In Disequilibrium:
What if production process is at full capacity?
What if production process is at less than full capacity?
Notes:
If the production of F-150 trucks is currently at “full production capacity”, then increasing the rate of production a little may become very expensive in a hurry. Perhaps our manager should begin studying to determine if another plant would be a viable option in the long run. But our manager would probably look on the consumption side of the equation for some help in the short run. Raising the price a little may be all that is necessary to bring the market back into equilibrium. We would again monitor inventories to determine if our pricing strategy has been successful or not. Another strategy may be to decrease or cut advertising in an effort to reduce consumption.
If the production of F-150 trucks is currently at less than full production capacity, then increasing the rate of production may be a viable option to pursue.
Have you heard, read or witnessed any of what we have discussed occurring in the “real world” out there? The 1997 Ford F-150 extended cab ran into the problems described above.
What should our manager do? Well, he/she will need to assess the costs and benefits of each of the alternative courses of action to determine which action would be the most profitable.