Thousands of years back when the population of the world was small the needs of human beings were satisfied easily and companies could produce things in small quantities but with the explosion of the population the world needed more production in order to satisfy the needs of a large number of people and that is where mass production comes into the picture. Mass production in simple words refers to the bulk production of goods using standardized and automated processes often used for producing identical products. The goal of mass production is to create a large number of goods at a lower cost and in a shorter amount of time. In order to have a better understanding about this concept one should look at some of the advantages and disadvantages of mass production –
Advantages of Mass Production
Helpful during Emergency
The first and foremost advantage of mass production is that it can be of great help during times of emergency hence during corona countries all over the world with the help of mass production were able to produce thousands of face masks in just a few days to help combat the spread of COVID-19 or during earthquakes, governments are able to provide food packets to thousands of people who are affected by earthquakes. In simple words during emergencies, mass production is the most potent weapon in the hands of humans and hence saves thousands of lives.
Increases Efficiency without Deviations
Another benefit of mass production is that helps the company in achieving efficiency because when goods are produced in bulk the cost per unit of the product produced reduces thereby resulting in a higher profit margin for the company besides when things are made by hand, they can be a little bit different each time. With mass production, things are made using machines that do the same thing every time and hence the product is the same without any deviation resulting in the company producing standardized products at cheaper rates.
Increased Accessibility
Mass production allows for the creation of goods that are more affordable and accessible to a wider range of consumers and not to a select few customers. In simple words, mass production helps in making sure that products reach every section of society and their use is not limited to only wealthy people which in turn helps in improving the standard of living of the people. Hence, for example, the automobile industry revolutionized manufacturing with mass production techniques, making cars affordable for everyone or the garment industry uses mass production techniques to produce clothing at a lower cost or production of prescription and over-the-counter medications often involves mass production.
Disadvantages of Mass Production
Lack of Flexibility
The biggest disadvantage of the mass production technique is the lack of flexibility involved hence the company cannot respond to changes in consumer demand or new product development thus resulting in the company losing its customer to competitors who can quickly adapt to changing market conditions besides the mass-produced products are typically standardized, making it difficult to customize products to individual customer needs and thus limit their use.
Job Losses
Since mass production is done by machines and standardized processes it can lead to job losses for labors as their work will be done by machines thus leading to more unemployment and an increased wealth gap between rich and poor. In simple words on the one hand while mass production helps the company in increasing production and efficiency but at the same time it reduces the jobs and increases unemployment in the country.
Sub Standard Quality of Products
While mass product helps the company in scaling up production for the company but at the same, there is this risk that the company will be producing lower quality products or substandard products, as each item is identical and less attention may be given to individual details. Hence in simple words, mass production is not suitable for products that require individual attention and are of premium quality.
As one can see from the above that mass production has pros as well as cons and that is the reason why any company thinking of doing mass production should carefully read the above points and then only should take any decision regarding doing mass production of products.