Question 1

What are some disadvantages of globalization?

Accepted Answer

The answer of What are some disadvantages of globalization?...

Question 2

Operations managers are involved at both the strategic and tactical levels of corporate strategy.

Accepted Answer

Operations managers are responsible for overseeing the day-to-day operations of a business as well as contributing to the development and implementation of corporate strategy. This involves both strategic and tactical decision-making.

Question 3

It takes the Blacksburg shipyard twenty six weeks with 500 workers to build a small tanker.Material costs are $32 million and overhead costs are $2 million.Workers cost $40 per hour including benefits and work 40 hours per week.The ship sells for $75 million.What is the multifactor productivity ratio?
A)less than 1.0
B)greater than 1.0 but less than or equal to 2.0
C)greater than 2.0 but less than or equal to 3.0
D)greater than 3.0

Accepted Answer

To calculate multifactor productivity, we need to divide the output value by the input cost.

Input cost = Material costs + Overhead costs + Labor costs
Labor costs = 500 workers * 40 hours/week * 26 weeks * $40/hour = $208 million

Total input cost = $32 million + $2 million + $208 million = $242 million

Output value = $75 million

Multifactor productivity ratio = Output value / Input cost = $75 million / $242 million = 0.31

Since the ratio is less than 1.0, option A is incorrect. 
The ratio is also less than 2.0, so option C and D are incorrect. 
The only remaining option is B, which is the correct answer. The productivity ratio is greater than 1.0 but less than or equal to 2.0.

Question 4

Productivity is defined as ________ divided by ________.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Productivity is defined as ________ divided by...

Question 5

In an assembly operation at a furniture factory,six employees assembled an average of 450 custom chairs per 5-day week.What is the labor productivity of this operation?
A)90 chairs per worker per day
B)20 chairs per worker per day
C)15 chairs per worker per day
D)75 chairs per worker per day

Accepted Answer

To find the labor productivity per worker per day, we need to divide the total number of chairs assembled in a week by the number of workers and the number of days in the week.
Labor productivity = (450 chairs/week) / (6 workers x 5 days/week)
Labor productivity = 15 chairs per worker per day
Therefore, the correct answer is C.

Question 6

With regards to globalized operations and cost advantages,what China is to manufacturing,India is to:
A)services.
B)human resources.
C)finance.
D)supply chain.

Accepted Answer

India is considered to be the hub of outsourcing and offshoring of various services such as IT, business process outsourcing, software development, customer service, and research and development. The availability of a large pool of English-speaking professionals and relatively low labor costs have made India a preferred destination for companies seeking cost advantages in service-related operations.

Question 7

Table 1.2
The Abco Company manufactures electrical assemblies.The current process uses 10 workers and produces 200 units per hour.You are considering changing the process with new assembly methods that increase output to 300 units per hour,but will require 14 workers.Particulars are as follows:
  Workers are paid at a rate of $10 per hour,and overhead is charged at 140% (or 1.4 times)labor costs.Finished switches sell for $20 / unit.
-Use the information provided in Table 1.2.What is the multifactor productivity of the current process?
A)less than or equal to 8.0
B)greater than 8.0 but less than or equal to 10.0
C)greater than 10.0 but less than or equal to 12.0
D)greater than 12.0

Accepted Answer

The answer of Table 1.2
The Abco Company manufactures electrical assemblies.The...

Question 8

Table 1.2
The Abco Company manufactures electrical assemblies.The current process uses 10 workers and produces 200 units per hour.You are considering changing the process with new assembly methods that increase output to 300 units per hour,but will require 14 workers.Particulars are as follows:
  Workers are paid at a rate of $10 per hour,and overhead is charged at 140% (or 1.4 times)labor costs.Finished switches sell for $20 / unit.
-Use the information provided in Table 1.2.What is the multifactor productivity of the new process?
A)less than or equal to 8.0
B)greater than 8.0 but less than or equal to 10.0
C)greater than 10.0 but less than or equal to 12.0
D)greater than 12.0

Accepted Answer

The answer of Table 1.2
The Abco Company manufactures electrical assemblies.The...

