The diagram below shows the typical stages of consumer goods manufacturing, including the process by which information is fed back to earlier stages to enable adjustment.

Most consumer

goods

go through a series of stages before they emerge as finished products ready for sale. Raw materials and manufactured components comprise the initial physical input in the manufacturing process. Once obtained, these are stored for later assembly. But assembly first depends upon the

production

planning

stage

, where it is decided how and in what quantities the stored materials will be processed to create sufficient quantities of finished

goods

. The

production

planning

stage

itself follows the requirements of the

goods

'

design

stage

that proceeds from extensive

research

. After assembly, the products are inspected and tested to maintain quality control l Those units that pass the inspection and testing stages are

then

packaged, despatched and offered for sale in retail outlets. The level of sales, which is the endpoint of the manufacturing process, helps determine

production

planning. A

product

's

design

is not only the result of

product

research

,

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but is

also

influenced by testing and market

research

. If the testing

stage

(after assembly and inspection) reveals unacceptable problems in the finished

product

,

then

adjustments will have to be made to the

product

's

design

.

Similarly

, market

research

, which examines the extent and nature of the demand for products, has the role of guiding

product

design

to suit consumer demands which may change with time. Market

research

,

while

influenced by

product

sales,

also

serves to foster future sales by devising suitable advertising for the

goods

.

Thus

the reality of consumer

goods

manufacturing goes well beyond a simple linear

production

process.