Unlocking Success: Mastering the Art of Selecting Production Technology for Your Industrial Feasibility Study

Production technology encompasses machinery, tools, auxiliaries, and operating systems and aims at achieving the production program. Choosing the right production technology is critical for the success of any manufacturing business. To select the production technology, someone will need to define the production requirements, for instance, the production program, cost budget, automation levels, quality standards, maintenance, safety, and machinery suppliers, and then collect offers for selection. Technology offers are typically evaluated based on criteria like, regulatory requirements, the reputation of the machinery supplier, references, specifications, recommendations, quality, reliability, cost of production, cost of technology, maintenance, compatibility and flexibility with marketing requirements, energy efficiency, and maintenance cost. If you choose the production technology, you will then need to profile the full description of the technology, including inputs, processes, outputs, speed, specifications, the name of the supplier or suppliers, origin, costs, flow chart, diagrams, layout, justifications of selection, etc. Production technology is essential for the factory to reach the production program with the most efficient and reliable manners, reduce the product costs, enable profitability, maintain the desired quality standards, be equipped with higher capacity, and be flexible to meet the changing demands. Also, in the manufacturing industry, a significant portion of the project investments go for the machinery and building; thus, choosing the right technology will help the factory achieve business, technical and investment objectives.

Step-By-Step Process

• Clarify the production program, as explained in the previous article, to understand the production requirements like the products, specifications, quantity, schedule of production, etc.
• Set the wanted technical requirements, including automation level, speed, specification, cost, quality, reliability, flexibility, and safety, which are used to recommend the list of technology suppliers.
• Research the available technologies that can meet the production requirements. This process involves gathering information on various production technologies, such as their capabilities, costs, maintenance requirements, and energy consumption.
• Set the technical and commercial criteria for evaluating offers. Technical criteria may include references, reputation, flexibility, reliability, and quality, and commercial one consists of the cost and value of offers.
• Prepare the documents (e.g., the scope of work, list of vendors, offer evaluation criteria) for the request and collection of offers.
• Evaluate offers as per the evaluation criteria and negotiate price offers.
• Decide on the most suitable offer and sign the contract with the winning technology supplier.
• Describe the chosen technology, including inputs (e.g., raw materials and workforces), outputs (e.g., products and specifications), speed (e.g., design capacity), specifications, the name of the supplier or suppliers, origin, costs, and justifications of selection.
• Prepare the document as per the above outcomes, and share it with your team and experts.

Example

Here are the machinery details for the solid dosage production line (e.g., tablets and capsules) of a pharmaceutical manufacturing facility:

Production Stage	Machine	No.
Weighing Booth	Weighing Balance	2
	Weighing booth	2
	Hand Pallet truck-Stainless Steel	1
	Material Handling Tools  (Lump Sum)	1
Granulation	Balance 100  kg	1
	Fitz Mill Machine (50-300 kg per Hour)	1
	Vibrating Sifter (50-300 kg per Hour)	1
	High Sheer Mixer granulator (70 kg Batch @ 0.5 BD)	1
	Fluid Bed Dryer (70 kg Batch @ 0.5 BD)	1
	Oscillator Machine  (50-300 kg per Hour)	1
	AHU with Hepa Filters for FBD	2
	St. pipe ducting (FBD to FBD-AHU)	1
	FBD-Dust Collector	1
	LOD Balance	1
IBC Blender	IBC-Blender (300 litres)	1
	IBCs (100 Litres  & 300 Litres ) – 3x each size	6
Tabletting	Tablet press B type 200000 tablets/hour	1
	Tablet press D type 120000 tablets/hour	1
	Tableting Tools (10 sets of punches & dies B-Type)	10
	Tableting Tools (10 sets of punches & dies D-Type)	10
	Powder Feeder from IBC to Hoper	2
	Deduster	2
	Metal detector	2
	Balance	2
	Vacuum Machine	2
	Tablet Hardness Tester	2
Coating	Auto Coating Pan 75 kg	1
	St. pipe ducting (Coating to Coating-AHU)	1
	Solution Mixer 50 Litres	1
Capsule filling	Capsules filling machine 60000/hour	1
	Size Change Parts (size 00 to size 3) – total 5 sets	5
	Deduster	1
	Metal detector	1
	Balance	1
	Vacuum Machine	1
Blistering Line	Blister Packaging System 40 stroke/min	1
	Camera system for the above	1
	Complete set PVC/ Alu size change parts	5
	Complete set Alu/ Alu size change parts	2
Cartoner Machine	Up to 120 cartons per minute	1
Filling powder in sachets	Powder filling machine (40-60 sachets per minute)	1
	Dehumidifier	1
Leaflet	Leaflet Folding Machine	1
	Leaflet Counting Machine	1
	Label Counting machine	1
Printing	Printing Machine	2

Useful Tips

• To list technology vendors, check competitors, visit exhibitions, and consult experts.
• Visit or contact vendors’ references before you decide on offers.
• Choosing production technology is critical for the success of the business; thus, take your time to carefully study technology options before you select anyone.

Things To Avoid

• Avoid guessing works and assumptions without evidence.
• Selecting any technology offer without careful studying.
• Selecting a cheaper offer without evaluating its technical capabilities. 

Final Note

This article is sourced from my new book- Your Guide For Preparing An Industrial Feasibility Study. 

For more information about the book: https://growenterprise.co.uk/book-your-guide-for-preparing-an-industrial-feasibility-study/

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Or email us at: maldawood@growenterprise.co.uk

The author: Munther Al Dawood- Industrial Enterprise Expert

http://www.growenterprise.co.uk