Exam 22: Vehicle Routing and Scheduling

A certain product under development took 200 hours for the production of its 2nd unit and 180 hours for its 4th unit. a. What is the learning rate? b. How much time did the first unit take? c. How much time would the production of the 10th unit take? (Use both the logarithmic and the Table E.3 approach. Do the two versions agree?)

The first unit took 10 hours and the fourth unit 8.1 hours. What is the improvement rate?

You are about to undertake manufacture of a labor-intensive electronics component. The first unit took 300 hours. You are not sure whether the learning rate is 70% or 80%. The initial phase of the contract calls for 6 of these components. a. How much time will it take to complete all six at 70% learning? b. How much time will it take to complete all six at 80% learning?

What can cause a learning curve to vary from a smooth downward slope?

In the logarithmic approach formula to compute the time for the Nth unit, T_N = T₁N^b, the exponent b is the learning curve rate L, expressed as a decimal.

What cautions are in order when using learning curves?

If the first unit in a series of units takes 200 days to complete, and the learning curve is 80%, then the second unit will take 160 days.

In the logarithmic approach to learning curve calculations, you have used the formula T_N = T₁. (N^b). Your manager shows you a problem for which b is specified as -.18442. What learning rate does that value represent?

Identify one advantage and one disadvantage of the arithmetic approach over the logarithmic approach to learning curve calculations.

Which one of the following statements about learning curves is true?

The earliest application of learning curves appears in the work of architect Frank Lloyd Wright.

Sally suspects strongly that there is a learning curve associated with solving problems assigned for operations management. She notes that it took her approximately 33 minutes to solve the first problem and 20 minutes to solve the fifth problem. a. Estimate Sally's learning percentage. b. Using your answer from part a, estimate how much longer it will take Sally to finish the three problems that remain.

Joe's Manufacturing is considering bidding on a small order for 5 units. Based on similar products that they have made in the past, they believe that the first unit will take 500 labor hours. They also believe that there will be an 80% learning rate. How many hours of labor should Joe include for his bid?

It took 60 hours to make the first unit of a product. After the second and third units were made, the learning curve was estimated to be 80%. At $10 per hour, estimate the labor bill for the fourth unit. (Use at least three decimals in the exponent if you use the logarithmic approach.)

A defense contractor has just started producing turbines for a new government contract. The first turbine took 7000 hours to produce. If the learning curve is 90%, how long will it take to produce the 10th turbine? (Use at least three decimals in the exponent if you use the logarithmic approach.)

Explain how learning curves might be applied in a bid preparation application.

The __________ is the simplest approach to learning curve problems.

The first unit of a product took 832 hours to build, and the learning curve is 90%. How long will it take to make the 25th unit? (Use at least three decimals in the exponent if you use the logarithmic approach.)

"By tradition, learning rates are defined in terms of the complements of their improvement rates." Explain.

A product was priced assuming an 80% learning rate. How much extra labor (in %) will be required on the 4^th product if the learning rate is actually 90%?