Scale of Production in Product Design: a guide for students

To become an effective designer, you must understand how the scale of production in product design (individual, small batch, and mass production) impacts the manufacturing process. Understanding these systems of production, as well becoming familiar with terms such continuous production and just-in-time manufacturing, helps you to make better design decisions, anticipate manufacturing challenges, and grasp the implications in terms of resources, cost, time, and the people involved.

Individual production (one-off items)

• Often involves a high level of craftsmanship, with high quality products;
• Staff are motivated, because they have direct influence on the outcome;
• Products can be individually made to customer requirements;
• Products are unique and desirable;
• High cost per unit (takes lots of time to make each item);
• Skilled workers needed;
• Not suitable for making many products that are the same (hard to keep items consistent);
• Control of production is simple, because whole operation is small;
• Rare for graphic products to be one-off productions, because it is too expensive.

Batch production

This involves small batches of a product being made at once.

• More flexible than mass production;
• Can adjust to changes in product demand relatively easily;
• Less expensive machinery than mass production;
• Products produced faster than individual production, but slower than mass production;
• Storage space needed for the semi-completed goods;
• Needs careful planning;
• Changes between batches can be small (i.e. just a colour change).

Why do manufacturers of batch produced products often purchase all the resources they need before production begins?

• Quality control: Purchasing all materials in advance ensures consistency across the entire batch production run, allows for quality control checks and testing before production begins. This enables manufacturers to identify any material defects or issues before committing to production. For example, when producing a series of promotional displays, using paper and board from the same manufacturing batch ensures colour consistency and material properties remain uniform throughout the production run, which is particularly crucial for brand-specific materials. Purchasing all materials together allows manufacturers to test compatibility before full production begins. This is crucial when producing items requiring multiple materials, such as packaging with special coatings or laminations, where material interactions could affect the final product quality. Manufacturers can conduct trial runs using the actual production materials, ensuring processes like print quality, folding, and finishing will meet requirements across the entire batch.
• Cost control and budgeting: Buying resources upfront allows manufacturers to negotiate better prices through bulk purchasing and helps maintain accurate cost predictions. Manufacture can purchase in bulk, reducing costs. This is especially important when producing items like seasonal packaging where price fluctuations in materials could significantly impact profit margins.
• Avoids interruptions in production: Having all resources ready prevents production delays and interruptions that could occur if materials ran out mid-batch. Securing all resources in advance protects against potential supply chain disruptions or material shortages. When producing items like event-specific signage or time-sensitive promotional materials, any delay in production due to material shortages could mean missing crucial deadlines. Having all resources available also allows for accurate production timeline planning and resource allocation. Knowing exactly what materials are available enables precise scheduling of different production stages, from printing to assembly. Operating machines continuously without stops is more efficient and cost-effective. Avoiding delays also creates happy customers.
• Client confidence: Having all materials ready demonstrates preparedness and professionalism to clients, particularly important for high-value or time-critical projects. When producing materials for product launches or marketing campaigns, clients can be assured that production won’t be delayed by resource availability.

Issues associated with the manufacture of a batch of identical products

• Quality control challenges: Maintaining consistent quality across an entire batch of identical products can be difficult, requiring rigorous inspection and testing procedures. For example, jigs and templates can help to improve consistency. An error in a batch could be replicated throughout the entire batch, costing money and time, and wasting resources, as well as compromising customer satisfaction, and leading to complaints and returns.
• Setup time: The initial setup and calibration of machinery for batch production can be time-consuming and complex, requiring skilled technicians to ensure all parameters are correct. This setup time represents a significant cost and can impact production schedules. For example, when setting up a printing press for a batch of promotional materials, considerable time must be spent adjusting colour balance, registration, and paper feed mechanisms before production can begin.
• Storage and inventory management: Large batches of identical products require significant storage space and careful inventory management, which can create challenges.
• Production bottlenecks: Manufacturing identical products in batches can lead to production line bottlenecks when different processes operate at different speeds. This inefficiency can slow down the entire production process and increase costs. In magazine production, for example, if the printing process is faster than the binding process, partially completed products can accumulate, creating storage and handling challenges.
• Complications switching between batches: Switching between different batches of products requires time-consuming changeovers, including cleaning, resetting, and recalibrating equipment. This downtime reduces overall production efficiency. For instance, when changing between different sizes or designs of paper bags, production must stop while cutting dies are changed and registration marks are reset.

Mass Production

This involves the production of standardised items through a largely automated system, using machines and workers on production lines.

• Each part of the manufacturing process is separated – division of labour – using conveyor belts etc;
• Big cost to initially set up (purchase of all machines etc), so there must be an assurance that the product will be successful;
• Much cheaper long term (because faster to produce / low overheads per unit / low labour costs / high profit);
• Machines are built to make a very narrow type of product, so costly to suddenly start manufacturing something different;
• Keeping control of quality is easier because all units are likely to be very similar;
• Harder to keep an eye on the whole operation and establish where errors are going on, because operation so large;
• Products may be ‘cheap and nasty’;
• Staff may be unmotivated since work is repetitive and boring.

How does mass-production impact the people involved?

