Instruction

1. Go over these two cases in details and finish assignment 3-1 posted before the meeting;

2. Be ready to provide your input on how to improve these two processes respectively - your input should be based on your process analysis, not just thoughts or opinions. Extra credit will be given to students who provide valued insights in class.

Process Analysis Case - 1: Making Cookies

You and your roommate are preparing to launch a small business in your on-campus apartment. You plan to provide fresh cookies to hungry students at night. Your cookie is different from  store bought cookies because they are freshly baked and your customer can ask for different special flavors chosen from the menu. In short, you will have the freshest, most exotic cookies anywhere available right on campus.

Baking cookies is simple: place all the ingredients in a mixing bowl and mix them, then spoon the cookie dough onto a tray; put the cookies into the oven, bake them; take the tray out and cool; pack them in a box; then collect money. You already got all the equipment: the mixer, the oven, the trays, and spoons. The ingredients cost about $.60/dozen cookies, and the box costs $.10 per box, which can hold a dozen cookies per box.

The process is described as below. First, taking the order costs no time. You and  your  roommate have timed the necessary physical operations. The first step is to wash  out the mixer's bowl and beaters from the previous batch, add ingredients to the bowl and turn on mixer (you will perform this step according to the agreement between you and your roommate). The mixer can hold and mix ingredients for up to three dozen cookies. This step takes 6 minutes no matter how many dozens are mixed. You then spoon the cookies, once a dozen at a time, onto a cookie tray. It takes 2 minutes per tray. Next, performed by your roommate, is to put cookies in the oven and set temperature and time, this takes 1 minute (assuming that this happens every time your roommate puts a new dozen of cookie in). The oven can hold one tray (or one dozen of cookies) at one time. The cookies bake for 9 minutes (so the oven is occupied for 9+1=10 minutes for each dozen). Your roommate also removes the cookies from the oven and put them aside for cooling, which takes 5 minutes. Then he will pack them into a box and accepting payments. Packing takes 2 minutes every dozen of cookies and it takes 1 minute to receive payment.

Process Analysis Case -2: State Automobile License Renewal Case

Susan Miller, the new manager of Pomona branch office of the state department of motor vehicles is interested in re-designing of the driver's license renewal operations to handle a greater load of renewal applications. Examining the current system, she discovered that each customer followed a fixed sequence of steps with average times in seconds as noted in the  table below.

She observed that the work was unevenly divided among the six jobs, and the clerk responsible for checking violations tended to shortcut her task to keep up during peak demand periods. Susan also noted that clerks, paid $12.00 per hour, performed only one job in the current setup.) A photographer was employed at $20.00 per hour to photograph applicants (step 5), and by state policy the temporary license was issued by a uniformed state trooper paid $18.00 per  hour.

The sequence of steps performed had some restrictions. Reviewing the application for correctness must be performed first before any other step is taken. Furthermore, the issuing of the temporary license must be the final step. Because a nearby license renewal office was being closed, Susan was told to expect increased demand reaching 120 applications per hour during the peak periods. Under a budge mandate, Susan needed to do a thorough capacity analysis and increase productivity at minimal cost.

1. If an order of cookies is two dozen with two different flavors, what is the flow time of this order if there is no other order in the process (in minutes)? Round answer to the nearest integer if needed.  (Refer to Cookie Case Attachment for this question on Process Analysis)

2. You have decided to purchase a new oven, which holds on dozen at a time (it still needs 10 minutes for each dozen cookie in the new oven) Assume that the orders are all one-dozen orders. With these two ovens and the demand rate as 10 dozens per hour, what is the implied utilization rate for the oven? Round your answer to two decimals and ignore the percentage sign.

3. Under the settings of question 2, which resource is the new bottleneck resource?

• Roommate
  • Mixer
  • Me
  • Oven