What are the three basic production strategies?

• A. Level production strategy, chase production strategy, and mixed production strategy
• B. Make-to-stock, make-to-order, assemble-to-order
• C. Push, Pull, Kanban
• D. Mass production, batch production, custom production

Answer: (A)

The question tests how to categorize production planning approaches for matching demand while controlling costs. The three basic production strategies are level, chase, and mixed.

Level production keeps output at a constant rate over the planning horizon and uses inventory or backlogs to absorb differences between production and demand. This approach minimizes schedule changes and can smooth capacity, but it may lead to higher inventory carrying costs or backlog risk if demand diverges from the constant rate.

Chase production adjusts the production rate to exactly meet demand, often by varying staffing, overtime, or subcontracting. This minimizes inventory since production mirrors demand, but it can raise labor and changeover costs and create workforce instability.

Mixed production combines elements of both: maintaining a base level of production while adjusting for fluctuations to balance inventory, capacity, and costs more flexibly.

The correct choice lists these three strategies. The other options describe different concepts—types of demand fulfillment (make-to-stock, make-to-order, assemble-to-order), scheduling philosophies or systems (push, pull, Kanban), or different production process classifications (mass, batch, custom)—which are not the standard trio of basic production strategies.