• Simple, less-fulfilling tasks: Mass production methods reducing the need for skilled labour and turn complex manufacturing into simplified, repetitive tasks. This makes jobs more accessible but potentially less fulfilling, as workers may perform the same basic operation thousands of times per day. Workers who might previously have contributed ideas or solved problems independently may now be limited to following strict procedures. In graphic products manufacturing, for example, a skilled printer who once handled all aspects of production may now simply monitor an automated printing press that requires minimal intervention.
• Increased injury due to boredom: The rapid pace of mass production and the repetitive, dull tasks can result in reduced attention, and a greater chance of accidents. This can lead to reduced job satisfaction and a greater risk of mistakes or errors due to boredom or inattention. In packaging production lines, workers often perform repeated actions like loading materials or quality checking finished products at high speeds, which can also lead to repetitive strain injuries. On the other hand, mass production methods can also improve workplace safety by removing workers from dangerous processes. Automated systems can handle hazardous materials and perform risky operations without putting human workers in harm’s way. For example, in industrial printing, automated systems now handle toxic inks and cleaning solvents that once posed health risks to workers.
• Increased efficiency: On the other hand, people become very specialised / expert at their one task, which can allow people to become far more efficient than if they were carrying out multiple tasks.
• Change in jobs available: Mass production methods can lead to job displacement as automation replaces human workers, with increased training required. For instance, in paper mills, automated sorting and cutting systems have replaced many manual handling positions, requiring fewer workers to produce the same output. However, mass production can create new types of skilled positions in areas such as operating specialised machines, machine maintenance, quality control, and production planning. However these roles requires a different skill set and sometimes a different level of training, so may not be appropriate for the people losing jobs.
• Shift work and long hours: Continuous production can impact workers’ work-life balance and social relationships. Many mass production facilities operate 24/7, requiring workers to adapt to changing shift patterns.

Why are some products designed to be mass produced?

• Economies of scale: Mass production significantly reduces the cost per unit through economies of scale, making products more affordable for consumers. Bulk purchasing of materials also secures better prices. For example, producing plastic water bottles in large quantities dramatically reduces the cost per bottle compared to small batch production. This helps achieve price points that match market expectations and helps companies compete effectively in the marketplace, maintaining competitive pricing against rivals.
• Consistent quality control: Mass production methods enable better standardization and quality control. In packaging production, automated manufacturing ensures every cereal box is cut, folded, and printed to exactly the same specifications.
• Faster production: Machines can often work very fast and sometimes 24 hours per day. Mass production allows for rapid manufacture of large quantities, as well as better production scheduling and resource management. A popular greeting card design can be produced in thousands per hour using automated printing and cutting systems.
• Satisfies a high demand for the product

Continuous Production

(production that never stops)

• A type of mass production
• Usually used when stopping the plant is costly

Just-in-time manufacturing

Just-in-Time (JIT) is a production strategy where materials are delivered and products are made only as needed, reducing inventory costs and waste. Parts arrive “just in time” for use in production, rather than being stored in large quantities.

Note: Products can use more than one manufacturing process, i.e. have some parts mass produced and some parts batch produced.

Why do manufacturers consider the total number to be made before deciding the method of production to be used?

Material purchasing: Production volume affects material purchasing decisions and costs. This consideration is important because bulk material purchases often offer better rates but require higher initial investment.

Storage requirements: The total quantity produced affects storage needs and associated costs. This factor is significant because storage space and inventory management have real costs. Producing large quantities of seasonal display stands requires consideration of storage capacity and costs during off-peak periods.

Determines what type of production method is best: The total quantity required fundamentally affects which production method will be most cost-effective – one-off, batch production, mass production etc – as well as what materials and processing methods will be used. This consideration is crucial because different production methods have vastly different setup costs and per-unit costs. High setup costs must be spread across the total number of items produced. For example, when producing graphic displays, the cost of creating printing plates for offset printing is only justified if the run length is sufficient to absorb this initial expense. Similarly, purchasing a specialized folding machine for cardboard packaging is only worthwhile if the production volume will provide sufficient return on investment.

Time efficiency: Different production methods offer varying time efficiencies. Production time directly impacts costs and delivery schedules. Hand-cutting small quantities of presentation folders might be quick and practical, but for larger quantities, die-cutting becomes more time-efficient. The total quantity affects production scheduling and delivery capabilities. Jigs and templates can speed up production if multiple copies are needed.

Quality considerations: Production quantity influences the ability to maintain consistent quality across the batch. This factor is significant because different methods offer varying levels of quality control. While hand-finishing might ensure high quality for small runs of luxury packaging, automated processes become more reliable for maintaining consistency in large quantities.

Note: the content below is for A2 students only.

Concurrent Engineering

This is an approach where different stages of product development happen simultaneously rather than sequentially. Teams working on design, manufacturing, and other aspects collaborate from the start, reducing time to market and catching potential issues early.

Computer-Integrated Manufacturing (CIM)

This refers to the use of computer systems to control the entire production process, from design and engineering to manufacturing and quality control. Computer-Integrated Engineering (CIE) specifically focuses on using computer systems to integrate various engineering activities like design, analysis, and simulation.

Cell Production

This involves organising manufacturing into work cells – small, self-contained units where a team completes a whole product or major component. Each cell contains all necessary equipment and workers, improving efficiency and reducing material movement.

In-line Assembly

This method arranges production in a linear sequence where products move continuously from one workstation to the next, with each station performing specific tasks in order. This is common in automotive and electronics manufacturing.