DOM 102 : Principles of Operations
management
Process Flows & Facilities Layout
RECALL - PROCESS FLOW STRUCTURES

Job shop – eg making one chair for an individual by a furniture
workshop

Batch shop eg making many chairs for the university of Nairobi
by a furniture workshop

Assembly Line - eg Automobile manufacturer, putting parts
together to make the finished product – GM

Continuous Flow - eg Petroleum manufacturer – Kenya Oil
Refineries
Low
Volume,
One of a
Kind
I.
Job
Shop
II.
Batch
III.
Assembly
Line
IV.
Continuous
Flow
Few
High
Multiple
Major
Volume,
Products, Products,
High
Low
Higher StandardVolume Volume
ization
Flexibility (High)
Unit Cost (High)
Commercial
Printer
French Restaurant
These are
the major
stages of
product and
process life
cycles
Heavy
Equipment
Automobile
Assembly
Burger King
Sugar
Refinery
Flexibility (Low)
Unit Cost (Low)
FACILITY LAYOUT DEFINED
Facility layout can be defined as the process by
which the placement of departments,
workgroups within departments, workstations,
machines, and stock-holding points within a
facility are determined
Determined by the type of process flow chosen
FACILITIES LAYOUT - INTRODUCTION
Layout planning
 Centers
to contain
 Space & Capacity for each centre
 Center space configuration
 Center location – interdepedence
2
STRATEGIC ISSUES
Facilitating material & info flow
 Efficient labor & equipment utilization
 Customer convenience & sales
 Reducing hazards to workers
 Improving employee morale
 Maximizing flexibility, co-ordination, visibility
Minimizing distance, handling cost etc
 Creating inherent safety

2
LAYOUT TYPES
Choice depends on firms flow strategy
 Process layout – low volumes
 Resources
relatively general purpose & less capital
intensive
 Less vulnerable to product mix changes
 Equipment utilization
 Employee supervision can be more specialised
2
LAYOUT TYPES - PROCESS
Process layout – Disadvantages
 Processing
rates slow
 Productive time lost
 More space & capital tied up in inventory
 Time lags between jobs – productivity
 Material handling costly
 Diversity in routings – variable path devices
 Pdtcn planning & control difficult
2
LAYOUT TYPES – PRODUCT
Line flow strategy for continuous prdtn – high volumes
Advantages
 Processing rates high
 Less Productive time lost
 Lower inventories
Disadvantages
 Risk of layout redesign for short product lives
 Less flexibility
 Low resource utilization for low volumes
 Pdtcn planning & control difficult
2
LAYOUT TYPES – HYBRID
A mix of process & Product
 Used for fabrication & assembly
 Used in situations like flexible mfg systems
(FMS)
•
•
Group Technology cell (GT)
One Worker Multiple Machines (OWMM) cell
2
LAYOUT TYPES – FIXED POSITION
Product is fixed in one place
Key consideration is sequence of material usage
& hence placement
Used for massive product
 Ship building
 Building dams or bridges
2
PERFORMANCE CRITERIA FACING PLANNER
Capital investment level
 Requirements for materials handling
 Ease of stock – picking
 Working environment & ‘atmosphere
 Ease of equipment maintenance
 Employee attitudes
 Amount of flexibility needed
 Customer convenience & sales level

2
OFFICE LAYOUT
Goal--maximize customer contact and
communication across sections
 Current trend – partial glass separators
between offices
 Issues

 Communication
 Work
flow sequence
 Sharing of office equipment
 Fast throughput
RETAIL SERVICE LAYOUT
Goal--maximize net profit per square foot of
floor space
 Servicescapes – the physical surroundings in
which the service takes place & how the
surroundings affect customers & employees

 Ambient
Conditions
 Spatial Layout and Functionality
 Signs, Symbols, and Artifacts
RETAIL SERVICE LAYOUT

Ambient Conditions – refers to background
characteristics such as the noise level, music,
lighting, temperature & scent
 Affect
employee performance & morale as well as
customers perceptions of the service, how long
they stay, & how much money they spend
 Though primarily influenced by the design of the
building, the layout within a building can also affect
RETAIL SERVICE LAYOUT

Spatial Layout and Functionality
Planning the circulation path of the customers &
grouping the merchandise
 Goal
of circulation planning is to expose customers
to as much of the merchandise as possible while
placing any needed services along the path
RETAIL SERVICE LAYOUT

Signs, symbols & artifacts – parts of the
service that have social significance
 Are
a characteristic of the design of the building
although the orientation, location & size of many
objects can carry special meaning
 E.g person seated closest to entrance, car
salespeople having blackboards in their offices
MARKS OF A GOOD LAYOUT FOR MANUFACTURING &
BACK-OFFICE OPERATIONS
Production time predictable
 Little inter-stage storage of materials
 Open plant floors so everyone can see what is
happening
 Bottleneck operations under control
 Workstations close together
 Orderly handling & storage of materials
 No unnecessary re-handling of materials
 Easily adjustable to changing conditions
 Straight-line flow pattern or adaptation

MARKS OF A GOOD LAYOUT FOR FACE-TO-FACE
SERVICES
Adequate waiting facilities
 Easy communication with customers
 Easily maintained customer surveillance
 Easily understood service flow pattern
 Clear exit & entry points with adequate checkout
facilities
 Depts & processes arranged so that customers see
only what you want them to see
 Balance between waiting areas & service areas
 Minimum walking & material movement
 Lack of clutter
 High sales volume per square foot of facility
