Investment alternatives and operational changes in the production of perforating punches

Sammanfattning: This report identifies and investigates possible investment alternatives and operational improvements to the production of perforating punches. The analysis is conducted for a leading Swedish manufacturer in the industry. First, an analysis of the company and its customers is performed, followed by a study of the current production capabilities. Based on this investigation, key investments opportunities are identified and analyzed. Finally, possible managerial and operational changes are addressed and discussed. The findings highlight the link between investments and operational management, and how they are interdependent. Specifically, the report identifies the importance of lead times in this industry, and proceeds to propose both investments and managerial changes which would improve these lead times. A total of four investments are analyzed, which significantly impact lead times, product quality, production capacity and production cost. Three of these investments are found to be advisable, whilst one requires further investigations. Finally, changes to corporate management and operations management are discussed. The proposed changes include an increase in production volume, the implementation of the 5S methodology and the strategic change of focusing on increased sales volumes.