Use this generic process when some external
resource provides the basis for
producing a flow, and when you want to make explicit the connection between this
resource and the production flow. The two inputs to this process are: the external
resource for production, and a productivity term. The Flow of production is
generated as the product of these two inputs.
The external resource is the basis for
the generation of the flow. It usually is a Stock,
but can be a Converter that is used as an alternate measure for the Stock. The
productivity term tells how many units are produced per unit time by each unit of the
external resource. It usually is a Converter.
Algebraic Form:
production = External Resource *productivity
(units/time) = (Units) * (units/Unit/Time)
As long as the external resource and the
productivity term remain constant, the flow
of production generated by the External Resource Production Process is trivial: it's
a constant! If the production flow is filling the Stock, the magnitude of the Stock will
increase in a linear manner. If the production flow is draining the Stock, the
magnitude of the Stock will decrease in linear fashion:
The behavior of this process becomes more
interesting when you allow the external
resource and the productivity term to vary — i.e., by embedding them within closed-
loops. When this happens, a wide variety of goal-seeking behavior patterns is
possible. The examples that appear atop the next page show some of the
instances in which you might choose to use the external resource production
process.
