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Lesson#13
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Organizational Structure
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Organizational Structure
Departments are structured based on the set of related
responsibilities. The set of responsibilities being
discharged set the tone and structure of that department. The
complexity and diversity of these
responsibilities also affect how departments are set in an
organization.
Existence of Functional departments in every organization vary
with the nature of industry and the nature
of products/services being offered
Certain departments may not exist in an organization, for
instance financial sector (banking, leasing
companies) and travel agencies do not incorporate the concept of
manufacturing as they belong to the
services sector.
Let’s take a look at different departments in different industry
segments in order to better understand the
concept.
13.1 Financial Sector
The departmental structures are different in banking and
financial sector. This in turn becomes the basis of
design and development of functional information systems. Banks
commonly have following departments
o
Treasury
o
Advances
o
Trade Finance
o
Corporate Finance
o
Consumer Banking
o
Deposits
o
Customer Services
o
Lease
o
Credit Card
o
Debit card
o
Operations
Requirements of Information Systems and procedures of financial
analysts, investment houses, brokerage
houses, leasing companies will depend on their differing
functions and needs.
13.2 Air Line Industry
Various departments may be
•
Flight Operations
department
o
Flight scheduling
department
o
Cockpit crew department
o
Cabin Crew department
•
Engineering department –
engine maintenance
•
Ground Support – air
craft handling department
•
Catering
•
Internal audit
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•
Accounts & Finance
•
Sales – ticketing,
E-ticketing, agents
•
Marketing
•
Store – engines,
maintenance and repair accessories
These departments and their needs determine the design of
information systems they require.
As shown in the above two examples, the constitution of
departments in both banking institutions and air
travel industry vary to a large extent.
13.3 Manufacturing Information System
The information needs were and are always there. Information
systems used to exist when computerised
environments were not available. Automation has enhanced the
availability of information.
Every industry has its own departmental structure which gives
rise to a different set of sub-systems as part
of the information system. Here we would consider the
sub-systems of a manufacturing system only.
Following are the sub-systems of an information system.
Raw Material Procurement Sub-System
This is the commencement of the manufacturing process. Some
might think of procurement as a simple
purchasing process like any other commodity but the spirit of
having an all-embracing raw material
procurement sub-system is simply more than that.
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Parameters of Raw-material Procurement
Like with every system, there has to be a list of minimum
specifications which every system or subsystem
has to cover. Purchasing logistics of an entity critically
affect time to market and other quality related
issues. Issues like selection of suppliers, choice between local
purchase or import and delivery time taken
by the supplier. All these concerns are met and dealt with in
the purchase subsystem. The complexity of
the purchase subsystem should depend on types of raw materials
required, number of suppliers to deal
with and complexity of the terms of purchase agreements for long
term.
With higher customer expectations, every organization wants to
efficiently manage its suppliers and other
internal processes. Supply chain management spans all movement
and storage of raw materials, work-inprocess
inventory, and finished goods from point-of-origin to
point-of-consumption. A procurement
system should help in improving the supply chain of the
organization.
13.4 Inventory Sub System
Inventory subsystem focuses on maintaining records and movements
on inventory levels and usage. This
control of inventory is critical to the organization since money
lock-in of raw materials purchase represents
substantial investment. Timely production of finished goods
require availability of right quantity of material,
maintenance of right stock levels, determination of lead times
and flex times and exchange of information
with supplier at the right time. An inventory subsystem helps us
to address these issues. Inventory
subsystems are critical where the organization is following Just
in Time approach – a philosophy which
encourages zero tolerance for stock levels and placing orders
exactly when they are needed for
manufacturing.
Proper logistic management is important for the timely and
quality production. Various factors which can
play critical role are
•
Who to purchase from –
supplier selection
•
When to purchase – time
of delivery or raw materials
•
How much to purchase –
Ideal stock levels
•
An efficient inventory
subsystem helps us to deal with these issues in a time saving manner.
13.5 Production Sub System
It can be seen as the most critical part of the entire
manufacturing sub system. Basically it tracks the flow of
the job through the entire production process. It also records
change in form of goods or transfer of goods
from one place to the other.
Example
Consider a manufacturing entity working with three processing
departments and one assembly department.
As raw materials pass through the processes, the sub system
records the relevant information at specific
points or locations until the finished goods are transferred to
stock room.
