Manufacturing refers to a large-scale production of goods that converts raw materials, parts, and components into finished merchandise using manual labor and/or machines. The finished goods can be sold directly to consumers, to other manufacturers for the production of more complex products, or to wholesalers who distribute the goods to retailers.

A manufacturing business is any business that uses raw materials, parts, and components to assemble finished goods. Manufacturing businesses often employ machines, robots, computers, and humans to produce the merchandise and typically use an assembly line, which enables a product to be put together step by step, moving from one workstation to the next.

Manufacturing businesses can choose to sell their products directly to consumers, to other manufacturers, to distributors or to wholesalers. 

A manufacturer is responsible for assembling the final goods, such as laptops, fridges or watches, or producing parts and components that other manufacturers use to produce more complex products like cars or aircraft. A wholesaler, on the other hand, is a middleman between a manufacturer and a retailer (or end consumer). It buys products in bulk from the manufacturer and resells them in smaller quantities for a higher price.

There are three main types of manufacturing production:

• Make-to-Stock (MTS)

• Make-to-Order (MTO)

• Make-to-Assemble (MTA)

Make-to-Stock (MTS) is a traditional manufacturing strategy that relies on past sales data to forecast consumer demand and plan the production activity in advance. The drawback of this strategy is that it uses past data to predict future demand, which increases the likelihood of the forecasts being off, leaving the manufacturer with too much or not enough stock.  

Make-to-Order (MTO) allows customers to order products that are customized and manufactured to their specifications. The manufacturing process begins only after the order is received, so the waiting time for the customer is longer, but the risk of excessive inventory is cut out.

Make-to-Order (MTO) allows customers to order products that are customized and manufactured to their specifications. The manufacturing process begins only after the order is received, so the waiting time for the customer is longer, but the risk of excessive inventory is cut out.