As standardization and demand volume increase, process preference moves from project to batch production to mass production to continuous production. The best process strategy is found on the diagonal of the matrix. Companies or products produced off the diagonal have made poor process choices. A project is the one-time production of a product or service to customer order. Batch production systems process many different jobs at the same time in groups or batches.
Mass production produces large volumes of a standard product or service for a mass market.
Continuous production is used to manufacture very high volume commodity products. Ships are built as projects, furniture is produced in batches, cars are mass produced, and chemicals are continuously produced.