Academic Year: 2023-2024. Referral brief.

Assessment Introduction:
Courses: L5 Engineering Module Code: MP2721
Module Title: Operations
Management ‘A’
Title of the Brief: Type of assessment: Report
Manufacturing and assembly
Process model

This assessment is worth 50% of the overall module mark and should take
approximately 30 hours of independent study to complete.

This Assessment Pack consists of a detailed assignment brief, guidance on what you
need to prepare, and information on how class sessions support your ability to
complete successfully. A dedicated session will be held to communicate the brief and
SIMUL8 sessions will be available until end of December 2023. You’ll also find
information on this page to inform you on how, where, and when to submit. If you
need additional support, please make a note of the services detailed in this document.

How, when, and where to submit:

The assignment is to be submitted on Turnitin on the module Blackboard space.
The submission deadline is 02-08-24
Time 23:59

Feedback will be provided by: 23-08-24

You should of course aim to submit your assessment well in advance of the deadline.

Note: If you have any valid mitigating circumstances that mean you cannot meet an
assessment submission deadline and you wish to request an extension, you will need
to apply online, via MyUCLan with your evidence prior to the deadline. Further
information on Mitigating Circumstances via this link.

We wish you all success in completing your assessment. Read this guidance carefully,
and any questions, please discuss with your Module Leader.

Additional Support available:

All links are available through the online Student Hub
Disclaimer: The information provided in this assessment brief is correct at time of publication. In the unlikely event that any changes
are deemed necessary, they will be communicated clearly via e-mail and a new version of this assessment brief will be circulated.
 1. Optional: Academic support for this assessment will be provided by contacting
your module leader, Peter May. A teams message is the best way to request
support.
2. Our Library resources link can be found in the library area of the Student Hub
or via your subject librarian at [email protected]. Neil Marshall is
our subject librarian.
3. Support with your academic skills development (academic writing, critical
thinking and referencing) is available through WISER on the Study Skills section
of the Student Hub.

4. For help with Turnitin, see Blackboard and Turnitin Support on the Student Hub

5. If you have a disability, specific learning difficulty, long-term health or mental

health condition, and not yet advised us, or would like to review your support,
Inclusive Support can assist with reasonable adjustments and support. To find
out more, you can visit the Inclusive Support page of the Student Hub.

6. For mental health and wellbeing support, please complete our online referral
form, or email [email protected]. You can also call 01772 893020, attend a
drop-in, or visit our UCLan Wellbeing Service Student Hub pages for more
information.

7. For any other support query, please contact Student Support via
[email protected].

8. For consideration of Academic Integrity, please refer to detailed guidelines in

our policy document . All assessed work should be genuinely your own work,
and all resources fully cited.

Preparing for your assignment.

Refer to the Module Information Pack to understand the Learning Outcomes and

Marking. The assignment brief will also be introduced and discussed in class with Q&A

in class to ensure full understanding of the requirements and the marking criteria.

Note: SIMUL8 software is required for the assignment. This is most easily accessed
from University PC’s through software centre. A temporary student license may also
be downloaded on your own laptop. The details of how to do this are on our module
(MP2721) Blackboard page under the referral assignment brief.
Training sessions have been planned for training on 11/7/24 at 10-12
Feedback Guidance:

Reflecting on Feedback: how to improve.

From the feedback you receive, you should understand:

 The grade you achieved.

 The best features of your work.

 Areas you may not have fully understood.

 Areas you are doing well but could develop your understanding.

 What you can do to improve in the future - feedforward.

Use the WISER: Academic Skills Development service. WISER can review
feedback and help you understand your feedback. You can also use the
WISER Feedback Glossary

Next Steps:

 List the steps have you taken to respond to previous feedback.

 Summarise your achievements

 Evaluate where you need to improve here (keep handy for future

work):
Detailed Assignment Brief
Introduction
The aim of the assignment is to use software (SIMUL8) to simulate and
optimise the manufacturing process of a bicycle whilst appreciating the
role of operations management. Manufacturing of the bicycle is
assumed to take place within the EIC and Wharf workshop
environments. You will develop a manufacturing flow for the
manufacture of certain components and the assembly into a finished
product. The process will then be evaluated and optimised using a
SIMUL8 model. A written technical report will present the simulation
model, the results and a justification of improvements made of the
simulation with details of operational decisions taken by you prior to
starting the simulation. The report will contain illustrations/screenshots
of elements of your simulation to aid explanation. Further research is
expected to focus on the wider application and significance of
operations management techniques.

The product in question is bicycle for which manufacturing and

assembly times of components for processing are be provided in
Appendix I.
There will be a number of areas where you will need to make and
justify you own assumptions to complete the modelling process.

Learning Outcomes
The assignment should produce sufficient evidence for the fulfilment of
the following module learning outcomes:
 Describe and illustrate the scope, context and significance of the
role of operations management.
 Describe and illustrate the scope, context and significance of
manufacturing.
 Explain, justify and apply specific operations management
techniques.
 Apply both general and operations management specific software.
 Apply team-working, communication and researching skills.
Technical Tasks consisting of 5 elements; 1 to 5 – answer all
parts.
Simulate the parts manufacturing and the assembly processes using
SIMUL8 software for the mass production (including component
manufacture and assembly) of the bicycle as detailed in this brief and
supporting information. Produce a report containing covering the
following five elements:

1. Simulation Assumptions
You are to make initial operational assumptions for your simulation to
simplify its construction. Your initial priority should be to create a
simple simulation that gives credible results; to gain higher grades look
to add to or tune elements of the simulation to add realism, further
refine the model using feedback from the results to optimise the
processes. This will involve making your own assumptions for certain
factors. Explain and justify your assumptions and decisions and
consider how the simulation could be refined once a basic simulation is
working.
Sample initial assumption categories that may help you to build your
initial model:
Skill level and cross training of employees, raw material and ‘bought in’
item availability, working times, workshop space for WIP.

