(i) Responsibilities of a production engineer
• Product design and development
Together with the Research and Development (R&D) Department, he studies new products and processes of producing them. Firms must not copy the innovations of others, nor should they produce the same product over a long period of time.
• Facilities location
The location decision combines a host of factors e.g. tax rates, land and building costs, access to customers, competitors’ locations e.t.c.
• Capital Equipment
Includes determining the capital equipment needed, buying and installing it, providing for routine maintenance and repair, and eventually replacing it.
• Facilities Layout
He should ensure that the plant lay out follows a logical sequence so that materials flow smoothly through the process with minimal handling.
• Work design and measurement
He accurately measures and controls both material and labour usage. This saves the department a lot of money.
• Production forecasting
Helps to anticipate the demand for a product based on past data, current events and personal judgment about future developments.
• Production planning and scheduling
These are dynamic activities. He arranges resources and available time in attempting to best utilize the firm’s capacity to produce.
• Quality Control
Quality must be designed and produced into the product. It is essential that he monitors the quality of incoming materials, work-in progress and finished items to assure that quality standards are being met or that corrective action is taken
