Before they started this year’s competition, many Young Enterprise companies will never even have heard of an Operations department.
But the team responsible for the production of a firm’s product or service plays a vital role in the profitability and success of businesses.
It is at this point in the academic year, when the idea for a Young Enterprise company has been developed and the research carried out, that the Operations director begins to wield influence.
Their first task will be to oversee the creation and testing of a prototype. This should uncover practical difficulties and give an idea of the number of finished items that can be produced in a given time. Students should also pay particular attention to ease of manufacture, and adherence to quality and safety standards.
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Last year, Home Tweet Home from Wootton Upper School in Bedford manufactured and sold a range of high quality environmentally friendly bird nest boxes. Thomas Storey, operations director, says: “When we first started production each box took approximately 30 minutes to make including material preparation and finishing. To improve efficiency a jig was constructed that made the production process quicker and easier. We also undertook training with a professional carpenter which reduced the production time for each nest box to approximately 15 minutes.”
Consider the methods of production carefully and weigh up different options first. Raffi Urquhart, production director for Exigo Designs from the Lenzie Academy, which produced timepieces, says.
“Once we had the design, we had to undergo full scale production. We thought through various plans and methods for how each product could be manufactured. We narrowed it down to a production line or [individual] job production. Taking into consideration the skills needed by each achiever, we decided to opt for job production, because a production line would significantly limit the skills used and therefore the job satisfaction.”
Efficiency
The more efficient and effective the production process, the more competitive and profitable the company. Production is efficient when it is providing goods of the right quality, at the right price, at the right time. The method chosen will depend on the type of product, but many companies experiment with different approaches, and develop their processes as the company matures.
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The Tyro company from Guthlaxton College, Leicester produced a monthly advertising booklet that they marketed and distributed. Damien Cheeseman, operations director, said: “One of my key tasks was to devise the delivery routes for the Tyro Admag. I drew up a primary set of routes, and gave everybody an appraisal form to take with them on their delivery. By analysing these forms, I was able to modify the routes, and I managed to create an improved set of routes ready for use with the second edition.”
Safe production
It is vital to consider the health and safety of staff and customers every step of the way, advises Peter Guy, Young Enterprise operations director.
“The risks involved with the tools and materials to be used in the manufacturing processes should be considered carefully and decisions made about how to minimise these risks.
“Taking into account the results of the risk assessment, the production process should be written down and used to train staff to make the product safely. It is also important that the finished products are safe for selling to the public,” he says.
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“This must be ensured both in the original design of the product and by checking the quality of the finished products against an agreed standard of consistency”.
Carl Hemingway was responsible for aspects of the production process and health and safety for Tops Off from Hymers College, Hull. He says: “We aimed at all times to provide a safe working environment for the whole team. This ranged from comfortable and adjustable seats for the IT department to suitable working apparel, such as masks, for the production department.
“We sanded our stainless steel bottle openers, to eliminate the chance of a customer cutting themselves, and carried out extensive trials with our prototypes to make sure there would be no potential hazards when using our bottle openers.”
To find out how you can get involved in the Young Enterprise Company Programme visit www.young-enterprise.org.uk