Chapter 14Operations Scheduling and Sequencing

TRUE/FALSE
1. Scheduling refers to determining the order in which jobs or tasks are processed.
ANS: F

PTS: 1

2. Telling an umpire crew to work baseball games in Chicago, then Milwaukee, and then Cleveland is an
example of a sequence.
ANS: T

PTS: 1

3. Scheduling and sequencing methods used in manufacturing are more beneficial in low-contact, than
high-contact, service processes.
ANS: T

PTS: 1

4. Scheduling problems occur almost exclusively in manufacturing.

ANS: F

PTS: 1

5. Appointments can be viewed as a reservation of service time and capacity.

ANS: T

PTS: 1

6. Indirectly, appointments reduce the cost of providing a service because the service provider is idle less
each workday.
ANS: T

PTS: 1

7. Sequencing is not as much of a concern when several activities use a common resource.
ANS: F

PTS: 1

8. Flow time is the amount of time a job spends in a shop or factory.

ANS: T

PTS: 1

9. The makespan is the sum of flow times of a given set of jobs.

ANS: F

PTS: 1

10. High flow times reduce WIP inventory.

ANS: F

PTS: 1

11. A lateness measure can only be 0 or a positive number.

ANS: F

OM3 Test Bank

PTS: 1

Chapter 14

12. Tardiness measures the amount of time by which the completion time exceeds the due date.
ANS: T

PTS: 1

13. The shortest processing time rule and earliest due date rule will always provide the same sequence.
ANS: F

PTS: 1

14. The SPT sequencing rule will maximize the average flow time.
ANS: F

PTS: 1

15. The EDD rule minimizes the maximum of jobs past due but doesn't perform well on average flowtime, WIP inventory or resource utilization.
ANS: T

PTS: 1

16. For a single processor, a first-come, first-served (FCFS) rule minimizes the average flow time because
customer waiting time will be minimized.
ANS: F

PTS: 1

17. A tardiness measure can be either zero (0) or a positive number.

ANS: T

PTS: 1

18. Since all jobs eventually get done, job sequencing has no effect on resource utilization.
ANS: F

PTS: 1

19. In sequencing a set of jobs on a single processor, different sequences will have different makespans but
the same average flow times.
ANS: F

PTS: 1

20. In practice, whenever processing times of a set of jobs are about equal, managers typically use a firstcome, first-serve rule.
ANS: T

PTS: 1

21. Like the SPT rule, the earliest due date (EDD) rule minimizes the average flow time.
ANS: F

PTS: 1

22. When several products share common facilities, product sequencing affects cost.
ANS: T

PTS: 1

23. In sequencing jobs in a flow shop with two resources, Johnson's rule finds a sequence that has the
smallest makespan.
ANS: T

OM3 Test Bank

PTS: 1

Chapter 14

24. Rescheduling rarely occurs unless customers change their requested due dates.
ANS: F

PTS: 1

25. Gantt charts can show what jobs are ahead of schedule, behind schedule, and on schedule.
ANS: T

PTS: 1

26. UPS, the world's largest package delivery company, is highly dependent on scheduling but not
sequencing.
ANS: F

PTS: 1

27. The time to rest and travel between games for baseball umpire crews is an important factor in
developing their schedule.
ANS: T

PTS: 1

28. Appointments systems often overbook to maximize revenue.

ANS: T

PTS: 1

29. Two examples of process-focused performance measures for sequencing rules are flow time and
lateness.
ANS: F

PTS: 1

30. Scheduling applies to all aspects of the value chain.

ANS: T

PTS: 1

MULTIPLE CHOICE
1. Triage by nurses in an emergency room would be an example of
a. Scheduling
b. Sequencing
c. Appointments
d. Shortest-processing-time rule
ANS: B

PTS: 1

2. Scheduling refers to specifying

a. The sequence that jobs must be completed
b. The due date for each job
c. The start and completion times of jobs
d. The makespan of each job
ANS: C

PTS: 1

3. Staff scheduling needs all of the following except

a. Flow-time estimates
b. Accurate forecasting
c. Staffing levels required by time period
OM3 Test Bank

