Question: A manager wants to assign tasks to

> The project manager of a task force planning the construction of a domed stadium had hoped to be able to complete construction prior to the start of the next college football season. After reviewing construction time estimates, it now appears that a cert

> Identify the term being described for each of the following: a. A sequence of activities in a project. b. The longest time sequence of activities in a project. c. Used when two activities have the same starting and finishing points. d. The difference in

> Here is a list of activity times for a project as well as crashing costs for its activities. Determine which activities should be crashed and the total cost of crashing if the goal is to shorten the project by three weeks as cheaply as possible. First co

> A project manager has compiled a list of major activities that will be required to install a computer information system in her firm. The list includes estimated completion times for activities and precedence relationships. a. Construct a network diag

> The following precedence diagram reflects three time estimates in weeks for each activity. Determine: a. The expected completion time for each path and its variance. b. The probability that the project will require more than 49 weeks. c. The probability

> The project described in the following table is scheduled to be completed in 11 weeks. Construct a network diagram using AOA or AON. Then answer the following questions: a. If you were the manager of this project, would you be concerned? Explain. b. If t

> Construct a network diagram for the information in the following table. Use either AOA or AON (see Example 5 for either type). What is the probability that the project will take more than 10 weeks to complete if the activity means and standard deviations

> The new director of special events at a large university has decided to completely revamp graduation ceremonies. Toward that end, a PERT chart of the major activities has been developed. The chart has five paths with expected completion times and varianc

> Three recent college graduates have formed a partnership and have opened an advertising firm. Their first project consists of activities listed in the following table. a. Draw the precedence diagram. b. What is the probability that the project can be com

> What are the key advantages of using project management software?

> Give some examples of ethical issues that may arise on projects. What can a project manager do to minimize such issues?

> Give three examples of unethical conduct involving projects and the ethical principle each one violates.

> Project management techniques have been used successfully for a wide variety of efforts, including the many NASA space missions, huge construction projects, implementation of major systems such as ERP, production of movies, development of new products an

> Would you expect that many people would turn down a chance to join a project organization, as Bert Mill did?

> In consideration of Robert Linderman’s letting the division managers know that the project manager would be asking for some of their key people, why would Conway have any difficulty in getting the ones he wanted?

> What could Linderman Industries have done to assure go d jobs for the people coming off Project Mexicano, including Carl Conway, the project manager?

> Why would Conway take his problem with the engineering vice president to Linderman and have it resolved in his favor, yet back down in two disputes with the manufacturing vice president?

> How has technology had an impact on scheduling?

> Some key elements of production systems are listed in Table 14.3. Explain briefly how lean systems differ from traditional production systems for each of those elements.

> What general trade-offs are involved in sequencing decisions? In scheduling decisions?

> What are the main benefits of a lean system?

> The following table shows orders to be processed at a machine shop as of 8:00 a.m. Monday. The jobs have different operations they must go through. Processing times are in days. Jobs are listed in order of arrival. a. Determine the processing sequence at

> Using the information presented in the following table, identify the processing sequence that would result using (1) FCFS, (2) SPT, (3) EDD, and (4) CR. For each method, determine (1) average job flow time, (2) average job tardiness, and (3) average numb

> The following table contains information concerning four jobs that are awaiting processing at a work center. a. Sequence the jobs using (1) FCFS, (2) SPT, (3) EDD, and (4) CR. Assume the list is by order of arrival. b. For each of the methods in part a

> Use the assignment method to obtain a plan that will minimize the processing costs in the following table under these conditions: a. The combination 2-D is undesirable b. The combinations 1-A and 2-D are undesirable

> 4. Develop an assignment plan that will minimize processing costs, given the information shown, and interpret your answer.

> Assign trucks to delivery routes so that total costs are minimized, given the cost data shown. What is the total cost?

> Rework Problem 1, treating the numbers in the table as profits instead of costs. Compute the total profit.

> Use the assignment method to determine the best way to assign workers to jobs, given the following cost information. Compute the total cost for your assignment plan.

> List the steps in risk management.

> Determine the minimum number of workers needed, and a schedule for the following staffing requirements, giving workers two consecutive days off per cycle (not including Sunday).

> Determine the minimum number of workers needed, and a schedule for the following staffing requirements, giving workers two consecutive days off per cycle (not including Sunday).

> Contrast push and pull methods of moving goods and materials through production systems.

> Determine the minimum number of workers needed, and a schedule for the following staffing requirements, giving workers two consecutive days off per cycle (not including Sunday).

> Given the following data on inputs and outputs at a work center, determine the cumulative deviation and the backlog for each time period. The beginning backlog is 7.

> Given this information on planned and actual inputs and outputs for a service center, determine the work backlog for each period. The beginning backlog is 12 hours of work. The figures shown are standard hours of work.

> The following table contains order-dependent setup times for four jobs. For safety reasons, job C cannot follow job A, nor can job A follow job C. Determine the processing sequence that will minimize the total setup time. (Hint: There are 12 alternatives

> The following table contains order-dependent setup times for three jobs. Which processing sequence will minimize the total setup time?

