INTRODUCTION

Purpose

The purpose of this report is to assess the feasibility of automation in an industrial manufacturing process of textile, which is prone to human errors.

Problem

A startup textile industry is facing problems due to increase in the demand of their newly introduced shirt. The company has low budget and they use human labor for the production of their products. A company goes through three major steps when manufacturing their products. The three major steps include cutting the cloth based on various sizes, stitching of the clothing and finally packaging of the product. There have been many complaints from customers about the product such as improper packaging, irregular fitting of the shirt and delay in shipping the products. The company is not able to meet the demand- supply cycle. The company’s production limit is 30,000 pieces of shirts a week. As the demand has increased, the company decides on producing 50,000 pieces of shirts, which is much beyond their capability and this is leading to errors in the production cycle. Due to the increase in the demand, the workers in the company have to work extra hours in addition to their usual working hours. This is straining the workers and has caused a decrease in their working efficiency leading to defects in the manufacturing process.

As a practical solution, the company decides on automating the manufacturing process. There were many options available in the market of machines with varying prices. Table 1 shows the price range of the machines. The company will decide to buy a machine that is capable of cutting the cloth based on the instructions given to the machine by the operator and the cost for this machine is $25,000 [1]. It will also buy a stitching machine that is capable of stitching the cloth efficiently based on the instruction given to it by the operator and it will cost $6,500 [2]. Lastly, the company will buy an efficient packaging machine whose cost is $10,000 [3]. Thus, the total investment required by the company to automate the manufacturing process is $41,500.

Scope

The company is facing the challenge of meeting the high demand for cloths from the customers. The solution to this problem would be to buy advanced machines that are capable of providing effective services based on the instructions from the operator. However, the automation in the manufacturing process is widely used in all large and medium scale-manufacturing industries. The automation in the manufacturing process will be evaluated using the following criteria: Cost, Quality and time taken to complete a task

DISCUSSION

Cost:  

Explanation

The cost refers to the expense the company will incur when buying the machine for cutting cloths, stitching machine and packaging machines. This criterion was selected because it is essential in determining the profit margin of the company. The company should know the cost of the machines in the market before making a move to buy one. In addition, evaluating the cost of the machines is important because, it would help the company to budget for the expenses and determine the amount of capital to invest in machines.

Data

The data for the three types of machines are provided below in table 1.

Table 1. Total Cost to Automate the Manufacturing

(Alibaba.com, n.d).

Interpretation

From the above data, the company will try to choose a machine that would not cost them a lot of money because it is operating in a limited budget. Similarly, they would consider the fact that cheap machines are not effective. The price for a cloth cutting machine ranges from $22,00 to $33,000. Therefore, the lowest price is $22,000 while $31,000 is the maximum price. However, the company will buy a machine that averages $25,000 since they consider that as a fair price. Second, the price for sewing machine ranges from $5,000 to $8,000. For this case, the difference between the lowest price and the highest price is not big; therefore, the company will buy the machine at $6,500. Third, the cost for the packaging machine ranges from $8,000 to $11,000. The company would like to save the cost and maintain the effectiveness of the machine by buying it at 10,000. Ultimately, the three machines will cost the company an amount equivalent to $41,500. The cost is more than lowest cost and close to the highest total cost. The company will prefer this cost because the machines will provide superior quality, the will be reliable and require less maintenance.

Quality:

Explanation

Quality is defined as the ability of the machine to offer what the company requires (Bellgran, & Säfsten, 2010). The machines should be superior, reliable and fit to produce less defects. Therefore, the quality of the three machines should meet the expectations of the company. A machine with superior quality will be useful in increasing the production of the company; hence, the company will meet the rising demand from the customer. Moreover, a machine that meets the standards of the company will reduce the workload from the workers and this will reduce the production cost and increase the profit margin.

Data

Table 2 Represent the Quality of Machines

(Alibaba.com, n.d).

Interpretation

The above data provides a vivid illustration about the previous complains and feedbacks from the customer. The company wants to buy machines that exhibit quality standards. All the three machines have different modes of operations. Some can be operated manually while the others are operated electronically. Therefore, the company will buy machines that have high number of positive feedback and less complains because such machines portray superior quality. In this case the company will buy machines with electronic mode of operation to improve the quality of the working station.

Time

Explanation

In this context, time refers to the number of times the machine will take to finish a single task. This criterion is important because the company would like to know the types of machines that will take less time to process the product. Similarly, the criterion was chosen because time is an essential factor in the production process. It is used to allocate task for different machines in the company. Also it is used to plan the schedule for the workers.

Data

Table 3 shows data for time taken for a machine to complete a task

(Massman Automation design, LLC, n.d).

Interpretation

The above data will be useful to the company when trying to decide the type of machine to purchase. The company will purchase machines that take less time to complete a single task. For instance, the company will buy machine for cutting cloths, sewing and packing that have high speed of completing the task.

Conclusion

Summary

 The data presented in this feasibility report demonstrated that the automation of production process meets all the requirements which include quality, time of production and cost of production. From the data, the company will buy machines that exhibit high quality, high speed and medium cost.

 Conclusion

The automation of production process is the best feasible alternative to rectify the human errors in the manufacturing process. The major reason for human errors in production is the inefficiency of the workers to perform; automating the process will remove the deficiency that would have affected the quality of the product. Automation also gives consistent and reliable products at much higher rate. A one-time investment can increases the profits by increasing the production. From the data, when the company buys machines that exhibit high quality, less production cost and produce output within the shortest time possible, it will meet the demand of the customers. The company faces problems that include high demand of the product, low budget and the use of human labor. However, with the right tools, the company will solve all its problems.

Recommendation

The textile industry should accept automation to rectify the human errors in the manufacturing process and increase their profits. Automation is the best strategy that will benefit the company given the bad conditions it is experiencing.

References

Alibaba.com. (n.d). Packaging machine price. Retrieved April 27, 2016, from http://www.alibaba.com/showroom/packaging-machine-price.html

Bellgran, M., & Säfsten, K. (2010). Production development: Design and operation of production systems. London: Springer.

Massman Automation design, LLC. (n.d). HFFS High Speed Flexible Pouch Packaging Machine. Retrieved April 27, 2016, from http://www.massmanllc.com/automated-packaging-systems/flexible-pouch-packaging/hffs-high-speed-packager.html

 
Do you need an Original High Quality Academic Custom Essay?