Chapter 14

d. Determining available personnel

ANS: A

PTS: 1

4. Which of the following is not a consideration when designing an appointment system?

a. Determining the appointment time interval
b. Determining the appropriate sequencing rule
c. Determining the length of each workday and the time off-duty
d. Deciding on an overbooking policy
ANS: B

PTS: 1

5. The time needed to process a given set of jobs is called

a. Flow time
b. Ready time
c. Makespan
d. Due date
ANS: C

PTS: 1

6. The numerical difference between the completion time and the due date is called
a. Flow time
b. Lateness
c. Makespan
d. Tardiness
ANS: B

PTS: 1

7. The Shortest Processing Time (SPT) rule

a. Ensures that due dates are met
b. Maximizes average flow-time
c. Minimizes resource utilization
d. Minimizes work in process inventory
ANS: D

PTS: 1

8. The sequencing rule that minimizes the maximum number of jobs that are past due from a given set of
jobs is
a. Shortest processing time
b. Earliest due date
c. First come, first served
d. Least work remaining
ANS: B

PTS: 1

9. Considering a two-resource sequencing problem,

a. The makespan is the same for any sequence of jobs
b. Flow time is minimized
c. The goal is to minimize makespan
d. Each job can be processed by either resource first
ANS: C

OM3 Test Bank

PTS: 1

Chapter 14

10. If the highest priority is to minimize the average job lateness, then the jobs sequence should begin with
those jobs requiring
a. The shortest processing time
b. The smallest critical ratio
c. The least remaining operations
d. The longest processing time
ANS: A

PTS: 1

11. ScheduleAnywhere.com on-line software helps clients do all the following except
a. Schedule employees from any computer with Internet access.
b. Decide how much to overbook for each day of the week.
c. See who's scheduled and who's available.
d. Avoid scheduling conflicts.
ANS: B

PTS: 1

12. A requirement of Johnsons two-resource sequencing rule is

a. All jobs must begin at the same time
b. Jobs must be processed through each work center in the same job sequence
c. Only two jobs can be processed at a time through each work center
d. Total processing time must be minimized
ANS: B

a.
b.
c.
d.

13. Which of the following is an example of a situation for which a Gantt chart would be appropriate?
developing a factory layout
tracking inventory levels over time
monitoring job schedules
forecasting personnel requirements in a two-shift operation
ANS: C

a.
b.
c.
d.

PTS: 1

15. The chief disadvantage of the shortest processing time rule is:
average job completion times are excessive
average number of jobs in the system is excessive
long-duration jobs may have excessive completion times
average job lateness is excessive
ANS: C

a.
b.
c.
d.

PTS: 1

14. Which of the following is NOT a criterion for evaluating job sequencing rules?
average flow time
lateness
tardiness
sum of processing times
ANS: D

a.
b.
c.
d.

PTS: 1

PTS: 1

16. Johnsons sequencing rule is used to sequence

several jobs through several work centers
several jobs through one work center
two jobs through several work centers
several jobs through two work centers

OM3 Test Bank

Chapter 14

ANS: D

PTS: 1

SHORT ANSWER
1. Differentiate between scheduling and sequencing.
ANS:
Both scheduling and sequencing involve identifying the order in which jobs or activities are
performed. Scheduling refers to the assignment of start and completion times to particular jobs, people
or equipment, and incorporates start and completion times. Sequencing refers to determining the order
in which jobs or tasks are processed. A sequence generally specifies a schedule.
PTS: 1
2. Staff scheduling attempts to match available personnel with the needs of the organization by
performing what four steps?
ANS:
1.
Accurately forecasting demand and translating it into the quantity and timing of work to
be done using a capacity measure like number of staff required
2.
Determining the staffing required to perform the work by time period usually by hour
of the day, and sometimes in 5- to 10-minute time intervals
3.
Determining the personnel available and the full- and part-time mix considering
worker productivity factors, personal allowances, sickness, vacations, no-shows, etc.
4.
Matching capacity to demand requirements, and developing a work schedule that
maximizes service and minimizes costs different approaches are required for different
situations because of the nature of scheduling constraints
PTS: 1
3. What four (4) decisions are considered in designing an appointment system?
ANS:
Service capacity is perishable and appointment systems improve resource utilizations and revenue
generation, and reduce customer waiting time. Lawyers, insurance agents, personal trainers,
physicians, cable and telephone installers, tax preparers, dentists, investment advisors and consultants
are examples of where appointment systems benefit both the customer and service-provider. The four
major decisions required to design an appointment system as described in the text are:
1.
Determine the appointment time interval
2.
Determine the length of each workday and the time off-duty
3.
Decide how to handle overbooking
4.
Develop customer appointment rules
PTS: 1
4. Compare and contrast the advantages and disadvantages of the Shortest Processing Time (SPT) and the
Earliest Due Date (EDD) sequencing rules.
ANS:

