

1.0 Demand review and outlook

01 Methodology for forecasting long-term demand for two-wheelers

Chart

1.0 Demand review and outlook

01 CRISIL Research’s two-wheeler penetration methodology

Figures

1.0 Demand review and outlook

01 Two-wheeler domestic sales trend

02 Two-wheeler— Segmental growth trend

03 Two-wheeler — Segmental share

04 Scooter segment growth trend — Geared and ungeared

05 Motorcycle demand — monthly trend

06 Scooter demand — monthly trend

07 Motorcycle demand growth

08 Scooter demand growth

09 Urban and rural penetration

10 Share of rural and urban to total two-wheeler population

11 Two-wheeler demand trend

12 Motorcycle demand trend

13 Share of urban and rural to total motorcycle demand

14 Scooter demand trend

15 Mopeds demand trend

16 Country-wise estimated two wheeler penetration in 2007

17 China — Motorcycle sales and growth trend

18 Urbanisation to two-wheeler to car sales ratio

19 Two-wheeler export growth

20 Segment-wise export sales

21 Country-wise share of Indian exports - 2007-08

22 Share of India in major export markets

Figures

2.0 Profitability - Review and outlook

01 Operating profit trend

02 Product-mix trend
03 Motorcycles — Product-mix trend

04 Comparison of raw material / unit with operating margins

05 Steel price trend

06 Aluminium price trend

07 Change in basic raw material cost vis-�-vis change in raw material cost per unit

08 Selling expenses (advertisement and distribution)

09 Selling expenses (player-wise Rs per unit sold)

10 Two-wheeler industry RoCE trend

Tables

1.0 Demand review and outlook

01 Two-wheeler demand growth

2.0 Profitability - Review and outlook

01 Trends in per unit raw material cost

Sections
1.0 Player profile

Bajaj Auto Ltd

Hero Honda Motors Ltd

TVS Motor Co Ltd

Honda Motorcycles and Scooters India Ltd

Yamaha Motor India Pvt Ltd

Kinetic Motor Co Ltd

Suzuki Motorcycle India Pvt Ltd

2.0 Demand and market position

3.0 Costs

Raw material costs

Factors affecting raw material costs

4.0 Supply

5.0 Global coverage

Global motorcycle production

Global motorcycle sales

Global two-wheeler markets

6.0 Government policy

Introduction

Investment policy

Import policy

Fiscal regulations

Excise duty

Other levies

Emission norms

Emission control laws

Safety laws

Figures

1.0 Player profile

01 Bajaj Auto - Estimated market share in the motorcycle sub-segment

02 Hero Honda - Estimated market share in the motorcycle sub-segment

03 TVS Motors - Estimated market share in motorcycle sub-segment

04 HMSI - Segment-wise market share

05 Yamaha - Estimated market share in the motorcycle sub-segment

06 Kinetic - Trends in segment-wise market share

2.0 Demand and market position

01 Competitive position of players

02 Two-wheelers - Player-wise share in domestic sales

03 Two-wheelers - Player-wise growth rates

04 Motorcycle - Player-wise share in domestic sales

05 Economy segment - Player-wise share in domestic sales

06 Economy segment - Major models

07 Executive segment - Player-wise share in domestic sales

08 Executive segment - Major models

09 Premium segment - Player-wise share in domestic sales

10 Premium segment - Major models

11 Scooters - Player-wise share in domestic sales

12 Mopeds - Player-wise share in domestic sales

3.0 Costs

01 Two-wheeler industry - Cost structure

02 Trend in steel and aluminium prices

03 Two-wheeler industry - Raw material indigenisation

04 Selling and distribution expenses - Industry aggregates

05 Player-wise selling and distribution expenses

4.0 Supply

01 Two-wheeler industry - Trend in capacity utilisation

02 Gross fixed asset turnover of two-wheeler OEM vis-�-vis car industry

5.0 Global coverage

01 Global motorcycle production

02 Global motorcycle sales

03 China - Motorcycle sales

04 Indonesia - Motorcycles sales

05 Indonesia - Share of 4-stroke vs 2-stroke

06 Thailand - Motorcycle sales

07 Taiwan - Domestic motorcycle sales

08 Taiwan - Player market share

09 Vietnam - Motorcycle sales

10 Japan - Motorcycle sales

11 Europe - Motorcycle and moped production

12 Italy - Two-wheeler sales

13 Italy - Market share of different types of motorcycles

14 Germany - Two-wheeler sales