Question 9

A manufacturing process requires 12 minutes of labor to make 10 units of product.Which of the following actions will increase productivity? 1.Increase labor per 10 units of production
2)Decrease labor per 10 units of production
3)Increase number of units per 10 minutes of labor
4)Decrease number of units per 12 minutes of labor
A)1 and 3 only
B)2 and 4 only
C)1 and 4 only
D)2 and 3 only

Accepted Answer

Productivity increases when you either decrease the labor required for the same output (2) or increase the output with the same amount of labor (3).

Question 10

What are some ethical issues that are prevalent in organizations that have a global operations presence?

Accepted Answer

The answer of What are some ethical issues that are...

Question 11

Table 1.2
The Abco Company manufactures electrical assemblies.The current process uses 10 workers and produces 200 units per hour.You are considering changing the process with new assembly methods that increase output to 300 units per hour,but will require 14 workers.Particulars are as follows:
  Workers are paid at a rate of $10 per hour,and overhead is charged at 140% (or 1.4 times)labor costs.Finished switches sell for $20 / unit.
-Use the information provided in Table 1.2.Based on your productivity calculations,what decision should you make?
A)implement the new process
B)stay with the current process
C)need more information to make a decision
D)Either process is acceptable (since the multi-factor productivities are the same).

Accepted Answer

To determine the better process, we need to calculate the multi-factor productivity of each process. Multi-factor productivity is calculated by dividing the output by the total cost of labor and overhead.

For the current process: 
- Output = 200 units/hour 
- Labor cost = 10 workers x $10/hour = $100/hour 
- Overhead cost = 1.4 x $100/hour = $140/hour 
- Total cost = $240/hour 
- Multi-factor productivity = 200 units/hour ÷ $240/hour = 0.833 units per dollar

For the new process: 
- Output = 300 units/hour 
- Labor cost = 14 workers x $10/hour = $140/hour 
- Overhead cost = 1.4 x $140/hour = $196/hour 
- Total cost = $336/hour 
- Multi-factor productivity = 300 units/hour ÷ $336/hour = 0.893 units per dollar

Since the multi-factor productivity of the new process is higher than that of the current process, the better choice is to implement the new process that uses 14 workers to produce 300 units per hour, rather than the current process that requires 10 workers to produce 200 units per hour.

Question 12

The three person crew worked their way through the neighborhood,mowing lawns,edging,applying fertilizer and weed treatments where necessary and collecting all the clippings for use as mulch as part of their new green initiative.Their pricing scheme appears in Table A and the mix of orders and service costs appear in Table B:
a.What is their multifactor productivity for these orders in the prestigious Edmond Oaks neighborhood?
b.Which of the service combinations provided by them is the most productive service combination from a multifactor perspective?
c.What is their labor productivity for the same mix of orders?
Table A: Price List
  Workers are paid at a rate of $10 per hour,and overhead is charged at 120% (or 1.2 times)labor costs.For a customer that gets both mowing and edging,their $95 bill would be discounted for two services times 5% for a total of 10% off the $95 straight charge for a cost of $85.50.A customer receiving three services would get a 15% discount off their service bill.Labor hours shown in Table A are total hours for the three-person crew.
Table B: Orders Processed

Accepted Answer

The answer of The three person crew worked their way...

Question 13

Companies that do not have operations in China find it difficult to compete based on the basis of low prices with companies that do.Instead those companies tend to compete based on:
A)quality and social responsibility.
B)speed and small production runs.
C)luxury.
D)quality and small production runs.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Companies that do not have operations in...