OM3 Test Bank

Chapter 14

SPT and EDD Rules generally work well in the short term but, in most situations, new orders and jobs
arrive intermittently and the schedule must accommodate them. The SPT Rule tends to minimize
average flow time and work-in-process inventory, and maximize resource utilization. The EDD Rule
minimizes the maximum of jobs past due but doesn't perform well on average flow time, WIP
inventory or resource utilization. If SPT were used in a dynamic environment, a job with a large
processing time might never get processed. In this case, some time-based exception rule, i.e., "If a job
waits more than 40 hours, schedule it next.") must be used to avoid this problem.
PTS: 1
5. Explain why any sequence chosen in the single-machine scheduling problem will not change
makespan time.
ANS:
The total processing time for all jobs is constant; it is simply the sum of the individual processing
times, which is sequence independent. M = C S where
M = makespan of a group of jobs
C = completion time of last job in the group
S = start time of first job in the group
so it doesn't change.
PTS: 1
6. Describe Johnson's sequencing rule for the two-resource sequencing problem.
ANS:
1.
List the jobs and their processing times on Resources #1 and #2.
2.
Find the job with the shortest processing time (on either resource).
3.
If this time corresponds to Resource #1, sequence the job first; if it corresponds to
Resource #2, sequence the job last.
4.
Repeat steps 2 and 3, using the next-shortest processing time and working inward from
both ends of the sequence until all jobs have been scheduled.
PTS: 1
7. Give at least five examples of service organizations (and employee type) where, due to high variability
in customer demand, staff scheduling problems are prevalent.
ANS:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.

Call center (service representatives)

Hotel (housekeepers)
Toll booths (toll collectors)
Hospital (nurses)
Police department (patrol officers)
Airline (reservation clerks)

PTS: 1
8. Short-term capacity fluctuations necessitate changes in schedules. List at least five factors affecting
short-term capacity.

OM3 Test Bank

Chapter 14

ANS:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Employee absenteeism (and turnover)

Sub-par labor performance
Equipment (including power) failures
Tooling (including set-up) problems
Material shortages

PTS: 1
9. Explain the three categories of criteria used to evaluate job sequencing performance. For each
category, provide two example measures.
ANS:
Process-focused performance criteria: two common measures are flow time and makespan. Flow
time is the amount of time a job spent in the shop or factory. Makespan is the time needed to
process a given set of jobs.
Customer-focused due date criteria: two common measures are lateness and tardiness. Lateness is
the difference between the completion time and the due date (either positive or negative).
Tardiness is the amount of time by which the completion time exceeds the due date.
Cost-based criteria: common cost measures include inventory holding, changeover (setup),
processing, and material handling.
1.

2.

3.

PTS: 1
PROBLEM
1. The following five jobs, along with their processing time and due dates, are given below.
Processing
Time (days)
8
4
3
7
5

Job
A
B
C
D
E
a.
b
.

Days Due
From Today
12
9
6
7
20

Use the Shortest Processing Time Rule (SPT) and determine the average flow-time for
the five jobs
Use the Earliest Due Date Rule (EDD) and determine the average lateness and tardiness.

ANS:
a.
Sequence the jobs as C-B-E-D-A. Flow times are
C
3
B
3+4=7
E
7 + 5 = 12
D
12 + 7 = 19
A
19 + 8 = 27
Average flow time = 13.6 days
b.

