What is process manufacturing?
Process manufacturing is where products are made by combining supplies, ingredients and raw substances by using formulas or recipes. This is common in industries like food and beverage, chemical, pharmaceutical and plastics. Goods are produced in bulk, with production requiring chemical or thermal conversion.
Types of process manufacturing
Production Line
Production line is a type of manufacturing process where the product is moved on the conveyor belt, manually by staff, or using forklift sequentially through a number of work centres performing different operations. This type of manufacturing is suitable for producing a large volume of a single product or group of products. For example, it may be used to manufacture a large number of plastic storage boxes, where the only difference between the models is the colour of plastic.
Continuous Flow
This type of manufacturing is similar to production line manufacturing except that the items to be manufactured cannot be removed from the production line and stored. Chemicals, pharmaceuticals, and plastics are usually some of the items that are manufactured using a continuous flow type of manufacturing.
Custom Manufacturing
Custom manufacturing involves productions of finished goods that can be modified as per the customers’ requirements. The customer manufacturing shop floor involves a number of workers, types of equipment, and dedicated areas like: welding area, lathe shop, paint spray area, and packaging area. This type of manufacturing may not be suitable for producing high volume products, but is perfect for customized products.