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13.6 Maintenance & Scheduling Sub System
For efficient production, the machines should be timely
available. Many a times, the machine is under repair
and is not available to be used for production. Without this
subsystem, there is a possibility of customer’s
orders not being met on time. Certain issues that can be very
important are
•
Deciding delivery time
in accordance with availability of machines.
•
Any foreseen
machine-down-time.
•
Any major overhauling /
tuning / replacement expected may result in unavailability of machine. An
overhauling schedule should be kept so that the production of
finished goods is not halted.
•
Avoiding duplication of
jobs for the same machine.
13.7 Quality Sub system
This subsystem ensures the production made and end product being
delivered to the customer are
conforming the quality standards set by the company. Quality
covers aspects for the organization like better
quality raw materials and what is being purchased is according
to organization’s standards and improved
finished goods in accordance with the customer specification.
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The question now arises is why do we need a quality sub-system?
It is defined and demanded by customer,
it has to be achieved by management, it is a firm wide
responsibility and these subsystem provide the firm’s
managers with information that reveals the extent to which the
firms products are achieving the quality
goals.
13.8 Total Quality Management (TQM)
TQM is a set of management and control activities which focus on
quality assurance. The quality of the
products and services is enhanced and then offered to consumers.
An organizational undertaking to
improve the quality of manufacturing and service, it focuses on
obtaining continuous feedback for making
improvements and refining existing processes over the long term.
There are certain Graphical tools used to
implement and promote TQM. For instance
o
Histogram
o
Pareto Analysis
o
Cause & Effect Diagram
Costing Sub System
Costs are incurred more frequently in a manufacturing entity.
Monitoring these costs on regular basis
requires instituting a formal cost subsystem. Cost sub systems
are responsible for generation of cost reports
which represent cost break ups on various bases, for instance
o
Machine usage basis
o
Product basis
o
Department wise
Order Processing Sub System
This subsystem deals with following issues.
•
Status of orders placed
with suppliers
•
Status of departmental
requisitions
•
Quality of materials
received
•
Any other issues related
to suppliers
Order processing subsystem gives a snapshot of statuses of
various orders placed, at any given time.
Management Levels in Manufacturing Information Systems
Manufacturing Information System should cater for information
requirements at each level, for instance
Strategic level
3. Locating new plant which can save cost
4. Investment in new manufacturing technology
Knowledge Level
3. Distribute knowledge to drive the production process
4. Innovating new forms of manufacturing processes
Management level
2. Monitoring production costs and resources
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Operational Level
2. Status of production tasks
13.9 Planning Productions/Operations
This function in many firms is supported by IT. The major areas
of planning and their computerised
support are as follows.
o
Materials Requirement
Planning (MRP)
o
Manufacturing Resource
Planning (MRP II)
o
Automated Software
Computer Aided Design
(CAD)
Computer Aided
Manufacturing (CAM)
Computer Integrated
Manufacturing (CIM)
13.10 Materials Requirement Planning (MRP)
Material procurement needs to be planned in compliance with the
production Schedule. Initially companies
used to do plan it manually through a document termed as
“Material Requirement Plan”. Material
Requirements Planning (MRP) is software based production
planning and inventory control system for
material procurement and scheduling.
It helps meeting three objectives:
o
Ensure materials and
products are available for production and delivery to customers.
o
Maintain the lowest
possible level of inventory.
o
Plan manufacturing
activities, delivery schedules and purchasing activities.
MRP helps in getting the right material and physical resources
together at the right place and at the right
time to meet the customer’s requirements. This helps in
achieving on time delivery, High Quality, at the
best price.
13.11 Manufacturing Resource Planning (MRP II)
An expanded version of MRP that integrates finance, accounting,
accounts payable, and other business
processes into the MRP system. It also includes production
scheduling function, and inventory control
functions. It is an integrated computer system that connects the
regular MRP to other functional area,
especially finance and human resources. It is made up of a
variety of functions, each linked together:
o
Business planning
o
Sales and operations
planning
o
Production planning
o
Master scheduling
o
Material requirements
planning
o
Capacity requirements
planning
Benefits of MRP II
MRP II involves the entire company
o
Management business
rules for strategic planning can be set, and enforced by MRP II.
o
Sales and Marketing can
incorporate sales goals that fit material and capacity constraints.
o
Relationships can be
developed with vendors to improve purchasing just in time.
o
Inventory shortages can
be seen before they happen, with communications to customers to
get approval of substitutions that will get a part that does the
same thing, on schedule.