Sequence the jobs C-D-B-A-E. Lateness calculations are shown below:

Job

Flow time

OM3 Test Bank

Lateness
Chapter 14

Tardiness
8

C
D
B
A
E

3
3 + 7 = 10
10 + 4 = 14
14 + 8 = 22
22 + 5 = 27

3 6 = -3
10 7 = 3
14 9 = 5
22 12 = 10
27 20 = 7

0
3
5
10
7

Average lateness = 4.4 days

Average tardiness = 25/5 = 5.0 days
PTS: 1
2. The table below includes processing times and due dates for five jobs.
Processing
Time (days)
16
23
22
8
10

Job
A
B
C
D
E

Days Due
From Today
24
30
40
28
18

a. Use the Shortest Processing Time Rule (SPT) to determine the average flow time.
b. Use the Earliest Due Date Rule (EDD) to determine the average lateness.
ANS:
a.
Sequence the jobs as D-E-A-C-B. Flow times are
D
8
E
8 + 10 = 18
A
18 + 16 = 34
C
34 + 22 = 56
B
56 + 23 = 79
Average flow time = 39 days
b.

Sequence the jobs E-A-D-B-C. Lateness calculations are shown below:

Job
E
A
D
B
C

Flow time
10
10 + 16 = 26
26 + 8 = 34
34 + 23 = 57
57 + 22 = 79

Lateness
10 - 18 = -8
26 24 = 2
34 28 = 6
57 30 = 27
79 40 = 39

Tardiness
0
2
6
27
39

Average lateness = 13.2 days

Average tardiness = 14.8 days
PTS: 1

OM3 Test Bank

Chapter 14

3. A new surgical facility called Cut & Sew is opening in neighborhoods throughout the United States.
They are job shops that handle a variety of outpatient surgical procedures. Their process is set up so
that one doctor cuts and the other sews. They have five patients to sequence for tomorrow. Since the
weather forecast is for a cool and sunny day, they would also like to play golf tomorrow. They want to
sequence their patients with the objective of minimizing the time from the beginning of the first job
until the finish of that job. The patients and estimated times are as follows:
Patient
A
B
C
D
E

Cut Time (hours)

2.3
2.5
2.0
0.6
3.6

Sew Time (hours)

2.8
3.0
1.5
1.0
2.6

Sequence the patients using Johnson's Method, state the schedule for each operation, and determine the
minimum makespan.
ANS:
D AB E C
Job
D
A
B
E
C

Start Cut
0
0.6
2.9
5.4
9.0

End Cut
0.6
2.9
5.4
9.0
10.5

Start Sew
0.6
2.9
5.7
9.0
11.6

End Sew
1.6
5.7
8.7
11.6
14.1

Makespan = 14.1
PTS: 1
4. A restaurant needs the following number of wait staff to serve its evening guests.
Day:
Minimum Number of
Wait Staff Needed:

Tu

Th

Sa

Su

How many employees are needed so that each as two consecutive days off? Construct a work schedule
for these employees.
ANS:
Seven employees are needed. Numbers underlined are the "circled" days in the algorithm that
designate days off. For the last employee, there are many different options.
M
5
4
3
2
2
1
0

Tu
2
2
2
2
2
1
0

W
1
1
1
1
0
0
0

Th
4
3
2
1
0
0
0

F
6
5
4
3
2
1
0

Sa
7
6
5
4
3
2
1

Su
2
1
0
0
0
0
0

PTS: 1
OM3 Test Bank

Chapter 14

10

5. A movie theater requires the following minimum number of employees, each of which is required to
have two consecutive days off.
Day:
Minimum
Personnel Required:

Tu

Th

Sa

Su

How many employees are needed so that each as two consecutive days off? Construct a work schedule
for these employees.
ANS:
Five employees are needed. Numbers underlined are the "circled" days in the algorithm that designate
days off. For the last employee, there are many different options.
M
1
1
1
0
0

Tu
1
1
1
0
0

W
3
2
1
1
0

Th
2
1
0
0
0

F
5
4
3
2
1

Sa
4
3
2
1
0

Su
3
2
1
0
0

(alternate options
exist: Su-M)

PTS: 1
6. A young entrepreneur has just opened an electronics store. One of the many tasks that she must
address is work scheduling. She plans to stay open from 9a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday.
She expects her employees to stock the shelves and also be available for cashier check-out when
needed. All employees are full time and work four days in a
row with two consecutive days off
each week. She estimates the number of employees needed each day as follows:

Mon
6

Tue
9

Wed
5

Thu
7

Fri
9

Sat
10

Total
46

a. Use the days-off scheduling procedure to determine the minimum number of employees required?
b. Based on your schedule found in part (a), which days are overstaffed and by how many workers
are they overstaffed?
ANS:
a. 13 employees are needed.

