SEMESTER I EXAMINATION – 2014

Academic Year – 2013/14

Bachelor of Science (Sri Lanka) BSc17 Part-Time

BMGT 3003L

Operations Management

Dr. Sean Ennis

Professor Brian Fynes

Dr. Eamonn Ambrose

DMA Kulasooriya*

Time Allowed: 3 Hours

Instructions to Candidates:

Answer any four questions.

All questions carry equal marks.

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Question 1

a) How do you understand operations strategy? Discuss the requirements from

an operations perspective of competing on quality, cost, flexibility, speed,
innovation and service.

b) What are the four basic types of production processes? How do they differ?
Give an example of each.

Question 2

During registration at Tech every quarter, students in the Department of

Management must have their courses approved by the departmental advisor.
It takes the advisor an average of five minutes (exponentially distributed) to
approve each schedule, and students arrive at the adviser’s office at the rate
of 10 per hour (Poisson distributed). Compute

a) L, Lq, W, Wq, and p

b) What do you think about this system? How would you change it?

Question 3

The Speedy Pizza Palace is revamping its order-processing and pizza-making

procedures. In order to deliver fresh Pizza fast, six elements must be
completed.

Work Element Precedence Performance time (Min)

A – Receive Order - 2

B – Shape Dough A 1

C – Prepare Toppings A 2

D – Assemble Pizza B,C 3

E- Bake Pizza D 3
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F- Deliver Pizza E 3
 A

a) Construct a precedence diagram and compute the flow time for the process.

b) If the demand for pizzas is 120 per night (5:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m.), what is the
takt time?

c) Balance the line and calculate its efficiency.

d) How would the line change to produce 160 pizzas per night?

Question 4

a) What does a learning curve specifically measure?

b) Discuss some of the uses and limitations of learning curves.

c) The housekeeping staff at the five-star Ritz Hotel has a specific, detailed list
of activities for cleaning an occupied room. Each activity is completed whether
or not it looks like it is necessary. When the hotel hires a new housekeeper, it
takes that employee about 55 minutes to clean a room the first time. The
learning curve for this job is 92%, and the average minimum time for an
experienced housekeeper to clean a room is 32 minutes. How many rooms
will a newly hired housekeeper have to clean before it can be done in 32
minutes? If a housekeeper has an eight-hour work day with 1.5 hours off for
lunch and breaks, how many work days will be required before the
housekeeper is fully proficient and able to clean a room in the minimum
average time?

Question 5

a) How do you understand the six sigma system? Discuss the advantages of
the concept of “quality at the source”

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b) Write short notes giving examples on the following

i. Poka-Yoke ( Human Error Reduction)

ii. Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE)
iii. Pull System (kanban)
iv. Process Capability Index

oOo

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