6.

5 The operator of a mechanized sorting machine in a post office must read the ZIP code on a
parcel and, knowing its location in the city, divert the package by conveyor to the proper
route track

After becoming familiar with their jobs, the sorting machine operators now average only two
address errors per 100 parcels sorted. Prepare a p-chart for experienced sorting operators.
1.6 Several complaints recently have been sent to the Gotham City police department
regarding the increasing incidence of congestion on the city’s streets. The complaints
attribute the cause of these traffic tie-ups to a lack of synchronization of the traffic lights.
The lights are controlled by a main computer system, and adjusting this program is costly.
Therefore, the controllers are reluctant to change the situation unless a clear need is
shown.

During the past year, the police department has collected data at 1,000 intersections. The
data were complied on a monthly basis as shown below:

Month Congested Incidence Month

Congested Incidence
January 14 July 19
February 18 August 12
March 14 September 14
April 12 October 7
May 16 November 10
June 8 December 18

a. Construct a p-chart based on the above data

b. Should the system be modified if, during the next 3 months, reports of congestion at
these 1,000 intersections indicate the following:

Month Congested Incidence

January 15
February 9
March 11
1.7 The Speedway Clinical Laboratory is a scientific blood-testing facility that receives samples
from local hospitals and clinics. The blood samples are passed through several automated
tests, and the results are printed through a central computer that reads and stores the
information about each sample that is tested.

Management is concern about the quality of the service it provides and wants to establish
quality-control limits as a measure for the quality of its tests. Such managerial practice is
viewed as significant, because incorrect analysis of a sample can lead to a wrong diagnosis
by the physician, which in turn may cost the life of a patient. For this reason, 100 blood
samples were collected at random each day after they had gone through testing. After
retesting was performed manually on this sample, the results were:

Day Incorrect Analysis Day Incorrect Analysis

1 8 11 4
2 3 12 6
3 1 13 5
4 0 14 10
5 4 15 2
6 2 16 1
7 9 17 0
8 6 18 6
9 3 19 3
10 1 20 2

a. Construct a p-chart to be used in assessing the quality of the service described

above.
b. On average, what is the expected number of incorrect test per 100 samples?
c. Later, another sample of 100 was taken. After the accuracy of the tests was
established, 10 samples were found to have been analyzed incorrectly. What is your
conclusion about the quality of this service?
1.8 The Long Life Insurance Company receives applications to buy insurance from its
salespeople, who are specially trained in selling insurance to new customers. After the
applications are received, they are processed through a computer. The computer is
programmed so that it prints messages whenever it runs across an item that is not
consistent with company policies. The company is concerned with the accuracy of the
training that its salespeople receive, and it contemplates recalling them for more training if
the quality of their performance is below certain limits. Five samples of 20 applications
received from specific market areas were collected and inspected with the following results:

Sample No. of Applications with Errors

1 2
2 2
3 1
4 3
5 2

a. Determine the upper and lower control limits for a p-chart using a sample size of 20.
b. After the control limits were established, a sample was taken and four applications were
found to have mistakes. What can we conclude from this?