15 US - Company-wise market share (2007)

16 Canada - Segment-wise sales (2007)

Tables

1.0 Player profile

01 Bajaj Auto Ltd

02 Hero Honda Motors Ltd

03 TVS Motor Co Ltd

04 Honda Motorycle and Scooters India Ltd

05 Yamaha Motors Ltd

06 Kinetic Motor Co Ltd

07 Suzuki Motorcycle India Pvt Ltd

2.0 Demand and market position

01 Two-wheelers: Player comparison (2007-08)

02 Two-wheeler player-wise distribution network (March 2008)

03 Two wheelers: Major models launched (April 2006 onwards)

3.0 Costs

01 Two-wheelers - Trends in raw material cost

02 Raw material: Company-wise raw material cost break-up (2007-08)

4.0 Supply

01 Two-wheelers - Capacity and capacity utilisation of players (2007-08)

02 Two-wheelers - Capacity addition plans

5.0 Global coverage

01 Category of motorcycles

02 China - Market share by engine displacement

03 Indonesia - Segment-wise motorcycle sales

04 Thailand - Player-wise capacity share

05 Thailand - Segment-wise market share in 2007

06 Brazil - Motorcycle demand

07 Italy - Segment-wise market share 2007

6.0 Government policy

01 Two wheelers - Basic customs duty structure (2008-09)

02 Key raw materials: Import tariffs

03 Two-wheelers and key raw materials - Excise duty

04 Two wheelers: Emission norms

Sections

1.0 Industry structure

Tables

1.0 Industry structure

01 Two-wheelers - Player-wise sales volumes

02 Two-wheelers - Segment-wise sales volumes

03 Two-wheelers - Segment and player-wise sales volumes

04 Two-wheelers - Segment and player-wise market share (in per cent)

05 Two-wheelers - Segment and player-wise exports share (in per cent)

06 Two-wheelers - Player and segment-wise production

07 Two-wheelers - Player-wise operating margin trends (standalone)

08 Two-wheelers - Player-wise RoCE trends (standalone)

09 Two-wheelers - Financials of key players (2007-08)

10 Bajaj Auto Ltd - Unaudited results (standalone)

11 Hero Honda - Unaudited results

12 TVS Motors - Unaudited results (standalone)

13 Two-wheelers - Profit and loss account (standalone)

14 Two-wheelers - Aggregate industry balance sheet

Industry statistics

Abstract

This report is divided into three sections - The first section covers estimates, forecasts and
elaborates on the factors, which have impacted the two-wheeler industry. It also takes a
look at the key drivers of growth in the future. The second section evaluates the structural
characteristics affecting the two-wheeler industry by covering player profile and reviews in
order to understand their market share and hence their competitive position, future
strategies, expansion plans and financial profile. Further, the second section provides a
crisp coverage of cost structure in the industry, supply scenario, government policies and
global market profile. The third section provides factual data on the player and segment-
wise volumes, production and market share for players spread across two-wheeler
segments.
===============================================================

5) Define value engineering and analysis. Discuss atleast one method of the
approach for VE/VA.
Solution: Value Engineering is a systematic method to improve the "Value" of goods and
services by using an examination of function. Value, as defined, is the ratio of Function
to Cost. Value can therefore be increased by either improving the Function or reducing
the cost. It is a primary tenet of Value Engineering that basic functions be preserved and
not be reduced as a consequence of pursuing Value improvements. Value Engineering is
a body of knowledge as a technique in which the value of a system's outputs is optimized
by crafting a mix of performance (Function) and costs. In most cases this practice
identifies and removes unnecessary expenditures, thereby increasing the value for the
manufacturer and/or their customers. Value Engineering uses rational logic (a unique
"how" - "why" questioning technique) and the analysis of Function to identify
relationships that increase Value. It is considered a quantitative method similar to the
Scientific Method, which focuses on Hypothesis - Conclusion to test relationships, and
Operations Research, which uses model building to identify predictive relationships.

