test 1- operations and production management

In an assembly operation at a furniture factory, six employees assembled an average of 450 standard dining chairs per five-day week. What is the labor productivity of this operation? A. 90 chairs/worker/day B. 20 chairs/worker/day C. 15 chairs/worker/day D. 75 chairs/worker/day E. 60 chairs/worker/day

15 chairs/worker/day

The manager of a carpet store is trying to determine the best installation crew size. He has tried various crew sizes with the results shown below. Based on productivity, what crew size do you recommend? A. 2 B. 3 C. 4

2

Gourmet Pretzels bakes soft pretzels on an assembly line. It currently bakes 800 pretzels each eight-hour shift. If the production is increased to 1,200 pretzels each shift, then productivity will have increased by: A. 50 percent. B. 33 percent. C. 25 percent. D. 67 percent.

33 percent

The Balanced Scorecard is a useful tool for helping managers translate their strategy into action in the following areas: A. Sustainability; Flexibility; Efficiency; Technology B. Customers; Financial; Internal Business Processes; Learning and Growth C. Customization; Standardization; Efficiency; Effectiveness D. The Environment; The Community; Suppliers; Other Stakeholders E. Strategy; Tactics; Productivity; Profitability

Customers; Financial; Internal Business Processes; Learning and Growth

Which of the following is not a step in the forecasting process? A. Determine the purpose and level of detail required. B. Eliminate all assumptions. C. Establish a time horizon. D. Select a forecasting model. E. Monitor the forecast.

Eliminate all assumptions.

One step that is not part of service blueprinting is: A. Eliminate boundaries for the service and decide on the level of interaction needed. B. Identify and determine the sequence of customer and service actions and interactions. C. Develop time estimates for each phase of the process. D. Understand the time variability involved. E. Identify potential failure points and develop a plan to minimize them.

Eliminate boundaries for the service and decide on the level of interaction needed.

Which of the following features would not generally be considered common to all forecasts? A. Assumption of a stable underlying causal system. B. Actual results will differ somewhat from predicted values. C. Historical data is available on which to base the forecast. D. Forecasts for groups of items tend to be more accurate than forecasts for individual items. E. Accuracy decreases as the time horizon increases.

Historical data is available on which to base the forecast.

Which of the following questions is least appropriate during value analysis? A. How can we reduce the cost of parts? B. How can we improve the performance of the product? C. How can we incorporate more cultural values in the design of our global system? D. Can we find a way to use less energy in the production of our product? E. Could a given component in our product be simplified or combined with another?

How can we incorporate more cultural values in the design of our global system?

Which of the following statements about CAD is not true? A. It increases the productivity of designers. B. It uses computer graphics. C. It requires a good database. D. Some systems permit engineering or cost analysis of proposed designs. E. It is used successfully by all manufacturing companies.

It is used successfully by all manufacturing companies.

Which of the following is not true about remanufacturing? A. Remanufactured products can be sold at lower cost. B. The process requires mostly unskilled and semiskilled workers. C. There is less depletion of natural resources. D. It produces high-quality products easily. E. Remanufacturing is mainly carried out by small and mid-sized companies.

It produces high-quality products easily

Excitement characteristics are categories in the _________ model A. bipolar B. Kano C. Pareto D. quality E. service matrix

Kano

Accuracy in forecasting can be measured by: A. MSE. B. MRP. C. MPS. D. MTM. E. MTE.

MSE.

Which of these pairs of functions would tend to be affected most dramatically by a product or service redesign? A. Operations and Accounting B. Marketing and Operations C. Finance and Human Resources D. Engineering and Accounting E. Finance and Engineering

Marketing and Operations

Which of the following is a potential shortcoming of using sales force opinions in demand forecasting? A. Members of the sales force often have substantial histories of working with and understanding their customers. B. Members of the sales force often are well aware of customers' future plans. C. Members of the sales force have direct contact with consumers. D. Members of the sales force can have difficulty distinguishing between what customers would like to do and what they actually will do. E. Customers often are quite open with members of the sales force with regard to future plans.

Members of the sales force can have difficulty distinguishing between what customers would like to do and what they actually will do.

Which of the following is not typically considered a cure for poor competitiveness? A. Remove communications barriers within organizations. B. Minimize attention to the operations function. C. Put less emphasis on short-term financial results. D. Recognize labor as a valuable asset and act to develop it. E. Improve quality

Minimize attention to the operations function.

