Chapter 7 Process Strategy

Align Technology uses a ________ approach to produce clear plastic removable aligners. A) mass customization B) product focus C) process focus D) repetitive focus E) crossover

A

Arnold Palmer Hospital uses which focus? A) process B) repetitive C) product D) mass customization E) A and D

A

Computer-integrated manufacturing (CIM) includes manufacturing systems that have: A) computer-aided design, a flexible manufacturing system, inventory control, warehousing and shipping integrated. B) transaction processing, management information systems, and decision support systems integrated. C) automated guided vehicles, robots, and process control integrated. D) robots, automated guided vehicles, and transfer equipment integrated. E) all of their computers integrated with the marketing department.

A

Goods made to order are typical of ________ and ________ approaches while goods made to forecast are typical of ________ and ________ approaches. A) process, mass customization; repetitive, product B) product, mass customization; repetitive, process C) product, process; repetitive, mass customization D) repetitive, product; mass customization, process E) repetitive, process; mass customization, product

A

Process A has fixed costs of $1000 and variable costs of $5 per unit. Process B has fixed costs of $500 and variable costs of $15 per unit. What is the crossover point between process A and process B? A) 50 units B) 200 units C) $2,500 D) $5,000 E) $9,500

A

The use of information technology to monitor and control a physical process is known as: A) process control. B) computer-aided design. C) information numeric control. D) numeric control. E) IT oversight.

A

What is a drawing of the movement of material, product, or people? A) flowchart B) process chart C) service blueprint D) process map E) vision system

A

Which of the following are all strategies for improving productivity in services? A) separation, self-service, automation, and scheduling B) lean production, strategy-driven investments, automation, and process focus C) reduce inventory, reduce waste, reduce inspection, and reduce rework D) high interaction, mass customization, service factory, and just-in-time E) process focus, repetitive focus, product focus, and mass customization focus

A

Which of the following phrases best describes process focus? A) low volume, high variety B) Finished goods are usually made to a forecast and stored. C) Operators are less broadly skilled. D) high fixed costs, low variable costs E) low inventory

A

Which of the following products is likely to be assembled on a repetitive process line? A) automobiles B) custom personal computers C) custom cakes D) steel E) beer

A

Frito-Lay is to ________ focus as Harley Davidson is to ________ focus. A) process, repetitive B) product, repetitive C) repetitive, product D) process, product E) product, mass customization

B

Which of the following characteristics best describes repetitive focus? A) It uses sophisticated scheduling to accommodate custom orders. B) Its output is a standardized product produced from modules. C) Operators are broadly skilled. D) It is widely used for the manufacture of steel. E) low volume, high variety

B

Which of the following is FALSE regarding repetitive processes? A) They use modules. B) They allow easy switching from one product to the other. C) They are the classic assembly lines. D) They have more structure and less flexibility than a job shop layout. E) They include the assembly of basically all automobiles.

B

Which one of the following products is most likely made in a job shop environment? A) rolls of newsprint B) paper forms C) television sets D) cigarettes E) canned vegetables

B

"Operators simply load new programs, as necessary, to produce different products" describes: A) CAD. B) automated guided vehicles. C) flexible manufacturing systems. D) vision systems. E) process control.

C

A product-focused process is commonly used to produce: A) high-volume, high-variety products. B) low-volume, high-variety products. C) high-volume, low-variety products. D) low-variety products at either high- or low-volume. E) high-volume products of either high- or low-variety

C

A system using an automated work cell controlled by electronic signals from a common centralized computer facility is called: A) an adaptive control system. B) robotics. C) a flexible manufacturing system. D) an automatic guided vehicle (AGV) system. E) a manufacturing cell.

C

An assembly line is an example of a: A) product-focused process. B) process-focused process. C) repetitive process. D) line process. E) specialized process.

