J
Jidoka
The Japanese term for the practice of stopping the production line when a defect occurs.
Jig
A device that holds a piece of work in a desired position and guides the tool or tools that perform the necessary operations. See: fixture.
JIT
Acronym for Just-in-Time.
JIT master schedule
Syn: level schedule (second definition).
JIT supplier environment
To effectively participate as a supplier under Just-in-Time (JIT), a company must supply components and subassemblies in exact quantities, delivery time, and quality. Shipments are made within narrow time windows that are rigidly enforced. Virtually every component must be delivered on time and be within specifications.
Job
1) The combination of tasks, duties, and responsibilities assigned to an individual employee and usually considered his or her work assignment. 2) The contents of a work order.
Job analysis
A process of gathering (by observation, interview, or recording systems) significant task-oriented activities and requirements about work required of employees.
Jobbing
Syn: job shop.
Job costing
A cost accounting system in which costs are assigned to specific jobs. This system can be used with either actual or standard costs in the manufacturing of distinguishable units or lots of products. Syn: job order costing.
Job description
A formal statement of duties, qualifications, and responsibilities associated with a particular job.
Job design
The function of describing a job with respect to its content and the methods to be used. Criteria, such as the degree of job specialization, job enrichment, and job enlargement are useful in designing work content.
Job enlargement
An increase in the number of tasks that an employee performs. Job enlargement is associated with the design of jobs, particularly production jobs, and its purpose is to reduce employee dissatisfaction.
Job enrichment
An increase in the number of tasks that an employee performs and an increase in the control over those tasks. It is associated with the design of jobs and especially the production worker’s job. Job enrichment is an extension of job enlargement.
Job grade
A form of job evaluation that assigns jobs to predetermined job classifications according to the job’s relative worth to the organization. Pay scales are usually set for each job grade.
Job lot
A specific quantity of a part or product that is produced at one time.
Job order
Syn: manufacturing order.
Job order costing
Syn: job costing.
Job progress chart
Syn: Gantt chart.
Job rotation
The practice of an employee periodically changing job responsibilities to provide a broader perspective and a view of the organization as a total system, to enhance motivation, and to provide cross-training.
Job shop
1) An organization in which similar equipment is organized by function. Each job follows a distinct routing through the shop. 2) A type of manufacturing process used to produce items to each customer’s specifications. Production operations are designed to handle a wide range of product designs and are performed at fixed plant locations using general-purpose equipment. Syn: jobbing. See: intermittent production, project manufacturing.
Job shop layout
Syn: functional layout.
Job shop scheduling
The production planning and control techniques used to sequence and prioritize production quantities across operations in a job shop.
Job status
A periodic report showing the plan for completing a job (usually the requirements and completion date) and the progress of the job against that plan.
Job ticket
Syn: time ticket.
Joint order
An order on which several items are combined to obtain volume or transportation discounts.
Joint replenishment
Coordinating the lot sizing and order release decision for related items and treating them as a family of items. The objective is to achieve lower costs because of ordering, setup, shipping, and quantity discount economies. This term applies equally to joint ordering (family contracts) and to composite part (group technology) fabrication scheduling. Syn: joint replenishment system.
Joint replenishment system
Syn: joint replenishment.
Joint venture
An agreement between two or more firms to risk equity capital to attempt a specific business objective.
Judgment items
Those inventory items that cannot be effectively controlled by algorithms because of age (new or obsolete product) or management decision (promotional product).
Juran trilogy
Syn: quality trilogy.
Jurisdiction
The authority of a governmental agency to undertake its activities.
Just-in-Time (JIT)
A philosophy of manufacturing based on planned elimination of all waste and on continuous improvement of productivity. It encompasses the successful execution of all manufacturing activities required to produce a final product, from design engineering to delivery, and includes all stages of conversion from raw material onward. The primary elements of Just-in-Time are to have only the required inventory when needed; to improve quality to zero defects; to reduce lead times by reducing setup times, queue lengths, and lot sizes; to incrementally revise the operations themselves; and to accomplish these activities at minimum cost. In the broad sense, it applies to all forms of manufacturing—job shop, process, and repetitive—and to many service industries as well. Syn: short-cycle manufacturing, stockless production, zero inventories.