batch system

industrial engineering

Also known as: job shop

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Last updated

June 22, 2026

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In industrial engineering, a batch system is a method for producing goods or services where a specific quantity of a product is processed in stages. This means a group of items moves together as a batch through one or more production steps, with the entire quantity emerging at the end of the cycle. This contrasts with a continuous system where items flow individually. Batch production is often used for specialized items or when product specifications vary between batches, such as in the manufacturing of specialty chemicals or in processing insurance claims. Batch systems are also referred to as job shops.12

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tool and die making
…machine shop was called a job shop, which meant that it had no product of its own but served large industrial facilities by fabricating tooling, machines, and machinepart replacements. Eventually, some machine shops began to specialize in tooling to the exclusion of other work.
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…machine shop was called a job shop, which meant that it had no product of its own but served large industrial facilities by fabricating tooling, machines, and machinepart replacements. Eventually, some machine shops began to specialize in tooling to the exclusion of other work.
Read More

production system
Types of production systems
…of basic production systems: the batch system, the continuous system, and the project system. In the batch system, general-purpose equipment and methods are used to produce small quantities of output (goods or services) with specifications that vary greatly from one batch to the next. A given quantity of a product…
Read More
…of basic production systems: the batch system, the continuous system, and the project system. In the batch system, general-purpose equipment and methods are used to produce small quantities of output (goods or services) with specifications that vary greatly from one batch to the next. A given quantity of a product…
Read More

operations research
Job shop sequencing
…problems is a batch, or job shop, production facility that processes many different products with many combinations of machines. In this context account may have to be taken of such factors as overlapping service (that is, if a customer consists of a number of items to be taken through several…
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…problems is a batch, or job shop, production facility that processes many different products with many combinations of machines. In this context account may have to be taken of such factors as overlapping service (that is, if a customer consists of a number of items to be taken through several…
Read More