Deck 16: Productivity and Quality in Operations

Question 1

Operations management is concerned with the design, planning, and control of the factors that enable us to provide the product or service outputs of the organization.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

The first three aspects of the operations manager's function are to provide customers what they want, when they want it, and at the lowest possible price.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

Operations managers must make decisions to ensure that the firm's product or service output happens 1) in the amount demanded, 2) at the right time, 3) with the chosen quality level, and 4) in a manner compatible with the organization's goals.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

The output of manufacturing will always be a physical product-something that can be touched, measured, weighed, or otherwise examined.

Question 5

H&R Block, Northwest Airlines, McDonald's and Yahoo! are all examples of manufacturing organizations.

Question 6

As a result of time perishability, when service organizations have excess capacity that goes unused, that service capability has been lost forever.

Question 7

Several of the differences between manufacturing and service stem from the physical nature of the output. Manufacturing can stockpile inventories of finished products in advance of customer demand. Service organizations usually cannot.

Question 8

Manufacturing capacity is often described as being time perishable. This means that if a manufacturing organization has excess capacity that goes unused, that manufacturing capacity has been lost forever.

Question 9

Production and consumption usually occur simultaneously in manufacturing organizations.

Question 10

Quality is easier to assess in manufacturing than in service.

Question 11

It is important that manufacturing plants be near the locations where the product is sold.

Question 12

Productivity is easier to assess in manufactured products.

Question 13

When the product being made takes the form of discrete, individual units, the system is called a continuous-flow system.

Question 14

When the product being made takes the form of discrete, individual units, the system is called a repetitive-production system, assembly-line system, or mass-production system.

Question 15

Another name for a mass-production system is a continuous-flow production system.

Question 16

When a product is made in a continuous stream, rather than in discrete units, the system is called a continuous-flow production system.

Question 17

A Miller brewery (making beer) is an example of a continuous-flow production system.

Question 18

A project production system would be appropriate for use at a McDonald's restaurant for the daily preparation of its products.

Question 19

Operating systems with low variety and high volume have a process orientation.

Question 20

McDonald's is an example of a custom service system.

Question 21

A laundry which washes, dries, and irons men's shirts is an example of a standard service system.

Question 22

There are both long-term and short-term operational decisions.

Question 23

To make a viable product/service decision, interaction with the marketing department will be needed.

Question 24

The decisions regarding system capacity will determine the level of product or service output that the system will be able to provide.

Question 25

Survey data show that manufacturing location decisions are dominated by five factors: favorable labor climate, proximity to markets, quality of life, proximity to suppliers and resources, and proximity to the parent company's facilities.

Question 26

Systems at the flexible-purpose extreme, which must be able to handle a wide variety of product or customer service demands, will use a product layout.

Question 27

Systems at the specific-purpose extreme, in which all products or services are essentially the same, will use a process layout.

Question 28

Systems at the flexible-purpose extreme, which must be able to handle a wide variety of product or customer-service demands, will use a process layout.

Question 29

Aggregate planning constitutes the link between the more general business planning activities and the more specific master planning activities of a system.

Question 30

The main purpose of master production scheduling is to provide broad production, inventory, and human resource scheduling guidelines within which much more detailed scheduling decisions eventually will be made.

Question 31

Master production schedules typically employ weekly time periods.

Question 32

The master production schedule is really just a detailed break down of the aggregate schedule.

Question 33

In a manufacturing plant, a wrench used for equipment maintenance is part of the supplies inventory.

Question 34

Lot-sizing and lot-timing refer to the replenishment amount and time period (when to replenish) of inventory items.

Question 35

Just-in-time inventory management is an overall manufacturing philosophy that advocates eliminating waste, solving problems, and striving for continual improvement in operations.

Question 36

Using JIT, once the supply order contract is signed by the buyer and supplier, further communication is unnecessary.

Question 37

Productivity is a measure of the efficiency with which a firm performs the transformation process.

Question 38

Any increase in the numerator or decrease in the denominator of the productivity equation will result in a productivity increase.

Question 39

Quality is a measure of operational effectiveness.

Question 40

Changing the process by which a product is manufactured can enhance the productivity.

Question 41

Quality can be defined as the degree to which a product or service is considered to be luxurious.

Question 42

Quality control refers to the actual measurement and assessment of output to determine whether specifications were met.

Question 43

Quality assurance focuses on any activity that impacts upon the maintenance of quality at the desired level.

Question 44

Total quality management focuses on managing the entire organization in a manner that allows it to excel in the delivery of a product or service that meets customer needs.

Question 45

Empathy refers to the feeling of trust and confidence in the service personnel.

Question 46

Conformance reflects the degree to which the product meets the specifications set by the product designer.

Question 47

Internal failure costs include the costs associated with customer complaints, warranty claims, and product liability suits.

Question 48

Any costs incurred by an organization because of poor quality is referred to as cost of quality.

Question 49

Customers who purchase the product or service output of the organization are called internal customers.

Question 50

The end user or ultimate consumer who purchases the product or service output of the organization is called an external customer.

Question 51

Work teams that meet regularly to identify, analyze, and solve problems related to their work areas are called special-purpose teams.

Question 52

A temporary team formed to solve a special or nonrecurring problem is called a special-purpose team.

Question 53

The process of comparing a company's own products to the industry leader is referred to as kaizen.

Question 54

The process of comparing a company's own products against the industry leader is referred to as benchmarking.

Question 55

Perhaps the most prominent quality philosopher was W. Edwards Deming, an American who was considered the father of quality control in Japan.

Question 56

Joseph Juran's research in quality management revealed that more than 80 percent of quality defects are caused by factors controllable by workers.

Question 57

Armand Feigenbaum is credited with introducing the concept of total quality control and developing the quality cost categories described in our textbook.