> The following table contains order-dependent setup times for three jobs. Which processing sequence will minimize the total setup time?

> The Budd Gear Co. specializes in heat-treating gears for automobile companies. At 8:00 a.m., when Budd’s shop opened today, five orders (listed in order of arrival) were waiting to be processed. a. If the earliest due date rule is use

> Explain the term project champion and list some ways to keep a champion involved with the project.

> What are the benefits and risks of small lot sizes?

> What might Stephanie determine as the best production quantity per cycle for each day of the week?

> Suppose your manager presents you with the following information about machines that could be used for a job, and wants your recommendation on which one to choose. The specification width is 48 mm. In this instance, you can narrow the set of choices, but

> Briefly describe computer-assisted approaches to production.

> A producer of inkjet printers is planning to add a new line of printers, and you have been asked to balance the process, given the following task times and precedence relationships. Assume that cycle time is to be the minimum possible. a. Do each of th

> Given the following list of processes, the standard deviation for each, and specifications for a job that may be processed on that machine, determine which machines are capable of performing the given jobs. Process Standard Deviation (in.) Job Speci

> A manager wants to assign tasks to workstations as efficiently as possible and achieve an hourly output of four units. The department uses a working time of 56 minutes per hour. Assign the tasks shown in the accompanying precedence diagram (times are in

> Consider an assembly line such as the burrito assembly line at Chipotle Mexican Grill. During slow times of the day, one server can handle assembly, but during very busy times, having many servers would be prudent. Explain why either approach wouldn’t wo

> An assembly line with 17 tasks is to be balanced. The longest task is 2.4 minutes, and the total time for all tasks is 18 minutes. The line will operate for 450 minutes per day. a. What are the minimum and maximum cycle times? b. What range of output is

> Burger Prince buys top-grade ground beef for $1.00 per pound. A large sign over the entrance guarantees that the meat is fresh daily. Any leftover meat is sold to the local high school cafeteria for 80 cents per pound. Four hamburgers can be prepared fro

> Rebalance the assembly line in Problem 7. This time, use the longest operation time heuristic. Break ties with the most following tasks heuristic. What is the percentage idle time for your line?

> Ten labs will be assigned to the circular layout shown. Recalling a similar layout’s congestion in the halls, the new lab manager has requested an assignment that will minimize traffic between offices. Department 1 must be at location A

> Develop a process layout that will minimize the total distance traveled by patients at a medical clinic, using the following information on projected departmental visits by patients and distance between locations. Assume a distance of 35 feet between the

> Eight work centers must be arranged in an L-shaped building. The locations of centers 1 and 3 are assigned as shown in the accompanying diagram. Assuming transportation costs are $1 per load per meter, develop a suitable layout that minimizes transportat

> Briefly explain how a company can achieve lower production costs and increase productivity by Improving the quality of its products or services.

> A process that produces computer chips has a mean of .04 defective chip and a standard deviation of .003 chip. The allowable variation is from .03 to .05 defective. a. Compute the capability index for the process. b. Is the process capable?

> a. Determine the placement of departments for a newly designed facility that will minimize total transportation costs using the data in the following tables. Assume that reverse distances are the same. The locations are shown in the grid. Use a cost of $

> An air-conditioning repair department manager has compiled data on the primary reason for 41 service calls for the previous week, as shown in the table. Using the data, make a check sheet for the problem types for each customer type, and then construct a

> Arrange the departments so they satisfy the conditions shown in the following rating grid into a 3 × 3 format. Place department 5 in the lower left corner of the 3 × 3 grid. Department 1 Department 2 Department

> Arrange the eight departments shown in the accompanying Muther grid into a 2 × 4 format. Note: Department 1 must be in the location shown. Department 1 E Department 2 A. E A Department 3 A UXE Department 4 A Department 5 くAX×) Departmen

> Using the information in the following grid, determine if the department locations shown are appropriate. If not, modify the assignments so that the conditions are satisfied. Department 1 254 186 Department 2 7|3 Department 3 Department 4 AXE A A De

> What are the risks of automating a production process? What are the risks for a service process?

> Demand for devil’s food whipped-cream layer cake at a local pastry shop can be approximated using a Poisson distribution with a mean of six per day. The manager estimates it costs $9 to prepare each cake. Fresh cakes sell for $12. Day-old cakes sell for

> Using the information given in the preceding problem, develop a Muther-type grid using the letters A, O, and X. Assume that any pair of combinations not mentioned have an O rating.

> SummerFun, Inc., produces a variety of recreation and leisure products. The production manager has developed an aggregate forecast: Develop an aggregate plan using each of the following guidelines and compute the total cost for each plan. Hint: You wil

> Manager Chris Channing of Fabric Mills, Inc., has developed the forecast shown in the table for bolts of cloth. The figures are in hundreds of bolts. The department has a regular output capacity of 275(00) bolts per month, except for the seventh month, w

> Does the second set of samples show anything that the first set did not? Explain what and why.

