The Geneva Watch Corporation manufactures watches on a conveyor belt with six stations. One worker stands at each station and performs the following tasks:
| Station |
Tasks |
Processing Time (seconds) |
| A: Preparation 1 |
Heat-stake lens to bezel |
14 |
|
Inspect bezel |
26 |
|
Clean switch holes |
10 |
|
Install set switch in bezel |
18 |
|
Total time for A |
68 |
| B: Preparation 2 |
Check switch travel |
23 |
|
Clean inside bezel |
12 |
|
Install module in bezel |
25 |
|
Total time for B |
60 |
| C: Battery installation |
Install battery clip on module |
20 |
|
Heat-stake battery clip on module |
15 |
|
Install 2 batteries in module |
22 |
|
Check switch |
13 |
|
Total time for C |
70 |
| D: Band installation |
Install band |
45 |
|
Inspect band |
13 |
|
Total time for D |
58 |
| E: Packaging preparation |
|
|
|
Cosmetic inspection |
20 |
|
Final test |
55 |
|
Total time for E |
75 |
| F: Watch packaging |
Place watch and cuff in display box |
20 |
|
Place cover in display box base |
14 |
|
Place owner's manual, box into tub |
30 |
|
Total time for F |
64 |
These six workers begin their workday at 8:00 a.m. and work steadily until 4:00 p.m. At 4:00, no new watch parts are introduced into station A and the conveyor belt continues until all of the work-in-process inventory has been processed and leaves station F. Thus, each morning the workers begin with an empty system.
a. What is the bottleneck in this process?
b. What is the capacity, in watches per hour, of the assembly line (ignore the time it takes for the first watch to come off the line)?
c. What is the direct labor content for the processes on this conveyor belt?
d. What is the utilization of the worker in station B (ignore the time it takes for the first watch to come off the line)?
e. How many minutes of idle time will the worker in station C have in one hour (ignore the time it takes for the first watch to come off the line)?
f. What time will it be (within one minute) when the assembly line has processed 1 93 watches on any given day?