Understanding Bottleneck Management in Operations Management

Operations management constantly struggles with bottleneck managing and ultimately ensuring that everything runs as efficient as it can at all times. From a cost and operations standpoint, any wasted time is revenue and money that is being lost, which is why it is essential to attempt to get your operation to run as efficiently as possible. This is where managing your bottleneck can be a direct method of lowering costs and increasing profitability.

While dealing with a bottleneck sounds so simple, it is by far one of the greatest challenges of any operations manager. Bottlenecks constrain production and are usually the process that is absolutely essential to your production line. How can we reduce our bottleneck time? What efforts can we make to ensure that the line is running smoothly and timely? Why is the bottleneck there to begin with? All of these questions are beneficial in helping you understand how to potentially eliminate or manage the bottleneck.

Dealing with Bottlenecks in Operations Management

Dealing with bottlenecks in operations management can be extremely challenging. Here are a few ways that you can deal with bottlenecks:

• Monitor and Identify the Bottleneck – Monitoring and identifying the bottleneck is the first step toward eliminating it. In order to minimize a bottleneck’s effect or damage, you are able to start this by monitoring everything. Take a look at the entire process from start to finish and locate any errors or inefficiencies. What went wrong with labor? What happened during the production phase? All of these are important questions to ask yourself.
• Inspect Manufacturer Program – The manufacturing program can provide thorough insight into where the bottleneck is and what the problem may be. You must inspect each process at a minute level, providing that you are part of a plan that is manufacturing an item. While plant bottleneck issues are not as prevalent due to technology advancements, there is still a chance that things could go wrong. Therefore, keep a backup plan ready to go at a moment’s notice.
• Reduce Break Times – Break times are a substantial problem within many facilities – especially with lower wage positions. It is important to not take too many or useless breaks during an ongoing process because it could affect the entire operation. If the entire crew is on an unscheduled break at the time of a bottleneck incident, then there could be unforeseen damage associated with it. This is why it is important to have everyone available at any given time.

A software that can aid with managing bottlenecks is PlanetTogether’s Advanced Planning and Scheduling (APS) Software. PlanetTogether’s Advanced Planning and Scheduling (APS) Software is a must for manufacturing facilities that are seeking to take their operation to the next level and ultimately increase operational efficiency.

Advanced Planning and Scheduling Software 

Advanced Planning and Scheduling (APS) software has become a must for modern-day manufacturing operations due to customer demand for increased product mix and fast delivery combined with downward cost pressures. APS can be quickly integrated with a ERP/MRP software to fill gaps where these system lack planning and scheduling flexibility and accuracy. Advanced Planning and Scheduling (APS) helps planners save time while providing greater agility in updating ever-changing priorities, production schedules, and inventory plans.

• Create optimized schedules balancing production efficiency and delivery performance
• Maximize output on bottleneck resources to increase revenue
• Synchronize supply with demand to reduce inventories
• Provide company-wide visibility to capacity
• Enable scenario data-driven decision making

Implementation of Advanced Planning and Scheduling (APS) software will take your manufacturing operations to the next level of production efficiency, taking advantage of the operational data you already have in your ERP.