Which of the following is not one of the phases of product design and development? A. Specify product specifications. B. Conduct market test. C. Specify process specifications. D. Conduct design review. E. Perform applied research.

Perform applied research.

___________ is generally used to facilitate an organization strategy that emphasizes low cost A. Speed to market B. Flexibility C. Customization D. Sustainability E. Standardization

Standardization

Which of the following is not an advantage of standardization? A. The opportunity to freeze design at a very early stage. B. Fewer parts to deal with in inventory. C. Reduced training cost and time. D. Purchasing is more routine. E. Inventory management is less complex.

The opportunity to freeze design at a very early stage.

Which of the following would be an advantage of using a sales force composite to develop a demand forecast? A. The sales staff is least affected by changing customer needs. B. The sales force can easily distinguish between customer desires and probable actions. C. The sales staff is often aware of customers' future plans. D. Salespeople are least likely to be influenced by recent events. E. Salespeople are least likely to be biased by sales quotas.

The sales staff is often aware of customers' future plans.

Service design generally differs from product design in which of the following ways? A. Service design tends to focus on tangible factors. B. There is less latitude in detecting and correcting errors prior to delivery. C. There is a lesser requirement to be aware of competitors' offerings. D. There is less visibility to customers. E. There is no difference.

There is less latitude in detecting and correcting errors prior to delivery.

. Which one of the following is not a factor of successful product and service design? A. Be aware of what the competitors are doing. B. Be aware of what customers want. C. Know what government regulations are. D. Use computerized design techniques. E. Know what new technologies are available.

Use computerized design techniques.

For an organization to grow its market share, it must: A. advertise using multimedia. B. reduce prices. C. exceed minimum standards of acceptability for its products or services. D. establish an Internet Web site. E. broaden its mission statement.

advertise using multimedia.

Which of these factors would be least likely to affect productivity? A. methods and technology B. workers C. management D. product mix E. advertising

advertising

Which of the following is not a key factor of competitiveness? A. price B. product differentiation C. flexibility D. after-sale service E. size of organization

after-sale service

Which phrase most closely describes the Delphi technique? A. associative forecast B. consumer survey C. series of questionnaires D. developed in India E. historical data

associative forecast

One reason for using the Delphi method in forecasting is to: A. avoid premature consensus (bandwagon effect). B. achieve a high degree of accuracy. C. maintain accountability and responsibility. D. be able to replicate results. E. prevent hurt feelings.

avoid premature consensus (bandwagon effect).

Elements of the service process in which there is little to no contact with the customer are referred to as: A. robust. B. delayed differentiators. C. back-of-the-house. D. user-friendly. E. mission-consistent.

back-of-the-house.

Which of the following is least likely to affect the cost an organization incurs in producing its products or services? A. price B. productivity C. location D. quality E. inventory management

c. location

Designing for recycling helps facilitate: A. reduced legal liability. B. compliance with regulatory environments. C. increased product reliability. D. reduced standardization costs. E. better customer service.

compliance with regulatory environments.

In the area of product and service design, the acronym CAD refers to: A. conceptually appropriate design. B. computer-aided design. C. commercial applications design. D. competitive advantage design. E. completely automated design.

computer-aided design.

Detecting nonrandomness in errors can be done using: A. MSEs. B. MAPs. C. control charts. D. correlation coefficients. E. strategies.

control charts.

Which of the following is not a key step toward improving productivity? A. developing productivity measures for all operations B. improving the bottleneck operations C. establishing reasonable goals for improvement D. considering incentives to reward workers E. converting bond debt to stock ownership

converting bond debt to stock ownership

An organization's mission statement serves as the basis for: A. environmental scanning. B. core competencies. C. operating procedures. D. distinctiveness. E. organizational goals.

core competencies.

Unique attributes of firms that give them a competitive edge are called: A. functional strategies. B. Balanced Scorecards. C. supply chains. D. core competencies. E. sustainable initiatives.

core competencies.

When choosing a forecasting technique, a critical trade-off that must be considered is that between: A. time series and associative. B. seasonality and cyclicality. C. length and duration. cost and accuracy. D. simplicity and complexity. E. cost and accuracy.

cost and accuracy.

One of these is not a characteristic of a well-designed service system: A. user friendly B. robust C. distributed computer networks D. cost effective E. easy to sustain

cost effective

The term "degrees of newness" is associated with: A. average age of employees. B. average length of time on the job. C. total years of business experience. D. degree of design change. E. average age of the capital equipment.

degree of design change.

