Operations Management Problem Exercises Free Essay Example

McBurger’s fast-food restaurant has a drive-through window with a single server who takes orders from an intercom and also is the cashier. The window operator is assisted by other employees who prepare the orders. Customers arrive at the ordering station prior to the drive-through window every 3.6 minutes (exponentially distributed) and the service time is 2.4 minutes (exponentially distributed). Determine the average length of the waiting line and the waiting time. Discuss the quality implications of your results. If you decide that the quality of the service could be improved, indicate what things you might do to improve quality.

60/3.6=16.67
60/2.4=25
16.67²/(25)(25.25-16.67)=1.33 customers waiting
16.67/25(25-16.67)=.08hr or 4.80 minutes in line
Adding an additional order taker would allow the cashier to efficiently transact with the customer to remove any bottle neck.

6.5 Patricia Zell, a dollmaker from Olney, Maryland, is interested in the mass marketing and production of a ceramic doll of her own design called Tiny Trisha. The initial investment required for plant and equipment is estimated at ,000.

Labor and material costs are approximately $10 per doll. If the dolls can be sold for $50 each, what volume of demand is necessary for the Tiny Trisha doll to break even? 625 Dolls

6.6

Although it will fulfill her lifelong dream, Patricia is not confident that demand for her Tiny Trisha doll will exceed the breakeven point computed in Problem 6-5. If she chooses a less appealing site and does more of the work by hand, her initial investment cost can be reduced to $5000, but her
per-unit cost of manufacture will rise to per doll.

a. What is the breakeven point for this new process?

b. Compare this process to the process proposed in the previous problem. For what volume of demand should Patricia choose this process?
A. 143
B. Option 2 investment is significantly lower than option 1 while the cost of the doll would be more her breakeven point would be less therefore become profitable sooner and build capital to eventually reduce the manual labor costs.