What are the advantages and disadvantages of a flexible production system?

Flexible production system (FMS) is access to the company's production efforts to make relatively easy to change or adapt production policies and procedures. The idea of ​​this type of flexibility is often to allow the company to predict and move priorities depending on innovation in technology or shift in demand for the company's products. With a flexible production system, it is necessary to consider a number of advantages and obligations that should be considered before the attempt to use this approach for corporate operation.

One of the main advantages of a flexible production system is to adapt the change to meet the emerging requirements for certain products of customers. If you do so, business can help in capturing a significant market share and enjoy increased income as long as the demand for these products remains in place. For example, a textile plant that works with a flexible production system can be able to quickly customize card and spinning machines to suit ProductKCI Corduroy instead of a fros fabric if the general public begins to demand more clothes made with a show, and then move back to the production of fros fabric as soon as this trend retreats.

Another advantage of the flexible production system is the chance to minimize labor costs during seasonal decline and then increase the workforce during busy seasons. This approach can be achieved by cross training employees who can take over other duties during the slim season, and then turn part of these obligations in part -time employees in busy periods. The final result is an effective operation that still helps maintain production costs for each unit produced below a certain level.

Although there are a number of advantages for a flexible production system, there are also several potential disadvantages that should be taken into account. Transfer to this type of arrangement often hasSignificant costs, because the machinery may need to be adjusted to make it easier to convert the produced goods. This approach also often requires a change in corporate culture, a process that can take a lot of time and lead to some loss of efficiency in the short term. Technological barriers can also slow down more adaptable efforts and require further planning to overcome these obstacles and create other costs for the company. Before the decision that a flexible production system is the right option, owners of companies should consider benefits against obligations and decide whether to eventually be in the best interest of the company.