Which of the following is an example of a postponement tactic? A. mass customization B. standardization C. process mapping D. delayed differentiation E. service blueprinting

delayed differentiation

Which of the following is/are a primary input into capacity, sales, and production planning? A. product design B. market share C. ethics D. globalization E. demand forecasts

demand forecasts

The key to successfully competing is understanding what customers want and then __________ satisfy those wants. A. training production workers to B. finding suppliers who can C. finding the best way to D. designing products and services that E. hiring enough workers to

designing products and services that

The research and development activity which starts after positive research results are available and attempts to turn these results into useful commercial applications is: A. basic research. B. applied research. C. development. D. redesign. E. commercial research.

development.

A disadvantage of global teams for product design is that: A. customers may have different needs in different countries. B. the product designed may have increased marketability and utility. C. the diversity of an international team may be a detriment. D. ease of face-to-face meetings is absent since members are located everywhere. E. technology allows constant contact with team members.

ease of face-to-face meetings is absent since members are located everywhere.

Which of the following is not among the chief reasons organizations fail? A. overemphasis on short-term financial performance B. emphasizing labor productivity in labor-intensive environments C. poor internal communications D. not investing in capital and human resources E. overemphasis on product (or service) design

emphasizing labor productivity in labor-intensive environments

Making plans for how products that have reached the end of their useful lives will be dealt with is the primary subject of: A. cradle-to-grave assessment. B. end-of-life programs. C. life-cycle analysis. D. three R's programs. E. process mapping.

end-of-life programs.

. Global teams provide diversity while eliminating conflicts and miscommunication.

false

. To save money, it is essential that designers revise the production capabilities to meet the requirements of the new products.

false

A house of quality is achieved when no department in a single location has more than 15 percent rejects.

false

An example of an operational operations management decision is inventory level management.

false

An organization that is twice as productive as its competitor will be twice as profitable.

false

Basic research is done with the expectation that discoveries will have near-term commercial application.

false

Commonality of components is beneficial for manufacturing but not for services.

false

Concurrent engineering is another term for sequential development.

false

Concurrent engineering means that at least two engineers are involved in product design at the same time.

false

Consumers tend to resist purchasing products that contain recycled materials.

false

For new products in a strong growth mode, a low alpha will minimize forecast errors when using exponential smoothing techniques

false

Forecasts based on time-series (historical) data are referred to as associative forecasts.

false

Forecasts for groups of items tend to be less accurate than forecasts for individual items because forecasts for individual items don't include as many influencing factors.

false

If people would only work harder, productivity would increase.

false

Modular design increases the costs of purchasing and controlling inventory compared to nonmodular.

false

Once accepted by managers, forecasts should be held firm regardless of new input since many plans have been made using the original forecast.

false

Productivity is defined as the ratio of input to output.

false

Quality function deployment (QFD) is based on a set of standards which relate customer requirements to company capabilities.

false

Quality function deployment is a structured approach that guarantees that the highest-quality product or service will be designed.

false

Robust design describes a product that will perform satisfactorily so long as it is used in a very narrow range of conditions.

false

Standardization can at times lead to serious difficulties and competitive struggles, particularly when systems are running under different conditions.

false

Taguchi design methods involve identifying the optimal operating or environmental conditions for a given product.

false

The quality function deployment matrices are often referred to as the "house of quality" because, when completed, they "house" all of the customer's quality requirements.

false

The term failure as applied to reliability means that a part or item does not function at all.

false

Time-series techniques involve the identification of explanatory variables that can be used to predict future demand.

false

When new products or services are introduced, focus forecasting models are an attractive option.

false

. One of the main advantages of standardization is that it increases the potential variety of products.

fasle

. The process of dismantling and inspecting a competitor's product to discover product improvement is called benchmarking.

fasle

. One way to increase reliability is to: A. improve component design. B. increase the number of service stations. C. increase mean repair time. D. increase the number of dependent components. E. reduce production capacity.

increase the number of dependent components.

The term "standardization" is closely associated with: A. customization. B. high cost. C. longer lead times. D. variety. E. interchangeability.

interchangeability.

Minimizing the sum of the squared deviations around the line is called: A. mean squared error technique. B. mean absolute deviation. C. double smoothing. D. least squares estimation. E. predictor regression

least squares estimation.

The assessment of the environmental impact of a product or service throughout its useful life is called: A. flow diagramming. B. service blueprinting. C. quality function deployment. D. process mapping. E. life cycle analysis.

life cycle analysis.

