Continuous production

Continuous production is a method that is used by many manufacturing companies to make the most amount of a product in the least amount of space and time.The whole idea behind this concept is constant production without any kind of break or interruption.It is a very complicated idea and requires a great deal of skill and competence to implement successfully.Here is some more information about continuous production to help you understand more about it.

Continuous production is exactly what it sounds like; constant, steady, uninterrupted production of a good or product.It is most often used in most oil and other chemical plants and other processes that can't or shouldn't ever be interrupted.The contrasting type of production to continuous production is called batch production.One of the main reasons that one would be chosen over the other is the need to produce a constant or very large amount of products without taking a break.Most continuous flow production chains use chemical or other reactions that can continue regardless of how long the raw materials have been involved in the process.One example of this is the production of glass.Once the silica sand used to make glass has been melted, it needs to stay that way until it is made into glass or there could be very serious delays in the manufacturing process.

Another factor that determines what type of production will be used is the quality that is demanded of the product.Some products will always have the same quality as long as the ingredients are the same and the process is unchanged.There are other products that can vary tremendously from batch to batch and so batch production is necessary to ensure quality.

Many people associate continuous production with assembly line type operations where there is always a product being made.The assembly line of a car is a very good example of continuous production (although this process can be stopped and started easily).Bricks are another product that uses continuous production methods.Many food products also use continuous processed to make the final product.They are in some ways a combination of continuous and batch production.The ingredients are assembled in a batch according to certain measurements and are mixed together, but are then put into a machine or system that can systematically make them without interruption.Many of these food processes involve very large plants and extremely long ovens that are at a constant temperature to ensure that the each and every product is the same through the whole process.This type of manufacturing requires a great deal of planning and once a system has been implemented, it is very difficult to troubleshoot if there is any kind of problem.

Maintenance on a continuous production system is very important, because any delay in the process requires that everyone both up and down on the supply line must also stop while the problem is found and corrected.Many high tech products are also using continuous production models and the robots and machines that make them are very sophisticated.

Most continuous production systems are characterized by a semi or fully automated production concept that requires a great deal of coordination.The systems rely on human input as well as computer monitored steps to make sure everything is proceeding as normal and as planned.They also assume that production can or will continue 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. These systems also require a great deal of investment into machinery and process design before anything even goes off the assembly line to a consumer.They also require that quality control measures be in place and constantly evaluated at several different points in the process.