VALUE ANALYSIS -- The Job Plan

Value Engineering is often done by systematically following a multi-stage Job Plan. IT IS
a 8-step procedure , called the Value Analysis Job Plan. Others have varied the Job Plan
to fit their constraints. One modern version has the following eight steps:
PREPARATION
INFORMATION
ANALYSIS
CREATION
EVALUATION
DEVELOPMENT
PRESENTATION
FOLLOW-UP
Four basic steps in the VALUE ANALYSIS Job Plan are:
Information gathering - This asks what the requirements are for the object. Function
analysis, an important technique in value engineering, is usually done in this initial stage.
It tries to determine what functions or performance characteristics are important. It asks
questions like; What does the object do? What must it do? What should it do? What could
it do? What must it not do?
Alternative generation (Creation) - In this stage value engineers ask; What are the various
alternative ways of meeting requirements? What else will perform the desired function?
Evaluation - In this stage all the alternatives are assessed by evaluating how well they
meet the required functions and how great will the cost savings be.
Presentation - In the final stage, the best alternative will be chosen and presented to the
client for final decision.
Value engineering is an approach to productivity improvement that attempts to increase
the value obtained by a customer of a product by offering the same level of functionality
at a lower cost.
Value engineering is sometimes used to apply to this process of cost reduction prior to
manufacture, while "value analysis" applies the process to products currently being
manufactured. Both attempt to eliminate costs that do not contribute to the value and
performance of the product (or service, but the approach is more common in
manufacturing). Value engineering, thus, critically examines the contribution made to
product value by each feature of a design. It then looks to deliver the same contribution at
lower cost. Different types of value are recognised by the approach :
Use value relates to the attributes of a product which enable it to perform its function.
Cost value is the total cost of producing the product.
Esteem value is the additional premium price which a product can attract because of its
intrinsic attractiveness to purchasers.
Exchange value is the sum of the attributes which enable the product to be exchanged or
sold. Although the relative magnitude of these different types of value will vary between
products, and perhaps over the life of a product, VE attempts to identify the contribution
of each feature to each type of value through systematic analysis and structured creativity
enhancing techniques. Value engineering programs are best delivered by multi-skilled
teams consisting of designers, purchasing specialists, operations personnel, and financial
analysts. Pareto analysis is often used to prioritise those parts of the total design that are
most worthy of attention. These are then subject to rigorous scrutiny. The team analyses
the function and cost of those elements and tries to find any similar components that
could do the same job at lower cost.
Common results are a reduction in the number of components, the use of cheaper
materials, or a simplification of the process
================================================
VALUE ENGINEERING CAN BE APPLIED TO ANY MANUFACTURING,
HERE IS AN EXAMPLE OF TRACTOR MANUFACTURING
FIRM IN THE FOLLOWING AREAS

1.TRACTOR DESIGN
-make the design simple
- easy to use
-reduce COMPLICATED / expensive parts.
---------------------------------------------------------
2.TRACTORS RAW MATERIAL / PARTS PROCUREMENT
-establish the demand planning system [ reduce the fluctuations in production]
-establish the inventories of raw materials [ reduce the cost of stock holding]
-establish the economic order quantity [ """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""]
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3. TRACTORS PRODUCTION PLANNING
-establish an effective / efficient production planning system [ cost savings]
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4.TRACTORS PRODUCTION
-establish a lean production [ cost effective]
----------------------------------------------------------------------
5. TRACTORS TOTAL QUALITY ASSURANCE.
-set up quality assurance system to reduce quality problems/ rejections]
[ cost savings ]
-------------------------------------------------------------
6.TRACTORS FINISHED GOOD INVENTORY
-match the finished stock inventory to market demand / sales requirements]
[ cost saving in stock holding ]
--------------------------------------------------------------------
7.TRACTORS CUSTOMER SERVICE
-provide effective customer order processing/order service/
timely despatch to customers.
[ adds value to customers / reduces distribution cost]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
8.TRACTORS AFTER SALES SERVICE
-offer warranty/ after sales service to customers
[ adds value to the product and increases sales ]
============================================
TRACTORS MANUFACTURER CAN ADD VALUE/ REDUCE COST
BY APPLYING THE VALUE ANALYSIS -JOB PLAN TO EACH
OF THE ABOVE LISTED 8 STAGES OF TRACTORS MANUFACTURING.
===============================================================
===============================================================