The fundamental purpose for the existence of any organization is described by its: A. policies. B. procedures. C. corporate charter. D. mission statement. E. bylaws.

mission statement

Which of the following factors would tend to reduce productivity? A. improvements in workplace safety B. reductions in labor turnover C. more inexperienced workers D. reductions in the scrap rate E. less variety in the product mix

more inexperienced workers

Scheduling personnel is an example of an operations management A. mission implementation. B. operational decision. C. organizational strategy. D. functional strategy. E. tactical decision

operational decision.

The external elements of SWOT analysis are: A. strengths and weaknesses. B. strengths and threats. C. opportunities and threats. D. weaknesses and opportunities. E. strengths and opportunities.

opportunities and threats.

Productivity is expressed as: A. output plus input. B. output minus input. C. output times input. D. output divided by input. E. input divided by output.

output divided by input.

Value added can be calculated by: A. average productivity gains over time. B. inputs divided by the outputs. C. outputs divided by the inputs. D. input plus output divided by two. E. outputs minus inputs.

outputs minus inputs.

Products or services with a high degree of similarity of features and components are called: A. generic. B. copy-cat. C. rip-offs. D. product families. E. product/service matrix.

product families.

Which of the following is not a factor that affects productivity? A. computer viruses B. design of the workspace C. use of the Internet D. standardizing processes E. product price

product price

Competitiveness doesn't include: A. productivity. B. effectiveness. C. profitability. D. operations strategy. E. operations management.

profitability.

The two general approaches to forecasting are: A. mathematical and statistical. B. qualitative and quantitative. C. judgmental and qualitative. D. historical and associative. E. precise and approximation.

qualitative and quantitative.

A firm pursuing a strategy based on customization and variety will tend to structure and manage its supply chain to accommodate more _____________ than a firm pursuing a strategy based on low cost and high volume. A. variation B. streamlined flow C. quality D. capacity E. productivity

quality

A formal way to document customer requirements is: A. consumer surveys. B. quality function deployment. C. focus groups. D. the Delphi technique. E. a sales/marketing matrix.

quality function deployment

Which of the following is least likely to result in product innovations that have near-term commercial application? A. process blueprinting B. development C. applied research D. quality function deployment E. basic research

quality function deployment

The structural approach for integrating customer requirements into every aspect of product development is known as: A. total quality management. B. customer satisfaction. C. quality function deployment. D. customer integration. E. a product development team.

quality function deployment.

Which of the following is not one of the 3 Rs? A. reuse B. reduce C. reposition D. recycle

reposition

Time-based approaches of business organizations focus on reducing the time to accomplish certain necessary activities. Time reductions seldom apply to: A. product/service design time. B. processing time. C. delivery time. D. response time for complaints. E. internal audits.

response time for complaints.

Incorporating design for disassembly principles in product design helps firms with ___________ design issues. A. legal B. social C. reuse D. reverse engineering E. reengineering

reuse

The process of dismantling and inspecting a competitor's new or revised product for the purpose of gleaning design ideas is called: A. design by imitation. B. product analysis. C. reverse engineering. D. benchmarking. E. disassembly

reverse engineering.

Mobile phones have evolved from devices intended to place and receive phone calls into handheld multimedia communications devices, but in the eyes of some customers these new features make the phones less desirable. This is an example of: A. robust design. B. creeping featurism. C. sustainable design. D. quality function deployment. E. component commonality

robustdesign

Core competencies in organizations generally do not relate to: A. cost. B. quality. C. time. D. flexibility. E. sales price.

sales price

Forecasts based on judgment and opinion do not include: A. executive opinion. B. salesperson opinion. C. second opinions. D. customer surveys. E. Delphi methods.

second opinions.

The more novel a new product or service design is, the more forecasters have to rely on: A. subjective estimates. B. seasonality. C. cyclicality. D. historical data. E. smoothed variation

subjective estimates.

Which of the following is not a reason for poor performance of our organization in the marketplace? A. placing too much emphasis on product/service design and too little on process design B. failing to take into account customer wants and needs C. putting too much emphasis on short-term financial performance D. taking advantage of strengths/opportunities, and recognizing competitive threats E. failing to monitor the external environment

taking advantage of strengths/opportunities, and recognizing competitive threats

Which of the following is not a type of judgmental forecasting? A. executive opinions B. sales force opinions C. consumer surveys D. the Delphi method E. time series analysis

the Delphi method

The forecasting method which uses anonymous questionnaires to achieve a consensus forecast is: A. sales force opinions. B. consumer surveys. C. the Delphi method. D. time series analysis. E. executive opinions.

the Delphi method.