C

One fundamental difference between a process chart and a flowchart is that: A) the process chart adds a time dimension to the horizontal axis, while a flowchart is not time-oriented. B) the process chart includes the supply chain, while the flowchart stays within an organization. C) the process chart is more like a table, while the flowchart is more like a schematic diagram. D) the process chart focuses on the customer and on the provider's interaction with the customer, while the flowchart does not deal directly with the customer. E) None of these is true, because a process chart and a flowchart are the same thing.

C

Process X has fixed costs of $10,000 and variable costs of $2.40 per unit. Process Y has fixed costs of $9,000 and variable costs of $2.25 per unit. Which of the following statements is TRUE? A) The crossover point is approximately 6667 units. B) It is impossible for one process to have both of its costs lower than those of another process. C) Process Y is cheaper than process X at all volumes. D) Process X should be selected for very large production volumes. E) Process X is more profitable than process Y and should be selected.

C

Product focused processes: A) allow more customization, but are not very efficient. B) are desirable because resource needs increase slowly with the complexity of a process. C) are processes that are specialized for relatively few products or customer groups. D) apply only to service firms, not to manufacturers. E) are profitable because customers demand flexibility, not specialization.

C

Three of the four types of processes are: A) goods, services, and hybrids. B) manual, automated, and service. C) process focus, repetitive focus, and product focus. D) modular, continuous, and technological. E) input, transformation, and output.

C

A job shop is an example of a(n): A) repetitive process. B) continuous process. C) line process. D) intermittent process. E) specialized process.

D

Advances in technology: A) have impacted the manufacturing sector only. B) have had only a limited impact on services. C) have failed to change the level of customer interaction with an organization. D) have had a dramatic impact on customer interaction with services and with products. E) have dramatically changed health care, but have not changed retailing.

D

Harley Davidson: A) utilizes job shops to make each of its modules. B) uses product focused manufacturing. C) uses a large number of modules to build a small number of different bikes. D) uses work cells to feed its assembly line. E) All of the above are true.

D

In mass service and professional service, the operations manager should focus extensively on: A) automation. B) equipment maintenance. C) sophisticated scheduling. D) human resources. E) cost-cutting initiatives.

D

One of the similarities between process focus and mass-customization is: A) the volume of outputs. B) the use of modules. C) many departments and many routings. D) the variety of outputs. E) All of the above are similarities.

D

Service blueprinting: A) provides the basis to negotiate prices with suppliers. B) mimics the way people communicate. C) determines the best time for each step in the process. D) focuses on the provider's interaction with the customer. E) uses the schematic of a house to diagram a service process.

D

The crossover point is that production quantity where: A) variable costs of one process equal the variable costs of another process. B) fixed costs of a process are equal to its variable costs. C) total costs equal total revenues for a process. D) total costs for one process equal total costs for another process. E) the process no longer loses money.

D

Which of the following is TRUE regarding vision systems? A) They are consistently accurate. B) They are modest in cost. C) They do not become bored. D) All of the above are true. E) None of the above is true.

D

Which of the following is true regarding the concept of flexibility? A) It is the ability to respond with little penalty in time, cost, or customer value. B) It may be accomplished with digitally controlled equipment. C) It may involve modular or movable equipment. D) All of the above are true. E) None of the above is true.

D

Which of the following phrases best describes product focus? A) low volume, high variety B) Finished goods are usually made to order. C) Processes are designed to perform a wide variety of activities. D) high fixed costs, low variable costs E) high inventory

D

Which of the following provides automatic placement and withdrawal of parts and products into and from designated places in a warehouse? A) AGV B) CAD/CAM C) CIM D) ASRS E) FMS

D

Which of the following technologies could enable a cashier to scan the entire contents of a shopping cart in seconds? A) ASRS B) AGV C) CAD/CAM D) RFID E) FMS

D

Which one of the following technologies is used ONLY for material handling, NOT actual production or assembly? A) robots B) CNC C) CAD D) AGVs E) FMS

D

A quasi-custom product: A) gets its apparent customization from the combinations available from a small number of modules. B) is often the output of repetitive focus facilities. C) is a valid description of a fast food sandwich. D) only applies in services. E) All but D are true.