6) Explain how the system concept can be used in explaining the term waste and
Waste management

Solution: Waste management is the collection, transport, processing, recycling or

disposal of waste materials. The term usually relates to materials produced by human
activity, and is generally undertaken to reduce their effect on health, aesthetics or
amenity. Waste management is also carried out to reduce the materials' effect on the
environment and to recover resources from them. Waste management can involve solid,
liquid or gaseous substances, with different methods and fields of expertiseforeach.

Waste management practices differ for developed and developing nations, for urban and
rural areas, and for residential and industrial, producers. Management for non-hazardous
residential and institutional waste in metropolitan areas is usually the responsibility of
local government authorities, while management for non-hazardous commercial and
industrial waste is usually the responsibility of thegenerator. Waste management methods
for vary widely between areas for many reasons, including type of waste material, nearby
land uses, and the area available.
Disposing of waste in a landfill involves burying waste to dispose of it, and this remains a
common practice in most countries. Historically, landfills were often established in
disused quarries, mining voids or borrow pits. A properly-designed and well-managed
landfill can be a hygienic and relatively inexpensive method of disposing of waste
materials. Older, poorly-designed or poorly-managed landfills can create a number of
adverse environmental impacts such as wind-blown litter, attraction of vermin, and
generation of liquid leachate. Another common byproduct of landfills is gas (mostly
composed of methane and carbon dioxide), which is produced as organic waste breaks
down anaerobically. This gas can create odor problems, kill surface vegetation, and is a
greenhouse gas.

Design characteristics of a modern landfill include methods to contain leachate such as

clay or plastic lining material. Deposited waste is normally compacted to increase its
density and stability, and covered to prevent attracting vermin (such as mice or rats).
Many landfills also have landfill gas extraction systems installed to extract the landfill
gas. Gas is pumped out of the landfill using perforated pipes and flared off or burnt in a
gas engine to generate electricity.

Many local authorities, especially in rural areas, have found it difficult to establish new
landfills due to opposition from owners of adjacent land. As a result, solid waste disposal
in these areas must be transported further for disposal or managed by other methods. This
fact, as well as growing concern about the environmental impacts of excessive materials
consumption, has given rise to efforts to minimize the amount of waste sent to landfill in
many areas. These efforts include taxing or levying waste sent to landfill, recycling waste
products, converting waste to energy, and designing products that use less material.

Incineration is disposal method that involves combustion of waste material. Incineration

and other high temperature waste treatment systems are sometimes described as "thermal
treatment". Incinerators convert waste materials into heat, gas, steam, and ash.

Incineration is carried out both on a small scale by individuals, and on a large scale by
industry. It is used to dispose of solid, liquid and gaseous waste. It is recognised as a
practical method of disposing of certain hazardous waste materials (such as biological
medical waste), though it remains a controversial method of waste disposal in many
places due to issues such as emission of gaseous pollutants.

Incineration is common in countries such as Japan where land is more scarce, as these
facilities generally do not require as much area as landfills. Waste-to-energy (WtE) or
energy-from-waste (EfW) are broad terms for incinerator facilities that burn waste in a
furnace or boiler to generate heat, steam and/or electricity.

The process of extracting resources or value from waste is generally referred to as

recycling, meaning to recovery or reuse the material. There are a number of different
methods by which waste material is recycled: the raw materials may be extracted and
reprocessed, or the calorific content of the waste may be converted to electricity. New
methods of recycling and are being developed continuously, and are described briefly
below.

The popular meaning of ‘recycling’ in most developed countries refers to the widespread
collection and reuse of everyday waste materials such as empty beverage containers.
These are collected and sorted into common types so that the raw materials from which
the items are made can be reprocessed into new products. Material for recycling may be
collected separately from general waste using dedicated bins and collection vehicles, or
sorted directly from mixed waste streams.