Question 58

Philip Crosby introduced the concept that "quality is free."

Question 59

A software tool used to integrate and coordinate all areas of an organization is called an enterprise resource planning system.

Question 60

The field of management that is concerned with the design, planning, and control of the factors that enable an organization to provide the products or service outputs of that organization is referred to as

A) feasibility management.
B) technical management.
C) operations management.
D) systems management.
E) hierarchical management.

Question 61

In many organizations, the design, planning, and control of the factors that enable the firm to provide high quality products is of critical importance. These factors are collectively referred to as

A) systems management.
B) technical management.
C) operations management.
D) throughput management.
E) hierarchical management.

Question 62

Operations managers must make decisions to ensure that the product or service output of the firm is provided in all of the following ways except

A) with the correct advertising.
B) in the amount demanded.
C) at the appropriate time.
D) with the appropriate quality level.
E) in a manner that is compatible with the goals of the organization.

Question 63

A top priority of James Williams, the CEO of Applied Plastics, is to make sure that the product and service output of his firm is provided (1) in the amount demanded, (2) at the appropriate time, (3) with the appropriate quality level, and (4) in a manner that is compatible with the goals of his firm. Mr. Williams' priorities are accomplished through effective

A) systems management.
B) throughput management.
C) hierarchical management.
D) supply-chain management.
E) operations management.

Question 64

The decisions faced by operations managers can be separated into two broad categories:

A) financial decisions and operating decisions.
B) design decisions and operating and control decisions.
C) financial decisions and operating and control decisions.
D) design decisions and maintenance decisions.
E) processing decisions and maintenance decisions.

Question 65

Before Springs Manufacturing implements a new operating system, two sets of decisions must be made. These sets of decisions pertain to (1) the design of the operating system; and (2) the operating and control decisions necessary to keep the system running in a smooth and efficient manner. At Springs Manufacturing and other firms, these decisions are made by

A) operations managers.
B) processing specialists.
C) maintenance specialists.
D) support managers.
E) implementation managers.

Question 66

Which of the following is not a distinctive characteristic of manufacturing organizations?

A) Output can be produced well in advance of consumption.
B) Production can be located at a great distance from the consumer.
C) They can stockpile inventories of finished products.
D) Output is physical.
E) Production and consumption is simultaneous.

Question 67

Which of the following characteristics are a distinctive characteristic of a manufacturing organization?

A) Capacity is time-perishable.
B) Quality is very difficult to assess.
C) Inventories of finished product can be stockpiled.
D) Production and consumption are simultaneous.
E) Output lacks physical qualities.

Question 68

Which of the following is primarily a manufacturing organization?

A) Target
B) ESPN
C) Adidas
D) Southwest Airlines
E) Wendy's

Question 69

Which of the following is not a distinctive characteristic of a service organization?

A) Outputs lack physical qualities.
B) Inventories of finished products cannot be stockpiled.
C) Inventories of finished products can be stockpiled.
D) Production and consumption are simultaneous.
E) Quality is very difficult to access.

Question 70

Which of the following is a distinctive characteristic of a service organization?

A) Quality is relatively easy to access.
B) Production and consumption are not simultaneous.
C) Inventories of finished products can be stockpiled.
D) Output is physical.
E) Production and consumption are simultaneous.

Question 71

Which of the following is primarily a service organization?

A) Dell
B) GM
C) Procter & Gamble
D) Time-Warner
E) Anheuser-Busch

Question 72

A barber shop is a service organization. Four barbers work from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., and they try to stay busy seeing customers the whole day but often must sit and wait between clients. This means that

A) service firms typically do not stay in business over ten years.
B) if a service organization has excess capacity that goes unused, that service capacity has been lost forever.
C) service capacity loses its value over time.
D) service firms are typically more hectic to work at and do business with than manufacturing firms.
E) time is not as important an issue for service firms compared to manufacturing firms.

Question 73

Manufacturing and service organizations are different on all of the following dimensions except one. This exception is the

A) input-to-output transformation process.
B) measurements of quality and productivity.
C) degree of consumer participation.
D) simultaneous nature of product and consumption.
E) time perishability of output.

Question 74

__________, which measures the relationship between inputs and outputs is __________ to measure in manufacturing situations.

A) Quality, easier
B) Productivity, easier
C) Capacity, easier
D) Quality, harder
E) Productivity, harder

Question 75

LTV, a large steel company, produces long, continuous rolls of sheet steel, utilizing a continuous-flow production system. According to the classification scheme for different operating systems shown in the textbook, LTV has a

A) process orientation.
B) manufacturing orientation.
C) product orientation.
D) efficiency orientation.
E) effectiveness orientation.

Question 76

Bates Manufacturing produces hand held staplers. Bates production system is

A) job-shop production.
B) assembly-line production.
C) project production.
D) continuous-flow production.
E) service-flow production.

Question 77

The Heineken Brewery in Amsterdam produces its beer in a continuous stream 365 days a year. This system is called a/an

A) mass-production system.
B) assembly-line system.
C) repetitive-production system.
D) continuous-flow system.
E) job-shop system.

Question 78

Diane Jenning's company produces a product that is made in a continuous stream, not in discrete units. This type of production system is called

A) job-shop production.
B) assembly-line production.
C) project production.
D) continuous-flow production.
E) service-flow production.

Question 79

When the items to be made require small to moderate amounts of resources and time, the system is called a/an

A) job-shop system.
B) assembly-line system.
C) project system.
D) continuous-flow system.
E) service-flow system.

Question 80

Jose Martin is an experienced tool and die maker. In his work, Jose produces small quantities of a wide variety of specialized items. Jose's operation can be described as a/an

A) continuous-flow production system.
B) job-shop production system.
C) assembly line.
D) mass-production system.
E) repetitive assembly system.