Evolution of Manufacturing

Question: Using the concepts of globalisation, lean operations, JIT and TQM, discussed in the first session, and in your own words,summarise the evolution of production processes. Then choose one of the aspects discussed in the report as an example to illustrate what you consider to be the most significant current and/or future developments. Answer: Manufacturing is defined as the production of goods that can be sold in the market. It involves usage of labour, machinery, tools, chemical processing, biological processing or formulation to develop finished or semi-finished products. Manufacturing has evolved with the elapse of time and is no more just limited to the production of physical products. In the beginning, the manufacturing was done using labour and the labour was not treated properly but after a great number of revolutions and technological advancements, the manufacturing process is now largely dependent upon complex machineries, tools and robots while the human effort has been reduced to a great extent ("The future of manufacturing: Making things in a changing world", 2015). EVOLUTION OF MANUFACTURING The earliest manufacturing processes were done by skilled people, such as ironsmith, goldsmith, etc. with their own hands and usage of simple tools and techniques. With the evolution of science, technology and machinery, all the manufacturing processes became automated while slowly and steadily, the requirement of manual labour was totally out-dated by efficient and latest machinery. The changes in demands of the consumers and the increase in competition brought about further advancements in the manufacturing processes. The machines in the present day are so efficient that some of them can handle the work or hundreds of humans with high accuracy and efficiency. These machines have manufacturing capacities which can never be matched by the human efforts. Let us study some concepts that have brought about some revolutionary changes in the manufacturing practices and operations: Globalisation globalisation is defined as the process of exchange of goods and services across countries. Gl obalisation has been responsible for a great number of changes that the world has experienced in the past few years. With the spread of globalisation, consumers and manufacturers could increase their reach and could experience the technology and processes that were changing the world. As they were able to get their hands upon the latest technological innovation, they brought the technology back to their own countries and developed their manufacturing processes. The concept of globalisation has actually changed the way of manufacturing as even a slightest of innovation or technological change spreads like fire throughout the world and new manufacturing processes are coming up on a daily basis (wiliam, 2016). Lean manufacturing the evolution of manufacturing was not just concerned with improving the efficiencies and using new innovations but was also aimed at reducing the wastage and adding value to the processes being used in the manufacturing. Lean manufacturing was another concept that changed the definition of manufacturing ("Lean Manufacturing: Working More Efficiently", 2016). It aims at reducing the unwanted steps or inefficiencies that dont add value to the final product. Total Quality Management total quality management is another new concept that aims at increasing the consumer satisfaction by increasing the quality of the final product. The concept has also increased the focus of manufacturing processes on the final product and the fulfilment of consumer satisfaction ("Total Quality Management (TQM): What is TQM? | ASQ", 2016). CONSUMER DEMAND From the report, The Future of Manufacturing Making Things in a Changing World given by Deloitte University Press, the concept that is presently, and in the near future, is going to affect the manufacturing process is consumer demand. Consumer demands are the ones that shape the market, the operations of the company and the manufacturing process. The consumers in the present day world are smart and have access to global information, which increases their awareness about products, services, markets, companies and the manufacturing processes. The consumers of these days play a great role in the customization of the products and even companies these days are eager to gather views and ideas from them as they are the ones who have to use the end product. The consumers these days have high bargaining power and have a major role to play in the personalization, customization and co-creation of products or services. For example, the dependency on machinery for manufacturing has increased the value and demand for handmade product. As a result, handmade products are becoming costly and the demand of the consumers for handmade products is bringing about a change in the manufacturing processes. Therefore, it can be concluded that the changing trends in the demands of the consumers are bringing a great number of changes in the manufacturing processes and would continue to do so in the near future. REFERENCES Companies respond to customer needs with demand-driven manufacturing. (2016). SearchManufacturingERP. Retrieved 1 July 2016, from https://searchmanufacturingerp.techtarget.com/feature/Companies-respond-to-customer-needs-with-demand-driven-manufacturingHistory and development of modern manufacturing processes, Manufacturing Info. (2016). Businessknowledgesource.com. Retrieved 1 July 2016, from https://businessknowledgesource.com/manufacturing/history_and_development_of_modern_manufacturing_processes_028691.htmlLean Manufacturing: Working More Efficiently. (2016). Mindtools.com. Retrieved 1 July 2016, from https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newSTR_44.htmThe future of manufacturing: Making things in a changing world. (2015). Deloitte University Press. Retrieved 1 July 2016, from https://dupress.com/articles/future-of-manufacturing-industry/Total Quality Management (TQM): What is TQM? | ASQ. (2016). Asq.org. Retrieved 1 July 2016, from https://asq.org/learn-about-quality/total-quali ty-management/overview/overview.htmlwiliam, S. (2016). Effects of globalisation on production, Globalisation and Corporations, The Global Citizen Ecology and Economy, SOSE Year 9, QLD | Online Education Home Schooling Skwirk Australia. Skwirk.com. Retrieved 1 July 2016, from https://www.skwirk.com/p-c_s-57_u-507_t-1377_c-5299/effects-of-globalisation-on-production/qld/sose-geography/the-global-citizen-ecology-and-economy/globalisation-and-corporations