Operation Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 2

Operation Management - Essay Example If different aspects of business are analyzed it is expected to find that manufacturing business processes are significantly different from the business processes that are solely involved in providing services. In case of service industry, production and consumption take place at the same time, whereas in case of manufacturing industry consumption takes place after the production is complete (University of New Brunswick, n.d.). Furthermore, the concept of ‘inventory’ is irrelevant in case of service sector, but in manufacturing industry organizations’ operational efficiency depends on the effectiveness of inventory management process. Since manufacturing industry deals with tangible products, inventory must be maintained in order to cope up with the fluctuations in the demand and supply. However, service cannot be stored as it is perishable. It has to be consumed when it is produced. As a result operational challenge in case of service is associated with the readi ness for producing and delivering it at the same time. For instance an electronic goods manufacturing company can maintain a stock for meeting the additional demand, but a barber cannot preserve his haircuts for meeting future demands (Longenecker, 2008). Manufacturing operations can be distinguished from the service operations in the context of measurement of productivity. Productivity of a manufacturing unit can be easily measured, but it is difficult to measure the same of a service providing unit. For instance, productivity of an automobile manufacturing unit can be measured by counting the number of car that it produces in a particular year (Greasley, 1999). However, for a company that is involved in ‘consultancy’ business, it is very difficult to quantify the delivered service. Maintaining quality is another important task for the operation management of an organization. For the manufacturing industry, maintaining a standard quality is an easy task as compared to the service