Employe
e
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9

OM3 Test Bank

Mon

Tue

Wed

Thu

Fri

Sat

6
5
4
4
3
3
2
1
1

9
8
7
7
6
6
5
4
4

5
5
5
4
4
3
3
2
1

7
7
7
6
6
5
5
4
3

9
8
7
6
5
4
3
3
2

10
9
8
7
6
5
4
4
3

Chapter 14

11

10
11
12
13

0
0
0
0

3
2
1
1

1
0
0
0

3
2
2
1

1
1
0
0

2
2
1
0

________ indicates days off

b. Mon. overstaffed by 3, Wed. overstaffed by 3, Thu. Overstaffed by 1, Fri. overstaffed by 1.

Employe
e
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
Total

Mon

Tue

X
X

X
X

X
X

X
X

X
X
X

X
X
X

X
9

X
9

Wed

Thu

X
X

X
X

X
X
X
X
8

X
X
X
X
8

Fri

Sat

X
X
X
X
X
X

X
X
X
X
X
X

X
X

X
X

X
X

X
X

10

10

PTS: 1
7. A print shop has four jobs that have to be processed through their only five-color press. They usually
use the first-come first-served method of scheduling jobs. However, the customers are waiting in the
lobby for these jobs so the shop wants to minimize the average waiting time. They are going to use the
shortest processing time rule to do so. Processing times for each job are as follows (assume this is the
arrival order): Job A, 30 minutes; Job B, 17 minutes; Job C, 12 minutes; Job D, 39 minutes.
a. In what order should the four jobs be done using the shortest processing time rule?
b. What is the average waiting (flow) time for all jobs using the shortest processing time rule?
c. What is the averaging waiting (flow) time using their usual first-come first-served rule?
ANS:
a. Shortest processing time:
Order of jobs: C, B, A, D
Completion (flow) times: C = 12; B = 12 + 17 = 29; A = 29 + 30 = 59; D = 59 + 39 = 98
b. Average flow time: (12 + 29 + 59 + 98)/4 = 49.50
c. First-come first-served:
Order of jobs: A, B, C, D
Completion (flow) times: A = 30; B = 30 + 17 = 47; C = 47 + 12 = 59; D = 59 + 39 = 98
Average waiting time: (30 + 47 + 59 + 98)/4 = 58.50

OM3 Test Bank

Chapter 14

12

PTS:
8.

An airplane repair facility has a contract to repair cargo aircraft for a regional airline. There are 62
planes in the airline company's fleet of planes. Because of the punishing workload, the planes require a
considerable amount of maintenance. The repair facility is trying to determine how to schedule the
needed repairs. They want to compare the shortest processing time rule and the first-come first-served
rule. Currently, the following planes need repair and are in the repair facility (data given is in order of
plane arrival, only one plane is worked on at a time and the shop is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a
week).

Plane
A342
B554
C222
D876
E211
F887

Estimated repair time

4 hours
26 hours
2 hours
16 hours
9 hours
6 hours

a. In what order should the planes be repaired using the shortest processing time rule (use first letter
of plane)?
b. What is the average time (in hours) in the shop using the shortest processing time rule?
c. What is the average time (in hours) in the shop using the first-come first-served rule?
ANS:
a. Shortest processing time:
Order of jobs:
C222, A342, F887, E211, D876, B554
Completion (flow) times: C = 2; A = 2 + 4 = 6;
F = 6 + 6 = 12; E = 12 + 9 = 21; D = 21 + 16 = 37;
B = 37 + 26 = 63
b. Average time in shop:
(2 + 6 + 12 + 21 + 37 + 63)/6 = 141/6 = 23.5 hours
c. First-come first-served:
Order of jobs: A, B, C, D, E, F
Completion (flow) times: A 4; B = 4 + 26 = 30;
C = 30 + 2 = 32; D = 32 + 16 = 48; E = 48 + 9 = 57;
F = 57 + 6 = 63
Average time in shop:
(4 + 30 + 32 + 48 + 57 + 63)/6 = 234/6 = 39.0 hours
PTS:

9. A print shop has five large commercial printing jobs to finish. They are trying to decide whether to use
the shortest processing time (SPT) or the first-come first-served (FCFS) sequencing rule. Data on
estimated processing time (in hours) and time to promised completion (in hours) is as follows (jobs
shown in order of arrival):

Jo
b

Processing time

OM3 Test Bank

Time to promised completion

Chapter 14

13

A
B
C
D
E
a.
b.
c.
d.