The primary difference between seasonality and cycles is: A. the duration of the repeating patterns. B. the magnitude of the variation. C. the ability to attribute the pattern to a cause. D. the direction of the movement. E. there are only four seasons but 30 cycles.

the duration of the repeating patterns.

One possible disadvantage of modular design is that: A. replacement and repair are more difficult. B. failure diagnosis is more complex. C. the number of configurations of modules decreases. D. individual parts lose their identities. E. inventory problems arise.

the number of configurations of modules decreases.

Which of the following is not a reason for redesigning a product or service? A. to reduce labor or material cost B. to increase the level of employee satisfaction C. to increase the level of customer satisfaction D. to attract and increase customer demand E. to increase quality

to increase the level of employee satisfaction

Gradual, long-term movement in time series data is called: A. seasonal variation. B. cycles. C. irregular variation. D. trend. E. random variation.

trend

. Product liability means that a manufacturer is liable for any injuries or damages caused by a faulty product because of poor workmanship or design.

true

. Reliability can be defined in terms of a particular point in time or in terms of length of service.

true

. Reliability can be improved by the use of backup components.

true

A business that is rated highly by its customers for service quality will tend to be more profitable than a business that is rated poorly

true

A characteristic that was once an order winner may become an order qualifier, and vice versa

true

A disadvantage of standardization is the possibility of standardizing designs too early, which may make them difficult to modify in the future.

true

A major benefit of computer-aided design (CAD) is the increased productivity of designers.

true

A mission statement should provide a guide for the formulation of strategies for the organization.

true

A service blueprint is quite similar to an architectural drawing.

true

Applied research has the objective of achieving commercial applications for new ideas

true

Applied research is the major R&D effort of business organizations because of their desire for commercial applications.

true

Competitiveness relates to the profitability of an organization in the marketplace

true

Concurrent engineering brings people concerned with manufacturing into the design phase earlier than in the "over-the-wall" approach

true

Delayed differentiation and modular design are tactics for mass customization

true

Design for production takes into account the capabilities of the organization to produce or deliver a given product or service.

true

Forecasting techniques generally assume an existing causal system that will continue to exist in the future.

true

Forecasts help managers both to plan the system itself and to provide valuable information for using the system.

true

Many U.S. manufacturers are now shifting their focus from products to both product and process improvements.

true

Most of the time what is called product or service design is actually a redesign of an existing product or service.

true

National productivity is determined by averaging the productivity measures of various companies or industries.

true

One approach to extending a product's life cycle is to promote alternate uses of the product.

true

One motivation for an organization to redesign its product or service is to avoid the alternative of downsizing the organization.

true

Organizations that are capable of responding quickly to changing requirements can use a shorter forecast horizon and therefore benefit from more accurate forecasts.

true

Product failures can be easier to remedy with modular design

true

Productivity is defined as the ratio of output to input

true

Productivity is directly related to the ability of an organization to compete

true

Productivity tends to be only a very minor factor in an organization's ability to compete.

true

Reducing consumer choices makes service more efficient.

true

Reliability refers to the ability of a product to perform its intended function under normal conditions.

true

Remanufacturing refers to removing some of the components of old products and reusing them in new products.

true

Research and development (R&D) refers to organized efforts that are directed toward increasing scientific knowledge and product (or process) innovation.

true

Service design often must take into account the degree of customer contact required.

true

Standardization refers to the extent to which there is absence of variety in a product, service, or process.

true

The demand for a product and the rate of technological change have a significant impact on the length of a given phase of the product life cycle.

true

The process of dismantling and inspecting a competitor's product to discover improvements is called reverse engineering.

true

The purpose of the forecast should be established first so that the level of detail, amount of resources, and accuracy level can be understood.

true

Tracking productivity measures over time enables managers to judge organizational performance and decide where improvements are needed

true

Wage and salary increases that are not accompanied by productivity increases tend to exert inflationary pressures on a nation's economy

true

One way to increase reliability is to A. eliminate backup components. B. improve preventive maintenance procedures. C. increase mean repair time. D. increase the number of independent components. E. use a global supply chain.

use a global supply chain.

. A software company is weighing whether to release a new version of its software. The company can go ahead and release the version now and correct flaws with subsequent patches or upgrades, or it can wait until the new version is reasonably bug-free. This is an example of: A. life cycle analysis. B. value analysis. C. vaporware. D. concurrent engineering. E. design for production.

vaporware.