Programme BSc (Hons) Management BSc (Hons) Economics and Management Cohort BMANM/09/PT BMANM/L/12B/FT BMANG/12A/12B/FT BMANG/F/12B/FT BMANG/L/12A/FT BEM/12B/FT Examinations for 2014 2015 Semester I / 2014 Semester II MODULE: OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT MODULE CODE: MGMT3207 Duration: 2 Hours Reading time: 10 Minutes Instructions to Candidates: 1. This question paper consists of Section A and Section B. 2. Section A is Compulsory. 3. Answer any two questions from Section B. 4. Always start a new question on a fresh page. 5. Total Marks: 100. This Question Paper is printed on BOTH SIDES. This Question Paper Contains 5 questions and 6 pages (excluding FORMULAE SHEET AND DISTRIBUTION TABLE). Page 1 of 6
QUESTION 1: (40 MARKS) SECTION A: COMPULSORY (a) Explain the application of the Input/Transformation Process/Output Model by referring to two examples in the business context. (b) Discuss how organizations can achieve competitive advantage through the operations function. Support your answer by appropriate examples in the business context. (15 marks) (c) (i) Explain the strategic importance of short-term scheduling. (5 marks) (ii) Five jobs must be processed through two work centers. The time for processing each job is given in the table below. Sequence the jobs using Johnson s rule and construct a time-phased chart to determine the total completion time of this optimal solution. JOB WORK CENTER 1 (hrs) WORK CENTER 2 (hrs) A 6 3 B 4 7 C 9 5 D 11 8 E 8 13 Page 2 of 6
SECTION B: ANSWER ANY TWO QUESTIONS QUESTION 2: (30 MARKS) a) Explain the importance of forecasting in organisations. (5 marks) b) The monthly demand for units manufactured by Radco Company has been as follows: MONTH UNITS May 100 June 80 July 110 August 115 September 105 October 110 November 125 December 120 (i) Use the exponential smoothing method to forecast the number of units for June to January. The initial forecast for May was 105 units; α = 0.2. (ii) Calculate the absolute error for each month from June through December and the Mean Absolute Deviation (MAD) of forecast error as at end of December. (6 marks) c) The Hallway supermarket has a chain of 12 stores in the northern part of the country. Sales figures and profits for the stores are given in the table below. Using regression analysis obtain the equation of the regression line. (8 marks) Page 3 of 6
Unit Sales, Profits (in $millions) (in $millions) 7 0.15 2 0.10 6 0.13 4 0.15 14 0.25 15 0.27 16 0.24 12 0.20 i. Predict the profit for a store assuming sales of $10million. (2 marks) ii. Compute the coefficient of correlation and comment on the relationship between sales and profit? (5 marks) QUESTION 3: (30 MARKS) (a) Differentiate between PERT (Program Evaluation Review Technique) and CPM (Critical Path Method) in project planning and control. (6 marks) (b) The Training manager is in charge of planning and coordinating next year s management training program for her company. Sarah has listed the following activity information for this project. Activity Description Immediate Predecessor Expected Duration (in weeks) A Plan topic - 2 B Obtain speakers A 3 C List meeting locations - 2 D Select location C 2 E Finalise speaker travel plan B,D 1 F Make final check with speakers E 2 Page 4 of 6
G Prepare and mail brochure B,D 4 H Take reservations G 4 I Handle last minute details F,H 2 (i) Draw the project network using AOA method. (ii) Determine the earliest times (ES & EF) latest times (LS & LF) for the project. (8 marks) (iii) What is the slack time for each individual activity? (3 marks) (iv) Determine the critical path for this project. (2 marks) (v) Determine the expected completion time for the total project. (1 mark) (vi) Find the probability that the project will be completed between 12 and 17 weeks if the standard deviation of the project is 3.2 weeks. (6 marks) QUESTION 4: (30 MARKS) (a) List some common reasons for redesigning layouts. (b) An assembly line with 24 tasks is to be balanced. The longest task is 3.0 minutes and the total time for all the task is 27 minutes. The line will operate for 480 minutes per day. (i) What are the minimum and maximum cycle times? (ii) What range of output is theoretically possible for the line? (iii) What is the minimum number of workstations needed if the maximum output range is to be sought? Page 5 of 6
(iv) What cycle time will provide an output rate of 150 units per day? (v) What output potential will result if the cycle time is 12 minutes? QUESTION 5: (30 MARKS) (a) Name some reasons why methods analyses are needed. How is methods analysis linked to productivity improvements? (b) A time study analyst timed an assembly operation for 40 cycles, and then computed the average time per cycle, which was 24 minutes. The analyst assigned a performance rating of 0.96, and decided that an appropriate allowance was 20 percent. Assume the allowance factor is based on the workday. Determine the following: the observed time (OT), the normal time (NT), and the standard time (ST). (20 marks) ***END OF QUESTION PAPER*** Page 6 of 6