Bever Ltd is a multinational soft drinks (beverages) and confectionery business that is based in the UK. The business is involved in the manufacture, marketing and distribution of its many branded products. Bever Ltd now employs over 40000 people and its products are available in almost 200 countries. The companys products can be divided into:

• Beverages (carbonated soft drinks and non-carbonated soft drinks (waters and fruit juices)
• Confectionery (chocolate products, sugar products, chewing gum).

Despite manufacturing its goods in large quantities, Bever Ltd uses batch rather than flow production methods. The company must ensure the products are of high quality. Not only are there strict laws about how foodstuff is made, but also Bever Ltd would not want to damage its reputation by allowing inferior products to be sold. Bever Ltd undertakes extensive research and development (R&D) to develop new products and to find ways of manufacturing existing brands more efficiently. Bever Ltd uses the services of a specialist R&D business based at Reading for its UK confectionery business.

1. Critically evaluate the reasons why Bever Ltd uses batch production when making chocolate bars. (10Marks)
2. Critically discuss which of the following two quality control methods would be better for Bever Ltd;

• Checking samples of the products after they have been made
• Making workers responsible for the quality of their own work

(10 Marks)