Production Control involves activities such as handling materials, parts, assemblies, and sub-assemblies carrying out the process from raw or initial stage to the finished product stage in an organized and EFFICIENT manner.

It may also include activities such as planning, scheduling, ROUTING, dispatching, storage, etc.

Essential steps in production control are:

1. Routing- It involves the process of DECIDING the route of work and the sequence of doing it. Routing fixes the following in advance- quantity and quality of the product, workers, machines, materials to be used, everything related to manufacturing operations and place of production.
2. Scheduling- It comes after routing in production planning and control. It covers the following - allotment of work, setting manufacturing operations according to priority and fixing time and date for starting and completing the operation.
3. Dispatching- It is concerned with starting the process of production. It provides the necessary authority to start the work. It is based on route-sheets and schedule sheets. Dispatching involves works such as- issue of materials, tools, fixtures; issue of orders, instructions, drawings; maintaining PROPER records, starting the control procedure and recording the idle time of machines.
4. Follow-up- Follow-up is the last step in production planning and control. It is concerned with the defects, DELAYS, limitations, bottlenecks, loopholes in the production process.
5. It evaluates the actual performance and compares it with expected performance. Follow-up removes these difficulties and allows a smooth production.

Production Control involves activities such as handling materials, parts, assemblies, and sub-assemblies carrying out the process from raw or initial stage to the finished product stage in an organized and efficient manner.

It may also include activities such as planning, scheduling, routing, dispatching, storage, etc.

Essential steps in production control are: