Industrial Facilities Arrangement and Economic Productivity/Performance in Nigerian Bottling Company Plc (Coca-Cola), Ilorin Nigeria

Abstract

The promotion and improvement in the facilities arrangement and economic productivity/performance of an organization are the sine qua non for its strength of character, resilience, competitive ability, flexibility and profit maximization. The extent to which this is achieved in a typical manufacturing plant is what the study has set out to measure. This paper which is an exercise in manufacturing management takes a cursory look into the synergy between the arrangement of industrial facilities within an industrial layout and economic productivity/performance. It is a performance appraisal/ evaluation of how the placement of materials, machine and men has aided production. The paper examines the role that the optimum placement of equipment, machine , materials, and man power plays at reduction in the cost of production/distribution and ensuring maximum productivity. The Nigerian Bottling Company (NBC) Coca Cola Ilorin has been chosen for the research being a typical manufacturing establishment which arrangement of industrial facilities ideally involves allocation of space and arrangement of equipments. Furthermore, it is one of the few multinationals with longevity in terms of life span in Nigeria having been incorporated since 1951. The methodology of the research is of both primary and secondary sources of data gathering. The researcher became a participant observer in the plant for a period of three weeks. For the primary source, there was the administration of questionnaire on the management and staff with the main aim of gathering information on how the arrangement of the facilities within their industrial layout has contributed to their effective performance, thus enhancing economic productivity. The secondary source which are mainly books, journals, magazines, newspapers and the interment would complement the primary effort. Data collected were analyzed using percentage analysis and hypothesis tested through Z score statistics at 0.5% significance. The result of the findings is expected to be of tremendous help to corporate management policy makers and other stake holders in the manufacturing industry particularly those with challenges on the arrangement of facilities and allocation of time and space. It is also a consultancy report or feasibilit y study for industrialists and entrepreneurs venturing into manufacturing of soft drinks.