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o
Accounting and finance
departments get accurate costs, and predict cash flow.
Automated Tools
IT has been used successfully in cutting the time required for
the design of products, services or processes.
Some of these applications are
•
Computer Aided Design
(CAD)
•
Computer Aided
Manufacturing (CAM)
•
Computer Integrated
Manufacturing (CIM)
13.12 Computer Aided Design (CAD)
“It is a system that enables drawings to be constructed on a
computer screen and subsequently stored,
manipulated and updated electronically.”
The ability to rotate or create movement in the design allows
testing for clearances and frequently reduces
the cost of prototyping the products. The technology is used for
a wide variety of products in such fields as
architecture, electronics, and aerospace, naval, and automotive
engineering. Although CAD systems
originally merely automated drafting, they now usually include
three-dimensional modeling and computersimulated
operation of the model. Rather than having to build prototypes
and change components to
determine the effects of tolerance ranges, engineers can use
computers to simulate operation to determine
loads and stresses. For example, an automobile manufacturer
might use CAD to calculate the wind drag on
several new car-body designs without having to build physical
models of each one. In microelectronics, as
devices have become smaller and more complex, CAD has become an
especially important technology.
Among the benefits of such systems are lower product-development
costs and a greatly shortened design
cycle. While less expensive CAD systems running on personal
computers have become available for do-ityourself
home remodeling and simple drafting, state-of-the-art CAD
systems running on workstations and
mainframe computers are increasingly integrated with
computer-aided manufacturing systems.
13.13 Computer Aided Manufacturing (CAM)
Computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) is a form of automation where
computers communicate work
instructions directly to the manufacturing machinery. The
technology evolved from the numerically
controlled machines of the 1950s, which were directed by a set
of coded instructions contained in a
punched paper tape. Today a single computer can control banks of
robotic milling machines, lathes,
welding machines, and other tools, moving the product from
machine to machine as each step in the
manufacturing process is completed. Such systems allow easy,
fast reprogramming from the computer,
permitting quick implementation of design changes. The most
advanced systems, which are often
integrated with computer-aided design systems, can also manage
such tasks as parts ordering, scheduling,
and tool replacement.
It is a system that uses computer aided techniques to control
production facility. Some of these techniques
are
o
Computer-aided process
planning – Use of computer to control activities and functions to prepare
a detailed set of plans and instructions to produce a machine or
part. -- Machines
o
Computerised Numerical
control (CNC) – refers specifically to the computer control of machine
tools for the purpose of (repeatedly) manufacturing complex
parts in metal as well as other
materials. e.g. drills, wood routers use this technology.
o
Robotics programming –
The science or study of the technology associated with the design,
fabrication, theory, and application of robots. – Automobile
industry.
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13.14 Computer Integrated Manufacturing (CIM)
Integrated computerized manufacturing system combining all the
elements of computer aided design (cad)
and computer-aided manufacturing (cam). This is an interactive
computer system usually installed on a
local area network linking several related departmental
functions such as design, engineering, production,
and marketing. The concept of CIM insures rapid high-quality
product development and manufacturing
through real-time coordination of all related functions. See
also computer aided design (cad).
Computer-integrated manufacturing (CIM): It is the total
integration of Computer Aided Design /
Manufacturing and also other business operations and databases.
It is concept/philosophy about the
implementation of various integrated computer systems in factory
automation.
13.15 Computer Integrated Manufacturing (CIM) Goals
CIM has three basic goals
•
Simplification of all
manufacturing technologies and techniques
•
Automation of as many of
the manufacturing processes as possible by integration of many
information technologies like
o
Flexible Manufacturing
Systems – a form of flexible automation in which several machine tools are
linked together by a material-handling system controlled by a
central computer. It is distinguished
from an automated production line by its ability to process more
than one product style
simultaneously.
o
Computer aided
Engineering (CAE) -- the application of computer software in engineering to
analyze the robustness and performance of components,
assemblies, products and manufacturing
tools.
o
Just in time (JIT) – A
Japanese idea that inventory is manufactured (or acquired) only as the need
for it arises or in time to be sold (or used). A major goal is
to cut down on inventory investment.
•
Integration and
coordination of all the manufacturing aspects through computer hardware and
software. |
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