Set the future product range before planning the move
- Topic
- Relocation decisions
- Reading time
- 3 minutes
- Last reviewed
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A small product range can require a surprisingly broad operation. Removing most of the items made by a department does not remove the department if one retained product still depends on it.
Before planning the move, group products by the work they require. The decision is about the future offering and its support needs. It comes before deciding which individual machines might be sold.
One product can keep a process in the plan
Consider this fictional range review. It compares the processes each family needs; demand quantities require a separate forecast.
| Product family | Main route | Proposed future status | Consequence to resolve |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard brackets | Cut, form, inspect, pack | Continue | These activities need a future home |
| Coated brackets | Cut, form, finish, inspect, pack | Continue for one customer | Finishing still needs an accepted solution |
| Decorative panels | Cut, finish, inspect, pack | Proposed withdrawal | Withdrawal alone does not eliminate finishing |
If the move plan drops finishing because decorative panels account for most of its workload, it has missed the coated brackets. The owner has several questions to resolve: retain the activity, investigate a suitable external arrangement, change the agreed product offering, or reconsider the move assumptions.
None is an automatic answer. The customer relationship, technical requirements and economics need their own review. An external process is not ready simply because a supplier has said it can quote.
Include the work after the product leaves production
For each continuing family, ask what happens when a customer needs a replacement, a technical explanation or investigation of a previous order. Those activities can need records, skills and occasional equipment even if new production stops.
Keep existing commitments separate from the owner's proposed future range. Seek appropriate advice before changing agreed supply or support arrangements. The customer quality-approval enquiry helps identify a related issue: whether the proposed destination and process arrangement satisfy the customer's actual requirements.
GOV.UK's business plan guidance treats objectives and sales as connected parts of the plan. Here, the practical connection is explicit: the range the business intends to sell determines which work must remain possible.
Turn the decision into a usable brief
Record each family as continuing, proposed for withdrawal, or awaiting a decision. Add the unresolved process question and the person who can decide it. Avoid a single “not moving” label that confuses a product decision with an asset instruction.
Update the future operating brief when the range is agreed. Then use job-family routes to test how the retained work would pass through the new arrangement. A shorter catalogue does not guarantee a simpler workflow.
Share the accepted range with the people making premises, staffing and equipment decisions. They should all be working from the same version, especially where one pending customer discussion changes the space required.
For machinery that becomes surplus after those decisions, UK Auction Group can discuss a sale enquiry. State which processes are ending and which assets remain necessary while customer or technical questions are resolved.
Find related planning questions in Relocation decisions.
Sources
- GOV.UK: Write a business plan Checked
This guide is general information and education only. Legal, tax, employment and safety decisions may need a qualified adviser who knows your situation. Read the disclaimer.