E

High fixed costs and low variable costs are typical of which approach? A) product B) process C) mass customization D) repetitive E) A and C

E

In the mass service and service factory quadrants of the service process matrix, the operations manager could focus on all of the following except: A) automation. B) standardization. C) tight quality control. D) removing some services. E) customization.

E

Process redesign: A) is the fundamental rethinking of business processes. B) is sometimes called process reengineering. C) tries to bring about dramatic improvements in performance. D) often focuses on activities that cross functional lines. E) all of the above

E

Value-stream mapping: A) is a variation of time-function mapping. B) examines the supply chain to determine where value is added. C) extends time function mapping back to the supplier. D) starts with the customer and works backwards. E) All of the above are true.

E

What have restaurants such as Steakhouses and Stacked Restaurants replaced their traditional paper menus with? A) spoken descriptions B) singing descriptions C) menus painted on the walls D) index cards containing a picture of each item E) iPad menus

E

Which of the following companies use a mass customization approach? A) Dell B) Align Technology C) Frito-Lay D) Arnold Palmer hospital E) A and B

E

Which of the following industries is most likely to have low equipment utilization? A) auto manufacturing B) commercial baking C) television manufacturing D) steel manufacturing E) restaurants

E

Which of the following is not one of the strategies for improving service productivity? A) self-service B) automation C) scheduling D) separation E) mass customization

E

A flowchart with the addition of a time axis becomes a process chart. True of False?

FALSE

Activity times should not be included in a service blueprint. True or False?

FALSE

An example of the postponement strategy for improving service productivity is having the customer wait until you have sufficient time to serve the customer. True or False?

FALSE

Flowcharts use distance, but not time, to show the movement of material, product, or people through a process. True or False?

FALSE

Harley-Davidson, because it has so many possible combinations of products, utilizes the process strategy of mass customization. True or False?

FALSE

Production technology has had a major impact on services, but as yet there has been little reduction in service labor requirements. True or False?

FALSE

Professional services typically require low levels of labor intensity. True or False?

FALSE

Successful process redesign focuses on departmental areas where small, continuous improvements can be made. True or False?

FALSE

The typical full-service restaurant uses a product-focused process. True or False?

FALSE

A firm's process strategy is its approach to transforming resources into goods and services. True or False?

TRUE

A value-stream map includes both (1) inventory quantities, and (2) symbols for customers and suppliers. True or False?

TRUE

Automated storage and retrieval systems are commonly used in distribution facilities of retailers. True or False?

TRUE

Flexible manufacturing systems, because of easily changed control programs, are able to perform such tasks as manufacturing one-of-a-kind parts economically. True or False?

TRUE

In process-focused facilities, utilization of facilities is low. True or False?

TRUE

Intermittent processes are organized around processes. True or False?

TRUE

One use of camera-and-computer-based vision systems is to replace humans doing tedious and error-prone visual inspection activities. True or False?

TRUE

Optical checkout scanners and ATMs are examples of technology's impact on services. True or false?

TRUE

Process control is the use of information technology to monitor and control a physical process. True or False?

TRUE

Service blueprinting is a process analysis technique that focuses on the customer and the provider's interaction with the customer. True or False?

TRUE

The assembly line is a classic example of a repetitive process True or False?

TRUE

The term focused processes refers to the quest for increased efficiency, whether in goods or services, that results from specialization. True or False?

TRUE

The tool that calculates which process has the lowest cost at any specified production volume is a crossover chart. True or False?

TRUE

Time-function mapping is a flowchart with time added to the horizontal axis. True or False?

TRUE

When selecting new equipment and technology, decision makers look for flexibility—the ability to respond with little penalty in time, cost, or customer value. True or False?

TRUE