The term operations management is argued to be a management area that concerns itself with processes that involves the overseeing, the designing and eventually controlling production processes through the redesigning of operations of businesses in the production of goods and services (Boyer & Verma, 2010). Operations management ensures that business activities become more efficient by using fewer resources and meeting the requirements of customers in the most effective manner. The operations management activities involves the management of the processes that converts raw materials that are considered to be inputs into outputs that includes goods and services. Operations management usually goes hand in hand with quality management. The process of quality management involves activities such as quality control, quality assurance, quality improvement and quality assurance. This paper discusses the importance of operations management within the furniture industry.
The furniture industry is an established industry that primarily engages in the manufacture of furniture products (Banes, 2008). The industry engages in the production of chairs, kitchen furniture, seats and office related furniture that are either consumed domestically or exported to other regions. The industry contributes a substantial amount of revenue\e to the national government thus plays a significant role within the industry. The furniture industry is associated with higher proportions of small and medium sized business that are actively engaged in the manufacture of both office and household furniture of various types. Within our country’s economy, the furniture industry is actively involved in the process of supplying furniture services to both the domestic end users and the contractual end users. With the high growth within this industry, there arises a need to have a proper system of management. This, therefore, calls for the need to have a proper operations management system that is very important as discussed here in.
The main importance of having proper operations management within the furniture industry is because it improves the industry’s productivity and also improves the financial position within the industry (Chary, 2009). In terms of improving productivity, operations management leads to the measurement of efficiency levels within the industry. Productivity is measured in term of the ratio between the outputs and the inputs. This also measures the level of efficiency within the industry. The scarce resources within the furniture industry have to be used properly to avoid wastages and if the ratio between the input and outputs is higher then the level of efficiency is considered to be higher. This criterion has also been used in other industries with the Ernst and Young using the ‘hoteling’ to affect both parts of the efficiency ratio thus helping them cut on inputs in term of cost of office space and boost the out put of its travelling accountants.
Operations management also improves quality of operations. To ensure the total quality improvement within the furniture industry, operations management will ensure that approaches such as the small scale but continuous improvements within its processes are combined with the large scale redesigning of the very same processes that will directly affect the levels of productivity and efficiency (Mahaderan, 2009). Either, operations management helps the furniture industry undertake the process of capacity planning that helps it in maintaining cash flows within the industry and thus make substantial profits. Either, operations management enables industry players to management the different types and level of inventories within the furniture industry thus ensuring that production breakages do not occur.
In conclusion, proper operations management process is very vital for the smooth operation within the furniture industry (Langabeer, 2007). The operations management process ensures that there is a proper system of locating the facilities that are necessary within this industry. This will ensures that quality operations are adhered to thus enabling the industry players to effectively and efficiently meet the customer requirements with maximum usage of the minimal resources that exist within this industry.
Reference List
Boyer, K. & Verma, R. 2010. Operations & Supply Chain Management for the 21st Century. Ohio: South-Western/Cengage Learning.
Barnes, D. 2008. Operations Management: An International Perspective. London: Thomson Publishers
Chary, N. 2009. Production & Operations Management. New Delhi: Tata Mcgraw-Hill Publishers
Mahadevan, B. 2009. Operations Management: Theory & Practice. New Delhi: New Delhi Publishers
Greasley, A. 1999. Operations Management in Business. Cheltenham: Thornes Publishers
Langabeer, J. 2007. Health Care Operations Management: A Quantitative Approach to Business & Logistics. Sudbury: Jones & Bartlett Publishers.
