Scenario A manufacturing company has been producing and selling industrial product (cannot consumed by human/animal) to its customers in West Malaysia. The company owns only one factory which consists of 5 departments: Storage, Production, Maintenance, Quality Control and Warehouse. During the last few months, the company has been experiencing the rapid increase in manufacturing costs despite of constant in production output. The Management has decided to engage you and your group as a consultant to investigate the problem.

Additional information: Fuctions of the departments:

a) Storage: receiving, storing and preparing raw materials before production.

b) Production: carrying out different stages of processes in converting raw materials to competed product.

c) Maintenance: focusing mainly on the machines/tools/equipment used in Storage and Production departments.

d) Quality Control: checking the completed product to meet customer expectation/quality standard.

e) Warehouse: receiving approved completed product from production department and preparing for shipment

1. Storage department: (The boss asks you: How do you know?)

1. How many types/volume of raw materials have been received/or rejected?
2. How to ensure the quality of the raw materials meet the standard upon receipt?
3. How many/types of raw materials are issued out to production?
4. How much wastes have occurred after the raw materials are being handled before storage?
5. Any delay of shipment?
6. How the waste is kept and disposed
7. How to maintain the quality of raw materials while they are still at storage?
8. Etc, etc

2. Production department: (The boss asks you: How do you know?)

1. How many types of work-in-progress have been completed?
2. How many machines/equipment break down?
3. How many types of raw materials sent from Storage department are defective?
4. How many types of work-in-progress become defective when the whole assembly line break down?
5. How much/many types of work-in-progress become defective due to machine failure and human error?
6. How is the defective work-in-progress disposed?
7. How many types/volume of raw materials sent from Storage department?
8. How is the rejected finished goods (rejected by quality control department) handled?