STUDENTS' CORNER - 228
Supply Chain
Management (SCM): Manufacturing
Hands with a simple tool make clay pots;
looks simple but it is not.
Having seen some essentials in sourcing
in relation to supply chain management, let us move to the logical next step:
manufacturing. If we go into the origin of the word ‘ manufacturing’, two words predominate : process and making by
hand. Process implies a series of tasks
undertaken to achieve a result already thought of; and making by hand
necessitated use of tools relevant to the process of achieving a result. Today,
manufacturing has grown to such heights that one cannot master the phases of
all kinds of manufacturing.
Perhaps, you have heard of Industrial
Revolution. Thereare endless number of books and articles on Industrial
Revolution. They discuss basically
merits and demerits of industrial revolution.
Let us not bother about those seas of facts surrounding both merits and
demerits of revolution.
How revolution happened and why? Simple: making by hand was replaced by making
through machines. Why? Again, man multiplied endlessly man; that is, population
jumped to enormous heights; so, man needed more things; and more of the same
things.Hand could not make those huge massive numbers of products. Necessity is
the mother of invention, we know; man found out machines can manufacture faster
and more in number. Ambition proved father of invention. The process of
producing products to the satisfaction of man began thus much early and it is
still ruling the world. As things stand, it will ever rule the world.
Taste of comfort of meeting the needs was
nothing compared with the taste of profit. And manufacturing became a tool to
make profit. To make profit, man has to manufacture and market; and today,
manufacturing which gains significance only through marketing, and therefore
along with manufacturing,marketing is always in companionship. So, world is
governed by two primary motives: manufacturing and marketing.
Manufacturing and marketing make business
and business is ever renewing intoxication. No wine, no woman can match it.
Right?
We will see some more basics about
manufacturing and move on to transport, the next phase in supply chain
management. Possibly on June 8.
