Introduction
Product manufacturing is an art that involves the assembly and creation of different components into a single finished product on a large scale for sale. The process utilizes various techniques and methods, including chemical and biological processes and machine and human labor, to convert raw materials into the desired final products. Different consumer products go through these processes before they are packaged and made ready for sale. An excellent example of such goods is a soft drink which this essay focuses on, including an associated company, location factors, suitable operation layout, and suitable sustainable production operation factors.
Product Description and Associated Company
A soft drink is a consumer product that is believed to have been first marketed around the 17th century. The terminology refers to any class of non-alcoholic beverages, usually carbonated, and includes flavors, sweeteners, and sometimes juice (González-Morales et al., 2020). Some of these drinks also contain preservatives, caffeine, or even colorings. These products were introduced as substitutes to distilled spirits and hard liquor to alter early Americans’ hard-drinking habits.
Several companies are associated with a wide variety of these products, each with unique brands. However, the Coca-Cola Company is the most significant one, with several branches all over the world. It controls over 50% of the global market, and its market value is also relatively high (SerĂ´dio et al., 2018). The organization has managed to retain its position as a world leader due to its core competencies and marketing strategies (SerĂ´dio et al., 2018). Moreover, its recipe is a highly guarded trade secret that makes its drinks somewhat unique.
Manufacturing Location Factors
Labor Productivity and Costs
Coca-Cola is operated as a franchise with several manufacturing facilities across the world. However, the location of its facilities is strategic due to the presence of certain factors in the given areas. The primary one critical in location identification is labor productivity (Rahman & Kabir, 2019). The company had to choose locations that could provide adequate labor at reasonable wage costs to maximize the number of units produced. This factor is linked to the aspect of costs which also had to be considered. These costs are either tangible or intangible and include taxes, raw materials, transportation, and infrastructure. Coca-Cola had to assess how well a location provided a shield to lower the expenditure on these costs (Rahman & Kabir, 2019). With efficiency in costs, profit maximization is likely, which is essential for business success.
Proximity to Markets and Suppliers
The company also had to consider the proximity of its manufacturing operations to markets and suppliers. Primarily it is cost-efficient and valuable to be close to consumers as it makes market navigation and understanding easy (Rahman & Kabir, 2019). This enables the company to customize its products according to customer wants and preferences. Additionally, supplier proximity is essential as it reduces raw materials transportation costs, a critical production factor (Rahman & Kabir, 2019). Moreover, proximity also ensures that operations hastened to boost the number of units produced.
Proximity to Competitors
Coca-Cola also had to consider the closeness of its manufacturing operations to its competitors. This proximity is essential because it allows access to mass information on competitors and the industry (Rahman & Kabir, 2019). Moreover, the factor ensures that the company enjoys significant resources in that region, including labor and infrastructure. Furthermore, closeness is essential as it enhances labor sharing since the company can acquire employees with experience from the competing firm. Additionally, the factor breeds more traffic to the area as it grows increasingly associated with specific products, boosting business (Rahman & Kabir, 2019). Overall, it builds healthy competition and encourages innovation as companies aim to differentiate themselves.
Suitable Operation Layout
The hybrid operation layout is best suited for the kind of manufacturing required for successful soft drink production. It is also referred to as the group or combined design since it contains aspects of both the product and process layouts (PĂ©rez-Gosende et al., 2021). The layout primarily ensures an increase in product quality since it eases the location of any issues with the product at any particular stage in production (PĂ©rez-Gosende et al., 2021). Additionally, it optimizes the advantages of the combined layouts, and this increases flexibility and ensures flexibility is maintained in the manufacturing process.
Factors for Cost-effective, Efficient, and Sustainable Production Operation
Apart from having a suitable operation layout, it is also imperative that organizations consider factors for cost-effective, efficient, and sustainable production operation. Primarily companies have to consider optimizing fossil fuels in use (Sartal et al., 2020). This ensures that energy costs are reduced, and it also accelerates energy recovery. Additionally, it is essential to eliminate pollution and wastes to ensure environmental suitability. Moreover, companies have to focus more on recyclable raw materials to ensure wastes reduction is enhanced. Such products also require less energy requirement and are a lot easier to transport due to their flexibility (Sartal et al., 2020). Therefore, organizations must make these considerations for successful operations.
Conclusion
From the preceding, it is evident that different consumer products require different considerations in location, operation layout, and sustainability. Therefore, manufacturers like Coca-Cola have to assess and evaluate these factors before starting production to ensure effectiveness and efficiency in their products. This is why operations management has to be prioritized in any organization as it constitutes all these issues, and its success ensures they remain unique and appealing to their consumers.
References
González-Morales, R., Canto-Osorio, F., Stern, D., Sánchez-Romero, L., Torres-Ibarra, L., & Hernández-López, R. et al. (2020). Soft drink intake is associated with weight gain, regardless of physical activity levels: the health workers cohort study. International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity, 17(1), 23-39. Web.
PĂ©rez-Gosende, P., Mula, J., & DĂaz-Madroñero, M. (2021). Facility layout planning. An extended literature review. International Journal of Production Research, 59(12), 3777-3816. Web.
Rahman, S., & Kabir, A. (2019). Factors influencing location choice and cluster pattern of manufacturing small and medium enterprises in cities: Evidence from Khulna City of Bangladesh. Journal of Global Entrepreneurship Research, 9(1), 6-23. Web.
Sartal, A., Bellas, R., MejĂas, A., & GarcĂa-Collado, A. (2020). The sustainable manufacturing concept, evolution and opportunities within Industry 4.0: A literature review. Advances in Mechanical Engineering, 12(5), 168-174. Web.
Serôdio, P., McKee, M., & Stuckler, D. (2018). Coca-Cola – A model of transparency in research partnerships: A network analysis of Coca-Cola’s research funding (2008–2016). Public Health Nutrition, 21(9), 1594-1607. Web.