General structure and characteristics of quick response production system

The diversification and shorter production cycles urge manufacturers to shift their production systems from “make to stock” to “make to order” or an intermediate production system between them. The present paper deals with a production system developed by some manufacturers to meet requirements in the last decade. The system, which we call “Quick response to orders production system” or in brief “quick response production system (QRPS)”, is characterized by two key factors, i.e., “acceptable response time” and “semifinished product.” An acceptable response time is decided through the explicit or implicit approval of customers beforehand and manufacturers guarantee to ship products within an acceptable response time in a stochastic sense by processing the semifinished product according to customer order. As a result, manufacturers are able to reduce the inventory of finished products, while customers are able to enjoy the diversification of products and a stable supply from manufacturers. The general structure and characteristics of QRPS are discussed primarily from a quantitative point of view and a numerical example is shown to assist in understanding the design and operation of QRPS.