GCSE Business Studies
Production
Objectives
• To understand the three main methods of
production that a business can use to
produce goods
• To consider the advantages and
disadvantages of each method of
production
Methods of Production
There are three types of
production:
• Job production
• Batch production
• Flow production
You own a business –
you cannot eat your
products – this does
not generate any profit!
Resources
Raw Materials:
• A range of different coloured Smarties
• Plastic bags
Activity: Job Production
• You are going to produce bags of Smarties that
have 8 Smarties in each bag. The colour of
Smarties you put in each bag will depend on
your customer orders.
• You have 2 minutes. Your group must take an
order from THREE other pairs in the room.
Each pair in the group gets ONE order each.
Find out what colour Smarties they would like in
their bag and write down the orders on your
record sheet. Produce the bags of Smarties as
ordered.
DO NOT EAT THE SMARTIES!
Job Production
• Producing a “bespoke” product
• Each product is made for one individual
customer
Examples:
Making a wedding dress:
Selling ice cream cornets
with a choice of fillings:
Activity: Batch Production
Using the Smarties provided, produce the following
bags of Smarties. Each bag will have 8
Smarties in it. Stop after the first batch and
wait for the order to make the second batch.
1. Two bags – each bag containing 4 red/pink
Smarties and 4 blue Smarties
2. Two bags – each bag containing 4 green
Smarties and 4 purple/brown Smarties
3. Two bags – each bag containing a mixture of
colours
You have TWO MINTUES
Batch Production
• A group of identical products are produced, then
the production process is stopped and reorganised in order to produce another “batch”
• Products are produced “in bulk” but production is
not continuous
Examples:
Cadbury’s Factory, Birmingham
Seabrooks Crisp Factory, Bradford
Activity: Flow Production
• In a group of four, you must produce as many bags as
possible in 2 minutes. You must produce at least 8
bags. Organise your production process as follows:
• You must pass the Smarties along your production line to
the “bagger”
Flow Production
• Production is continuous and does
not stop
• Mass production of a product
Examples:
Toothpaste factory in Beijing
TV Factory in Mexico
Flow Production: Car Manufacturing
The First Modern Day Mass
Producer
• Henry Ford
• 1903: Ford Motor
Company
• 1908: Model T car
“Customers can have any colour they like,
as long as it is black”
Test Your Knowledge …
Which method of production?
• A group of identical products are
produced, then the production process is
stopped and re-organised in order to
produce another “batch”
• Production is continuous and does
not stop
• Producing a “bespoke” product and each
product is made for one individual
customer
Types of Production:
Job, Batch, Flow
In which of the three methods would you most
likely …
• Get a very satisfied customer?
• Be able to charge the cheapest price?
• Charge the highest price?
• Be able to be flexible as to what you produced –
thus matching production to demand?
• Be able to produce the most products per day?
• Have a large amount of capital investment to
set up the process?
• Have the cheapest “start-up costs”?
TASK
Methods of Production
Using the information provided,
make notes on the advantages
and disadvantages of the
different types of production
Now you can
eat your Smarties …
Job Production
• Customer gets exactly what they want because
the product has a unique design – customer
satisfaction is maximised
• Tends to be “labour intensive” – requires a large
number of employee hours and often skilled
labour
• Tends to be time consuming to make and
therefore you cannot produce on a large scale
• Price charged per product is normally high
because they are expensive to make
Batch Production
• More products can be produced compared
to job production because you do not have
to consult your individual customers
• Production is more efficient because the
same product is made for a large number
of customers – time is saved
• Price is normally cheaper than “bespoke”
products
• Products are produced in limited
quantities
Flow Production
• Tends to be “capital intensive” – uses
machinery rather than employees to make the
product. This can have very expensive start-up
costs
• Production is continuous – workers work shifts
so that the product is made 24 hours a day
• Production is much quicker than job/batch
production – more can be produced in one day
• In flow production, firms can take advantage of
“economies of scale”
Methods of Production
Method of
Production
Advantages
Disadvantages
Job
Production
Will all the products be
sold?
Will the customer be
satisfied?
Quick or slow?
Will employee wages be high?
Will the price be high?
Batch
Production
Can small amounts be
Will all the products be sold?
made at one time?
Will time be wasted between
Quicker or slower than job? batches?
Flow
Production
Quick or slow?
Will employee wages be
low?
Is production continuous?
Will all the products be sold?
Will machinery be expensive?
Test Your Knowledge …
Which method of production should be used
in the following examples?
a) Making t-shirts of varying colours and
styles
b) Making tins of baked beans
c) Making luxury cruise ships to order, so
each ship is a different design
Complete the Case Studies:
Gillian Windsor
Website Creator and Manager
Stephen Brown
Algram Engineering
A Level Text Book, Page 574