UNIT 3

PRODUCTION CONTROL

Vocabulary

Using your dictionary, match words in A with their synonyms in B.

A	B
a) product	a) to include
b) to sell	b) to supply
c) profit	c) demand
d) to contain	d) benefit
e) cost	e) to meet
f) customer	f) mistake
g) to provide	g) good
h) to satisfy	h) unwilling
i) fault	i) buyer
j) reluctant	j) to trade in
k) need	k) price

Reading

1. Read text 14 and fill each gap with one of these words:

service categories delivery	design			three month
refused service	quality

TEXT 14

THE PRODUCT

The product is the good or (a) the business sells to make a profit. This is a very simple definition. Reality is much more complex. There are very few products which fall neatly into one or other of those two (b) . Most products contain both a

physical element and a service element. Consider the statement below. The person who made it works in the purchasing department of a large company.

"We seldom buy on price alone. For example, it is no use buying something at a saving of £10 per unit if the (c) is likely to be late. We have got to keep that production line going otherwise the extra cost will wipe out any savings in our purchasing."

He went on to explain the other factors which go into the mix of a purchasing decision. The goods he was buying were engineering components. He was the customer for another business in competition with other producers. Providing the quality was right, the service a business could offer him in terms of delivery dates and security of delivery was an important element in making the final decision. Let us look at another example, this time in a consumer market.

A person wanted to buy a two seater settee. He finally found the (d)

he liked in the furnishing department of a large store. The sales assistant quoted

a delivery time of (e) . The man asked if he could buy the display

model, pointing out that there was a three seater settee in the same design which could be used as a display model for both two and three seater settees.

His request was (f) . The customer was annoyed at the poor (g) .

The business lost a sale and the goodwill of the customer.

The product of a retail store is service, and in the opinion of this customer the service was poor. On the other hand the store policy could have been based on the knowledge that customers liked to see what they were buying and in satisfying one customer they may have lost three more. Perhaps the fault lay with the purchasing department who had not made sure that there were sufficient stocks to meet demand, or with the manufacturer who could not meet the demand. Whatever the truth of the situation the good being sold did not overcome the reluctance of the customer to tolerate the level of service, and a sale was lost.

The buying decisions of individual customers are a complex mix, and not simply

rational decisions based only on price and (h) . Goods are appreciated not only for

what they do but also for the overall contribution they make to the needs and lifestyle of the customer. Service must, therefore, be an important element in the product, whether it is a consumer good or an industrial good.

2. Comprehension check.

Say if the following sentences are true of false.

1. Most products include a physical element as well as a service one.

2. The buying decisions of individual clients are based only on price and quality.

3. Not to lose a customer the companies should provide an excellent service.

Discussion

Work in pairs.

1.Discuss two ways in which the efficiency of a marketing department can affect the efficiency of the production department of the same business.

2.Explain how the satisfaction of a customer may be affected by the materials and service in the following:

1. car servicing;

2. purchase of a washing machine;

3. purchase of a new car.

1. 3.Explain briefly the role of each of the following in satisfying the customer:

1. the design of a product;

2. the delivery date;

3. the quality.