What is Low-Volume Manufacturing and What are the Benefits?

Thanks to advanced computer software and 3-D printing, manufacturers can produce customized orders in faster amounts of time, and firms can get products to market in weeks instead of months. To keep up with demand, production lines turn to low-volume manufacturing. Although it sounds counter-intuitive, producing less can actually benefit the company. Here are four reasons why.

1. Design Flexibility

Low-volume manufacturing usually means producing as low as 50 and as many a 100,000 pieces for a production range. A company of any size can make money with this model. In terms of design flexibility, complex computer software can create prototypes very quickly during the design phase before the company makes a prototype.

After the prototype is created, a small portion of production run comes down the line. If any tweaks need to be made, the company can stop the run and make the changes. 3-D printing helps make this possible with customized orders and design changes that companies can see in real-time. The beauty of this process is that the manufacturer doesn't have to store a warehouse full of unusable products because the initial design failed.

2. Saving Money

Low-volume manufacturing saves firms money in a few ways. When a firm needs to invest in tool steel, a special kind of hardened and very tough steel needed to make machines that manufacture products, it costs a lot of money to make a large production run. If a manufacturer already knows it needs a smaller volume of products, it can make machinery out of less-durable tool steel to save money. The firm could just replace any worn parts on the machine if something breaks before the run finishes. This costs less money than buying the highest-grade tool steel on the market, allowing the manufacturer to lower its overhead on the order.

3. Building a Bridge

Low-volume manufacturing can lead to bigger and better outcomes. If the manufacturer impresses its customer with the low-volume line, it could lead to steady orders for years to come. Further, lower volumes can reduce time to market, and companies won't have to worry about using special machines that can handle more volume. Low-volume production could turn to high-volume production and more revenue if the manufacturer gets products out quickly and efficiently.

4. Beating the Competition

By reducing time to market through low-volume manufacturing, your company gets a competitive edge. The organization also gains more market share, earns more revenue and becomes more respected within its niche. Getting products on store shelves faster also allows companies to make money on short-term trends or fads.

Low-volume manufacturing reduces risk by lowering the initial investment. It allows manufacturers to make design tweaks mid-run, allowing products to get to market faster. As technology becomes more adaptable to market trends, manufacturers can expect to see more profits from this practice.

Photo courtesy of TheLeadSA at Flickr.com