Exam 22: Learning Curves

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Your company is making experimental turbochargers for a new design of high-powered farm tractors. The production schedule for these new components is contained in the table below. Month Turbochargers 1 4 2 6 3 7 4 8 5 5 The first turbocharger, a trial unit, took 900 hours to produce. Based on your experience with similar products, the learning factor is 85%. You have 20 employees, and each employee works 160 hours per month. How many hours will be required in each month? In which month(s) will overtime be required to meet the production schedule?

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Use the Total time column of the 85% section of Table E.3 in the text. The first four turbochargers require 900 ∗ 3.345 = 3,010 hours. The first 10 turbochargers require 900 ∗ 7.116 = 6,404 hours. From this answer, deduce that units 5 through 10 take 6,404 - 3,010 = 3,394 hours. The 20 employees contribute 3200 hours per month. Therefore, overtime is not needed in the first month but is needed in the second. Overtime is also needed in months 3 and 4, but not in month 5. The table below contains calculation details.
 Month  Number of  Turbochargers  Cumulative  Turbochargers  Total Time  Factor From  Table E.3  Cumulative  hours  Hours  this  month 1443.3453,0103,01026107.1166,4043,394371710.8989,8083,404482514.80113,3213,513553017.09115,3822,061\begin{array} { | c | c | c | c | c | c | } \hline \text { Month } & \begin{array} { c } \text { Number of } \\\text { Turbochargers }\end{array} & \begin{array} { c } \text { Cumulative } \\\text { Turbochargers }\end{array} & \begin{array} { c } \text { Total Time } \\\text { Factor From } \\\text { Table E.3 }\end{array} & \begin{array} { c } \text { Cumulative } \\\text { hours }\end{array} & \begin{array} { c } \text { Hours } \\\text { this } \\\text { month }\end{array} \\\hline 1 & 4 & 4 & 3.345 & 3,010 & 3,010 \\\hline 2 & 6 & 10 & 7.116 & 6,404 & 3,394 \\\hline 3 & 7 & 17 & 10.898 & 9,808 & 3,404 \\\hline 4 & 8 & 25 & 14.801 & 13,321 & 3,513 \\\hline 5 & 5 & 30 & 17.091 & 15,382 & 2,061 \\\hline\end{array}

Experience curves are the opposite of learning curves-as one rises, the other falls.

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False

The learning curve coefficient approach may be simpler to use than the logarithmic approach, but it requires the presence of a table of learning coefficients.

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Learning curves (or experience curves) were first applied to industry by ________ who was studying ________.

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The first unit took 10 hours and the eighth unit took 1.25 hours. What is the learning curve?

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Companies pursuing a learning curve strategy must increase

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Which of the following is representative of a firm pursuing a learning curve strategy?

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What cautions are in order when using learning curves?

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

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A small manufacturer that offers "hand crafted" furniture has developed a new style of desk that they believe will be very successful in the marketplace. It is expected that the third desk will take about 82 hours of craftsmen's time to complete. They expect a 92% learning curve for this desk. a) How long did it take to make the first desk? b) How long will it take to make the 16th desk? c) The firm is considering accepting an order for 16 desks. How many hours of labour will this require for all 16?

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The first product took 10 hours to build and the learning curve is estimated to be 90%. How long with it take to make the fourth unit?

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A 100% learning curve implies that

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In the logarithmic approach to learning curve calculations, you have used the formula TN = T1. (Nb). For a problem with a 92% learning rate, what is b?

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The learning curve for a product is 90%. The first unit took 10 hours to complete. The manufacturer wants to determine how many hours the fourth unit will take by using the logarithmic method. The coefficient b for that calculation is approximately

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If the 16th unit took 12.3 minutes and the learning curve is estimated to be 80% how long did it take to make the first unit?

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The logarithmic approach to learning curve calculations allows us to determine the hours required for any unit.

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Two manufacturers have very different learning rates; one is under 70% while the other is over 80%. What factors might lead to such a gap?

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Which of the following best conveys the essence of learning curves?

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The earliest industrial application of learning curves came from a report by ________.

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The Learning-Curve Coefficients table reports that for 70% learning, the eighth unit has a unit time value of 0.343. Verify that table entry by use of the arithmetic method.

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