2. Target Goals and KPI’s

Before you begin your simulation, decide on an overall Target goal for
the optimised model. (For example, maximising output, a certain
output minimising resource usage, a target weekly output). A specific
target value that is supported by hand calculation would be better than
a general direction.
In order to evaluate your model and iterations you should plan, discuss
and decide which i.e. key performance indicators (KPIs) you wish to
derive from the simulation and what a recommended target value for
these should be. e.g., utilisation of machines, WIP, maximum capacity
etc. Explain and justify your decisions. (this will require additional
independent research).
You will need to include output per week and labour
productivity as a minimum to assess the overall efficiency of
the model.
3. Simulations
Build and run iterations of simulations to determine the maximum
weekly output of UCLan’s workshops to manufacture and assemble the
bicycle.
Initially build a simple simulation to show the flow of work through the
different manufacturing activities. Describe your logic in your report.
Highlight potential bottlenecks in your initial process design and seek
and discuss ways to improve capacity and/or efficiency in the process
to support your goals.
Supporting information for the basic process times and assembly
sequence is found in the supporting Excel file. You will be required to
make assumptions about certain details, these need to be stated and
justified. (e.g. movement of material and the location / layout of the
assembly line)
Look to add elements to the simulation to expand, refine and optimise
it. This should include (but is not limited to) features such as adding
labour and equipment resources, minimum resource levels to achieve a
certain target capacity, Inspection/Quality Control steps into the
process, productivity values for your process as a key KPI.

4. Simulation Results
Present the findings from your simulations in a report with respect to
your original target goals and KPIs. Summarise your results
graphically or in tabular form to show how each significant change
(iteration) in the model affected the results. Explain how the results
influenced further iterations of the simulation.

5. Role of Operations Management in Manufacturing

Describe the scope, context and significance of Operations
Management in this manufacturing scenario. Consider this from the
perspective of an Operations manager responsible for the day to day
running of the process. Through further reading and research explain
how operations management techniques could be applied to this
specific scenario with respect to any of the following categories Project
Management, Decision making, Quality management, Statistical
Process Control, Lean Manufacturing tools, & Six Sigma.
Points to Consider

When writing your final report:

 The final model will be required to be submitted in a separate area

to the report on Turnitin. Only the final iteration is required.
 Appendices are used only to provide further explanation of a
specific idea and it should not be used to provide vital information in
the report, i.e., the reader does NOT need to read the appendices
yet still understands the entire report.
 Figures should have captions and numbers. Sections should be
numbered. Use the numbered technical tasks as the main body of
the report structure. References must be made using the Harvard
referencing style,
 Focus on your application in the use of the software not the
explanation of how you used the software. For example:
Incorrect would be “an activity button that is shown in Fig. 1 gives
the ability to input the time, standard deviation, and the resources
required for doing the activity”.
A correct description of the use: “the sheet metal forming process is
represented by an activity tile that requires both time and
resources. A fixed time of one min, two operator and a press are
used as an input for this activity”. The fixed time was chosen
because……

Marking (50% of the module final mark)

All submitted materials will be evaluated against the following marking
scheme (total 100%):

 Task 1 Simulation Assumptions (10%

weighting)
 Task 2 Target Goals and KPI’s (10%
weighting)
 Task 3 Basic & Improved Simulations (50%
weighting)
 Task 4 Simulation Results (20% weighting)
 Task 5 Role of Operations Management (10% weighting)
Please see document ‘supporting information’ for the full rubric scheme.
SUBMISSION DETAILS
An individual report in MS Word should be submitted using Turnitin within
the module’s Blackboard space under the Assignments Section.
The SIMUL8 file of your finalised improved model is also to be submitted
to a separate link found on Blackboard.
The word count for the report is 2000 words (+/- 200 words). Reports
under the word count are unlikely to be able to cover the material in
suitable depth. Reports over the word count risk marking being ended
where the word count is exceeded.

Please note:
Appendices are used only to provide further explanation of a specific idea
and it should not be used to provide vital information in the report, i.e.,
the reader does NOT need to read the appendices yet still understands
the entire report.
Figures should have captions and numbers. Sections should be numbered
as well.
Focus on your input and the use of the software. For instance, do not
explain how the software’s buttons work, you should rather explain the
selection of the input data. For example:
Do not write: “an activity button that is shown in Fig. 1 gives the ability to
input the time, standard deviation, and the resources required for doing
the activity”.
You may write: “the sheet metal forming process is represented by an
activity button that requires both time and resources. Fixed time of 1 min
and two operators are used as an input for this activity”.

References to be cited using the Harvard reference system, if you are

unsure about this visit Cite Them Right - Home (citethemrightonline.com) for
details on how to do this correctly.