4
9
5
8
11

8
30
17
8
12

What is the average flow time in hours using the FCFS rule?
What is the average job lateness in hours using the FCFS rule?
What is the average flow time in hours using the SPT rule?
What is the average job lateness in hours using the SPT rule?

ANS:
a. First-come first-served:
Order of jobs: A, B, C, D, E
Completion (flow) times: A = 4; B = 4 + 9 = 13;
C = 13 + 5 = 18; D = 18 + 8 = 26; E = 26 + 11 = 37
Average flow time:
(4 + 13 + 18 + 26 + 37)/5 = 98/5 = 19.6 hours
b. Average job lateness (difference between flow time and time to completion):
(0 + 0 + 1 + 18 + 25)/5 = 44/5 = 8.8 hours
c. Shortest processing time:
Order of jobs: A, C, D, B, E
Completion (flow) times: A = 4; C = 4 + 5 = 9; D = 9 + 8 = 17;
B = 17 + 9 = 26; E = 26 + 11 = 37
Average flow time:
(4 + 9 + 17 + 26 + 37)/5 = 18.6 hours
d. Average job lateness (difference between flow time and time to completion):
(0 + 0 + 9 + 0 + 25)/5 = 34/5 = 6.8 hours
PTS:

10. At the end of each month, a research and development team writes status reports for the projects
worked on during the month. The team leaders, Andrew and Julie, submit the reports to the R&D
director on the first Monday of each month. It is late Friday evening and to their surprise, they have
discovered that the month ends on Sunday and the reports are due on Monday morning. They have
decided to come to work early Saturday morning, so they can finish the reports before Monday
morning. They split the work as follows: Andrew will write and edit the reports while Julie collates
data and draws all the necessary graphs. Assume that Julie starts her work on a report as soon as
Andrew is finished with it and that Andrew works continuously. Times for the reports (in hours) are as
follows:

Projects
A
B
C
D
E

Andrew
4
3
5
7
8

Julie
2
5
1
3
6

a. What is the order of the projects using Johnson's rule?

b. How many hours will it take them to finish all the reports?
OM3 Test Bank

Chapter 14

14

c. How many hours is Andrew idle?

d. How many hours is Julie idle?
ANS:
a. Order of jobs using Johnson's rule: B, E, D, A, C
b. Andrew: B (3), E(11), D (18), A (22), C (27)
Julie:
B (8), E(17), D (21), A (24), C (28)
(time in parentheses is cumulative hours to complete)
It will take 28 hours to complete all of the reports
c. Andrew idle time: 28 27 = 1 hour
d. Julie idle time: 3 + 3 + 1 + 1 + 3 = 11 hours
PTS:

11. A company is faced with seven tasks that have to be processed through two work centers, work center I
and then center II. Assume work center I works continuously and that they are using Johnson's rule.
Work centers need not change over to new jobs at the same time. Data appears below in hours:

Task
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
a.
b.
c.
d.

Work Center I
2.58
1.66
2.71
5.52
3.38
5.22
2.89

Work Center II
3.47
5.84
2.41
1.99
7.62
1.73
1.11

What is the sequence of tasks?

What is the time in hours to complete all the tasks in both work centers?
What is the total idle time in hours for work center I?
What is the total idle time in hours for work center II?

ANS:
a. Job order using Johnson's rule: B, A, E, C, D, F, G
b. Work center I: B (1.66); A (4.24); E (7.62);
C (10.33); D (15.85); F (21.07); G (23.96)
Work center II: B (7.50); A (10.97); E (18.59);
C (21.00); D (22.99); F (24.72); G (25.83)
(time in parentheses is cumulative hours to complete)
It will take 25.83 hours to complete all tasks
c. Work center I idle time: 25.83 23.96 = 1.87 hours
d. Work center II idle time: 1.66 hours (wait for task B)

OM3 Test Bank

Chapter 14

15