The most common consumer products recycled include aluminium beverage cans, steel
food and aerosol cans, HDPE and PET bottles, glass bottles and jars, paperboard cartons,
newspapers, magazines, and cardboard. Other types of plastic (PVC, LDPE, PP, and PS:
see resin identification code) are also recyclable, although these are not as commonly
collected. These items are usually composed of a single type of material, making them
relatively easy to recycle into new products. The recycling of complex products (such as
computers and electronic equipment) is more difficult, due to the additional dismantling
and separation required.

Waste materials that are organic in nature, such as plant material, food scraps, and paper
products, can be recycled using biogical composting and digestion processes to
decompose the organic matter. The resulting organic material is then recycled as mulch
or compost for agricultural or landscaping purposes. In addition, waste gas from the
process (such as methane)can be captured andused for generating electricity. The
intention of biological processing in waste management is to control and accelerate the
natural process of decomposition of organic matter.

There are a large variety of composting and digestion methods and technologies varying
in complexity from simple home compost heaps, to industrial-scale enclosed-vessel
digestion of mixed domestic waste (see Mechanical biological treatment). Methods of
biological decomposition are differentiated as being aerobic or anaerobic methods,
though hybrids of the two methods also exist.

An example of waste management through composting is the Green Bin Program in

Toronto, Canada, where household organic waste (such as kitchen scraps and plant
cuttings) are collected in a dedicated container and then composted. The energy content
of waste products can be recycled by using them as fuel. Recycling through thermal
treatment ranges from using waste as a fuel source for cooking or heating, to fuel for
boilers to generate steam and electricity in a turbine. Pyrolysis and gasification are two
related forms of thermal treatment where waste materials are heated to high temperatures
with limited oxygen availability. The process typically occurs in a sealed vessel under
high pressure. Pyrolysis of solid waste converts the material into solid, liquid and gas
products. The liquid and gas can be burnt to produce energy or refined into other
products. The solid residue (char) can be further refined into products such as activated
carbon. Gasification is used to convert organic materials directly into a synthetic gas
(syngas) composed of carbon monoxide and hydrogen. The gas is then burnt to produce
electricity and steam.

Another important method of waste management is the prevention of waste material

being created. Methods of avoidance include reuse of unwanted products, repairing
broken items, designing single-use products to be reusable, and designing products that
use less material to achieve the same purpose. Waste collection methods vary widely
between different countries and regions. Domestic waste collection services are often
provided by local government authorities, or by private industry. Some areas, especially
those in less developed countries, do not have a formal waste-collection system.

For example, in Australia most urban domestic households have a 240-litre (63.4 U.S.
gallon) bin that is emptied weekly from the curb using side- or rear-loading compactor
trucks. In Europe and a few other places around the world, a few communities use a
proprietary collection system known as Envac, which conveys refuse via underground
conduits using a vacuum system. In Canadian urban centres curbside collection is the
most common method of disposal, whereby the city collects waste and/or recyclables
and/or organics on a scheduled basis. In rural areas people often dispose of their waste by
hauling it to a transfer station. Waste collected is then transported to a regional landfill.

There are a number of concepts about waste management which vary in their usage
between countries or regions. This section presents some of the most general, widely-
used concepts. The waste hierarchy refers to the "3 Rs" reduce, reuse and recycle, which
classify waste management strategies according to their desirability in terms of waste
minimization. The waste hierarchy remains the cornerstone of most waste minimization
strategies. The aim of the waste hierarchy is to extract the maximum practical benefits
from products and to generate the minimum amount ofwaste.

Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) is a strategy designed to promote the integration

of all costs associated with products throughout their life cycle (including end-of-life
disposal costs) into the market price of the product. Extended producer responsibility is
meant to impose accountability over the entire lifecycle of products and packaging
introduced to the market. This means that firms which manufacture, import and/or sell
products are required to be responsible for the products after their useful life as well as
during manufacture. The Polluter Pays Principle is a principle where the polluting party
pays for the impact caused to the natural environment. With respect to waste
management, this generally refers to the requirement for a waste generator to pay for
appropriate disposal of the waste.

===============================================================
===============================================================
========================THE END===============================