Question 14

Consider the information in Table 1.3.
Table 1.3
The Abco Company manufactures electrical assemblies.The current process uses 10 workers and produces 200 units per hour.You are considering changing the process with new assembly methods that increase output to 300 units per hour,but will require 14 workers.Particulars are as follows:
  Workers are paid at a rate of $10 per hour,and overhead is charged at 140% (or 1.4 times)labor costs.Finished switches sell for $20/unit.
a.Calculate the multifactor productivity for the current process.
b.Calculate the multifactor productivity for the new process.
c.Determine if the new process should be implemented.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Consider the information in Table 1.3.
Table 1.3
The...

Question 15

The three-person crew worked their way through the neighborhood,testing doorknobs and windows and slipping past security systems like a team of ninjas.Of course,they weren't ninjas,but a crew of brazen burglars,hoping to grab cash and other valuables to fence at the next level of their supply chain.Fortune smiles on them on this day in the prestigious Edmond Oaks neighborhood.A lawn maintenance crew is creating a tremendous racket mowing and edging lawns,which completely drowns out the sounds of breaking glass.Details of the day's haul appear in Table C.
a.What is the multifactor productivity?
b.What is the labor productivity?
Table C: The Haul
  Workers are paid at a flat rate of 20% of the sales price of the merchandise.Materials cost
represents the cost of gasoline and surgical gloves,and overhead is 20% of the sales price of
the merchandise.

Accepted Answer

The answer of The three-person crew worked their way through...

Question 16

How has global competition affected productivity? Cite specific examples and reference the productivity equation to support your thesis.

Accepted Answer

The answer of How has global competition affected productivity? Cite...

Question 17

Barry's Tire Service completed 100 tire changes,six brake jobs,and 16 alignments in an eight-hour day with his standard crew of six mechanics.A brake specialist costs $16 per hour,a tire changer costs $8 per hour,and an alignment mechanic costs $14 per hour.The materials cost for a day was $2000,and overhead cost was $500.
a.What is the shop's labor productivity if the retail price for each respective service is $60,$150,and $40?
b.What is the multifactor productivity,if the crew consisted of two of each type mechanic?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Barry's Tire Service completed 100 tire changes,six...

Question 18

Half of the world's greenhouse gases are produced by only ________ nations.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Half of the world's greenhouse gases are...

Question 19

Which of the following would be considered an advantage of global competition?
A)ability to safeguard proprietary technology in working with offshore suppliers
B)a recent climate of low political risk and lessening nationalization
C)high levels of worker skills in foreign countries mean less required training
D)strong global competition and increased worldwide demand

Accepted Answer

Strong global competition and increased worldwide demand can drive innovation, improve product quality, and lower prices for consumers. This can result in greater efficiency and profitability for businesses that compete globally.

Question 20

The details of weekly output and input for a fabrication process are as follows: output is 400 units,with a standard selling price of $100 per unit.For the week,total labor costs are: 10 workers at 40 hours for the week,are paid $15 per hour.Total material costs for the 400 units are $5,000.Weekly overhead is charged at the rate of 1.5 times the labor costs.What is the multifactor productivity for the week?
A)0)02
B)0)75
C)1)50
D)2)00

Accepted Answer

The answer of The details of weekly output and input...

Quiz 1: Using Operations to Create Value

What are some disadvantages of globalization?

Operations managers are involved at both the strategic and tactical levels of corporate strategy.

Productivity is defined as divided by .

In an assembly operation at a furniture factory,six employees assembled an average of 450 custom chairs per 5-day week.What is the labor productivity of this operation?

With regards to globalized operations and cost advantages,what China is to manufacturing,India is to:

What are some ethical issues that are prevalent in organizations that have a global operations presence?

Companies that do not have operations in China find it difficult to compete based on the basis of low prices with companies that do.Instead those companies tend to compete based on:

How has global competition affected productivity? Cite specific examples and reference the productivity equation to support your thesis.

Half of the world's greenhouse gases are produced by only ________ nations.

Which of the following would be considered an advantage of global competition?