Production System Design

Instructor: Nikolaos Rachaniotis
Course Code: ΤΕΠΑΡ11
Semester: 4th (Spring)
Requirements: –
Language of Teaching: Greek
European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System (ECTS): 5,5

The “Production Systems Design” is part of the Operations Management and more specifically of Production Management, i.e. the science dealing with the concepts, problems and managerial methods of a basic production system. The manufacture of products or services is one of the main business functions (such as marketing and financial control). Production, directly or indirectly, involves many factors (employees, machines, materials, facilities, financial resources, customers, suppliers, etc.) and can take place at different locations, e.g. in factories that may even be in different countries. The involvement of numerous factors increases the complexity of problems related to planning, programming and production control. Their scientific analysis ensures their effective handling.
Decisions on production are an essential part of the operational decisions related to and affecting the structure and operation of the entire business. In particular, these decisions relate to and are affected by decisions concerning other functions. Such functions are, inter alia, the commercial function that links the business with demand and the financial function, which ensures the financial resources
required for business operation. Harmonizing the individual business divisions and management to achieve the best result for the business as a whole is the highest goal of the company’s management.
The subject of Production Management includes aspects of planning, programming, control and, in general, the organization of factors and activities related to the production process, i.e., the process by which some resources (human labor, machinery, first materials, energy, information) are transformed into products or services (or contribute to their production).
The course examines the problems of Production Management concerning the design of production systems. In particular, the course focuses on making decisions about production with long-term implications for the system and its environment, which involve significant resources, i.e., strategic decisions. Such decisions are about what product or service will be produced, how much, where and how it will be produced, etc. In this context, the productive enterprise is conceived as a system consisting of elements that cooperate in an environment of opportunities and threats for a common purpose, while its individual functions are manifestations of a collective effort, related to each other. Knowing in particular the strategic issues that concern (or should concern) such a system, the problems that arise and the scientific way of approaching them, make the executive who possesses it a particularly useful factor for the survival and development of the business. These include product / service design, capacity planning, time study, site selection and layout planning.
Upon successful completion of the course, the students will: