IEN11 – OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT
ASSIGNMENT
FACILITY LAYOUT
Analyze and solve the following problems.
1. An assembly line with 17 tasks is to be balanced. The longest task is 2.4 minutes, and the total
time for all tasks is 18 minutes. The line will operate for 450 minutes per day.
a. What are the minimum and maximum cycle times?
b. What range of output is theoretically possible for the line?
c. What is the minimum number of workstations needed if the maximum output rate is
to be sought?
d. What cycle time will provide an output rate of 125 units per day?
e. What output potential will result if the cycle time is (1) 9 minutes? (2) 15 minutes?
2. A producer of inkjet printers is planning to add a new line of printers, and you have been asked
to balance the process, given the following task times and precedence relationships. Assume
that cycle time is to be the minimum possible.
a. Do each of the following:
(1) Draw the precedence diagram.
(2) Assign tasks to stations in order of greatest number of following tasks.
(3) Determine the percentage of idle time.
(4) Compute the rate of output in printers per day that could be expected for this line
assuming a 420-minute working day.
b. Answer these questions:
(1) What is the shortest cycle time that will permit use of only two workstations?
Identify the tasks you would assign to each station.
(2) Determine the percentage of idle time that would result if two stations were used.
(3) What is the daily output under this arrangement?
(4) Determine the output rate that would be associated with the maximum cycle time.
3. Arrange the departments so they satisfy the conditions shown in the following rating grid into a
3 x 3 format. Place department 5 in the lower left corner of the 3 x 3 grid.
4. Mohawk Valley Furniture Warehouse has purchased a retail outlet with six departments as
shown below. The anticipated number of customers that move between the departments each
week is given in the load summary chart.
a. Calculate the nonadjacent loads for the layout shown below.
b. Revise Mohawk’s layout such that nonadjacent loads are minimized.
A BA C Department A B C D E F
A - 70 50
D E F B - 100
C 70 -
D 80 -
E 40 - 30
F 60 100 -