> Why is it usually desirable to use both a median run test and an up/down run test on the same data?

> Manager T. C. Downs of Plum Engines, a producer of lawn mowers and leaf blowers, must develop an aggregate plan given the forecast for engine demand shown in the table. The department has a regular output capacity of 130 engines per month. Regular output

> What trade-offs are involved in each of these aspects of inventory management? a. Buying additional amounts to take advantage of quantity discounts. b. Treating holding cost as a percentage of unit price instead of as a constant amount. c. Conducting cyc

> What is aggregate planning? What is its purpose?

> What three levels of planning involve operations managers? What kinds of decisions are made at the various levels?

> Explain the managerial significance of aggregate planning.

> What are the inputs to master scheduling? What are the outputs?

> Briefly describe the planning techniques listed as follows, and give an advantage and disadvantage for each: a. Spreadsheet b. Linear programming c. Simulation

> Briefly discuss the advantages and disadvantages of each of these planning strategies: a. Maintain a level rate of output and let inventories absorb fluctuations in demand. b. Vary the size of the workforce to correspond to predicted changes in demand re

> Presumably, information about the new line has been shared with supply chain partners. Explain what information should be shared with various partners, and why sharing that information is important.

> A teller at a drive-up window at a bank had the following service times (in minutes) for 20 randomly selected customers. a. Determine the mean of each sample. b. If the process parameters are unknown, estimate its mean and standard deviation. c. Estima

> Select four tools and describe how they could be used in problem solving.

> Analysis of the output of a process has suggested that the variability is nonrandom on several occasions recently. However, each time an investigation has not revealed any assignable causes. What are some of the possible explanations for not finding any

> Identify the fixed-path and variable-path material-handling equipment commonly found in supermarkets.

> The EGAD Bottling Company has decided to introduce a new line of premium bottled water that will include several “designer” flavors. Marketing manager Georgianna Mercer is predicting an upturn in demand based on the ne

> How has technology aided inventory management? How have technological improvements in products such as automobiles and computers impacted inventory decisions?

> Name several ways that technology has had an impact on quality control.

> What trade-offs are involved in each of these decisions? a. Deciding whether to use two-sigma or three-sigma control limits. b. Choosing between a large sample size and a smaller sample size. c. Trying to increase the capability of a process that is bare

> Specifications for a metal shaft are much wider than the machine used to make the shafts is capable of. Consequently, the decision has been made to allow the cutting tool to wear a certain amount before replacement. The tool wears at the rate of .004 cen

> After a number of complaints about its directory assistance, a telephone company examined samples of calls to determine the frequency of wrong numbers given to callers. Each sample consisted of 100 calls. Determine 95 percent limits. Is the process stabl

> Given the following data for the number of defects per spool of cable, using three-sigma limits, is the process in control? OBSERVATION 1 4 6. 7 8 10 11 12 13 14 1 0 1 2 0 2 1 3 1 2 0 Number of defects 3. 3. 3. 2.

> (Refer to the data in Example 5.) Two additional observations have been taken. The first resulted in three defects, and the second had four defects. Using the set of 20 observations, perform run tests on the data. What can you conclude about the data? D

> The postmaster of a small western town receives a certain number of complaints each day about mail delivery. Determine three-sigma control limits using the following data. Is the process in control? DAY 1 2 4. 5 6. 11 12 13 14 Number of complaints 4

> A medical facility does MRIs for sports injuries. Occasionally a test yields inconclusive results and must be repeated. Using the following sample data and n = 200, determine the upper and lower control limits for the fraction of retests using two-sigma

> Give two examples of unethical behavior for each of these areas: inspection, process control, process capability. For each, name the relevant ethical principle

> Using samples of 200 credit card statements, an auditor found the following: a. Determine the fraction defective in each sample. b. If the true fraction defective for this process is unknown, what is your estimate of it? c. What is your estimate of the

> Explain the plan-do-study-act cycle.

> Computer upgrade times (in minutes) are being evaluated. Samples of five observations each have been taken, and the results are as listed. Using factors from Table 10.3, determine upper and lower control limits for mean and range charts, and decide if th

> Who needs to be involved in inventory decisions involving holding costs? Setting inventory levels? Quantity discount purchases?

> The City Transportation Planning Committee must decide whether to begin a long-term project tobuild a subway system or to upgrade the present bus service. Suppose you are an expert in fixed path and variable-path material-handling equipment, and the comm

> The time to replace vehicle wiper blades at a service center was monitored using a mean and a range chart. Six samples of n = 20 observations were obtained and the sample means and ranges computed: a. Using the factors in Table 10.3, determine upper an

> An automatic filling machine is used to fill 1-liter bottles of cola. The machine’s output is approximately normal with a mean of 1.0 liter and a standard deviation of .01 liter. Output is monitored using means of samples of 25 observations. a. Determine