___ must satisfy the demands of the marketplace. It does so by using plants, machinery, equipment, labor, and materials as efficiently as possible.

Production ..................................

 3rd option -production  is the answer 

The correct answer goes to Production has to satisfy the demand & supply. 

We need produce enough to meet the market demands.

Thanks for invitation

I amagreeing with my colleague’s Mr m Ashraf that production

sorry i'm not expert on this field

Chase (demand matching) strategy:  Chase strategy means producing the amounts demanded at any given time. Inventory levels remain stable while production varies to meet demand.

Just enough at any one time to meet demand exactly. In some industries, this is the only strategy that can be followed. Farmers, for instance, must produce in the growing season. The post office must process mail over the Christmas rush and in slack seasons. Restaurants have to serve meals when the customers want them. These industries cannot stockpile or inventory their products or services and must be capable of meeting demand as it occurs. In these cases, the company must have enough capacity to be able to meet the peak demand. Farmers must have sufficient machinery and equipment to harvest in the growing season although the equipment will lie idle in the winter. Companies have to hire and train people for the peak periods and lay them off when the peak is past. Sometimes they have to put on extra shifts and overtime. All these changes add cost. The advantage to the chase strategy is that inventories can be kept to a minimum. Goods are made when demand occurs and are not stockpiled. Thus, the costs associated with carrying inventories are avoided.  Production leveling. Production leveling is continually producing an amount equal to the average demand. Companies calculate their total demand over the time span of the plan and, on the average, produce enough to meet it. Sometimes demand is less than the amount produced and an inventory builds up. At other times demand is greater and inventory is used up. The advantage of a production leveling strategy is that it results in a smooth level of operation that avoids the costs of changing production levels. Firms do not need to have excess capacity to meet peak demand. They do not need to hire and train workers and lay them off in slack periods. They can build a stable workforce. The disadvantage is that inventory will build up in low-demand periods. This inventory will cost money to carry. Production leveling means the company will use its resources at a level rate and produce the same amount each day it is operating. The amount produced each month (or sometimes each week) will not be constant because the number of working days varies from month to month.

Regards,

Saiyid

Production has to satisfy the demand & supply. 

Thanks for the invite, I agree with the previous answer

Marketing________________________------------A