PRODUCTION AND OPERATIONS MGT. PROJECT TOPICS AND MATERIALS

Seven-Up Bottling Company Plc as an organization is faced with problems in relation to utilization of material and resources being the utmost thing that are needed to be utilized effectively. The problems facing the material management and resource utilization especially Seven-Up Bottling Company Plc are mainly overstocking or under stocking of materials, obsolescence’s breakage and the economic order. Due to the fact that functions of many purpose, the impact felt positively in the society by making themselves reasonable in every area of inputs. But despite the material management and resources utilization as a tool for optimal utilization in Nigeria is not notice because it was observed that it is a general apathy" ignorance and lack interest by many people in the country. Many of the people including the government, individual are having the wrong nation and wrong impression.

The research work was aimed at “The Appraisal of project software packages”. The study sought to examine the level of utilization, benefits, problems and constraint of some selected project management software packages in an Abuja based construction Firm, Julius Berge Nig. Plc. Out of the fifty (50) questionnaires distributed, 45 were returned which represents 90% of the total percentage of questionnaires administered. Likert mean weighting scale was used in analyzing the data collected and from the findings most respondents were familiar with the use project management software packages and are also aware of the benefits derived from the usage of the said project management software packages. This is an indication to some extent of high level of awareness and a significant level usage of project management softwares packages in building construction industry. It is recommended that students should be trained in the usage of these softwares while in school to get them acquainted with them before going into practice. Professional bodies in building construction industry should create awareness of the latest software to the institutions so as to keep abreast with time. The researcher recommended that further research should be carried out on the cost effect of the usage and maintenance of project management software use in building construction.

Products from KRPC are to include fuel such as diesel, kerosene, premium motor spirit (PMS) and sulphor and those from the lubricating oil complex are base oil, asphalt and wakes. The lubricating out complex of KRPC is the first of its kind in West Africa and one of the largest in Africa. The consulting firm King Willkinson of Hague, Holland in conjunction NNPC engineers, developed the plan for the refining. The contract for construction of KPRC was awarded to Chiyoda Chemical Engineer and Construction Company of Yohohama, Japan in 1977. The project was completed and commissioned in 1980. However, the lube plants and petro chemical plants were commissioned in 1983 and 1988 respectively.

Based on feasibility studies curried out, which took into consideration the consumption of various petroleum products within the Northern zone, and the adequate means of disposal for the surplus products. A crude oil capacity of 42,000 barrels per stream day (BSPD) could be easily justified. Hence, the refinery was designed for the capacity of 60,000 barrels per stream day (BSPD). It was much later that the federal Government decided that the capacity for more barrels per stream day (BSCD) which would have led to the production of large equinity of heavy ends and no one practical and variable solution is reprocessing the heavy fuel. In order to do this, the whole project plan had to be modified so that what initially was planned to be a simply shydrosking type of refinery developed into integrated refinery. The refinery would now be able to produce a wider variety of petroleum products, some of which should be lubricating base oil. Hence, it becomes necessary to import suitable paraffin base crude oil from Venezuela, Kuwait, or Saudi Arabia.

Most hospitality industry today faces one or more problems. This problem of seasonal availability of food items is common to all hotels hence difficult to manage efficiently. In terms of perishable foods especially, it affect production planning in the hotels. Since local storage facilities are virtually absent, there is acute shortage of certain items at certain tune of the season and this is accompanied by serious price fluctuation. Also the preference of customers affects the planning of the menu to satisfy the guest need. Therefore, the problems enumerated has necessitated this study of assessing the strategies of production planning and inventory control in hospitality in Kaduna state. This is geared towards enhancing efficiency in the planning of menu meals service to customer preference and price fluctuation. Other wise the meals planning would run into problem that will hinder the attainment of stated goals and objectives of the organization.

The sustainability and success of the construction industry depends greatly on the level of accuracy in project estimates. The consequences of adopting inaccurate estimates are quite enormous and overwhelming. This research aims at using work study approach to empirically establish labour outputs of some selected trades for the Nigerian construction industry with the view of increasing the accuracy of construction cost estimates. A total of 15 construction sites were sampled within Zaria and Kaduna town. Physical observations and measurement of work outputs on block work, plastering/rendering and excavations were conducted through work study approach, particularly work measurement. Data collected were subjected to statistical analysis using both the descriptive and inferential data analysis techniques. The inferential tools made use of T-test statistics to assess and examine the influence of the various labour productivity factors on the outputs of the workers observed. The results of the analysis carried out established general average output values per day of; 10.68m2 30.85m2 and 19.04m3 for block laying, plastering/rendering and excavating trenches i.e. 1.50m deep respectively. However, The test of difference conducted in order to analyze and investigate the extent of influence of the productivity factors discovered a consistent significant difference in output of workers as the period of observation and the level and style of payment is varied. Also age as a productivity factor affected only the outputs of trench diggers excavating trenches n.e 1.50m deep.

This research work is titled the Effect of Materials Management on resource Utilization in Organization. A case study of 7up Bottling Company PLc Kaduna. Arnold (1998) said that the wealth of any country is measured by its Gross National Product i.e the output of goods and services produced by the nation in a given time. He further defined materials as those physical objects i.e something we can touch, feel or see. Services are the performance of some useful function such as banking, medical care restaurants, clothing stores, or social services. But that the source of wealth of any country is measured by the amount of goods and services produced. A production process is needed to transform our resources into useful goods. Production takes place in all forms of transformation such as the transformation of resources to manufacture useful products.

The ideal situation for inspection is of course one in which no inspection is necessary. This is because the quality assurance effort cooperatively mounted by the purchaser and supplier has resulted in outstanding quality performance and reliable supporting supplier generated records. However not all organizations have reached this enviable goal, examining some of the more common ideas surrounding inspection and quality control is useful conversely. Adequate drafting or written of specification of materials to be delivered by suppliers is not always a guaranteed to ensure quality material in an organization there is need for the inspection of materials coming into the organization to ensure that supplier provides materials that conform to the quality expected.

In every research work, the researcher is bound to face hitches. One of the problems anticipated during this research study include lack of cooperation from subjects or objects leading to use of smaller than anticipated numbers, low return of questionnaire and inability to use correct data gathering instruments due to ignorance about their availability. Another limitation was the attitude of the staff during visits to the organization. At the end, despite all the constraints, I was able to conduct the research successfully.

It is quite obvious that every organization keeps materials which form one of the pivotal elements in the organization. Any establishment that is set up to produce one thing or another; any organization could either be goods producer or services delivery or both, and they must make use of materials in all their operations, and these materials must be properly managed to achieve the desired objectives.