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OM5 C10
Test Bank
Chapter 10 – Capacity Management
Multiple Choice
ANS: B
2. When the average unit cost of a good or service decreases as the capacity and/or volume of
throughput increases, it is known as _____.
a. economies of scale
b. diseconomies of scale
c. cost cushioning
d. capacity cushion
ANS: A
ANS: D
4. _____ occur when the average unit cost of the good or service begins to increase as the
capacity and/or volume of throughput increases.
a. Economies of scale
b. Diseconomies of scale
c. Costs of cushioning
d. Capacity cushions
ANS: B
ANS: B
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ANS: C
6. A pharmacy lab is used for only two high volume prescriptions, A and B. The time per setup
(in minutes), processing time (in seconds), and order size (in units) is given below. Using the
information, determine the total capacity required for this lab (i.e., how much work in minutes do
these two jobs require) in minutes. One setup is incurred per order.
PROCESSING ORDER
Prescription SETUP TIME
TIME SIZE
(MINUTES)
(SECONDS) (UNITS)
A 75 84 700
B 60 54 1,500
a. Less than 2000 minutes
b. Equal to or greater than 2000 but less than 2200 minutes
c. Equal to or greater than 2200 but less than 2400 minutes
d. Greater than 2400 minutes
ANS: C
8. C&M Machining is developing plans for a dedicated production line and needs to determine
how many drill presses will be needed. Engineering estimates are that one drill press will be able
to process 120 parts per hour. Daily demand is 2,400 parts. C&M operates one 8-hour shift per
day. How many drill presses are needed to meet the capacity requirements?
a. 2 drills
b. 3 drills
c. 4 drills
d. 5 drills
ANS: B
ANS: A
10. A pharmacy lab is used for only two high volume prescriptions, A and B. The time per
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setup (in minutes), processing time (in seconds), and order size (in units) is given below.
Using the information, determine the total capacity required for this lab in minutes.
PROCESSING ORDER
Prescription SETUP TIME
TIME SIZE
(MINUTES)
(SECONDS) (UNITS)
A 80 84 700
B 50 54 500
a. Less than 2000 minutes
b. Equal to or greater than 2000 but less than 2200 minutes
c. Equal to or greater than 2200 but less than 2400 minutes
d. Greater than 2400 minutes
11. A pharmacy lab is used for only two high volume prescriptions, A and B. The time per
setup (in minutes), processing time (in seconds), and order size (in units) is given below. Using
the information, determine the total capacity required for this lab (i.e., how much work in minutes
do these two jobs require) in minutes. One setup is incurred per order.
PROCESSING ORDER
Prescription SETUP TIME
TIME SIZE
(MINUTES)
(SECONDS) (UNITS)
A 75 84 1,000
B 85 54 1,500
a. Less than 2000 minutes
b. Equal to or greater than 2000 but less than 2200 minutes
c. Equal to or greater than 2200 but less than 2400 minutes
d. Greater than 2400 minutes
Steve, an operations manager at Clan Corp. is promoted to manage the process defined by the
four stages A to D below. This process could be human resource management, marketing,
accounting, finance, or engineering process, and Steve is the manager. This is his chance to
impress his boss and get promoted again. After three months on the job, Steve realizes something
is not right with the process. His employees experience big pile up of work, things take too long
to be processed, the opportunity for error is increasing, and the entire process is almost chaotic.
Do a process and capacity analysis of this process. The numbers in parenthesis (#) are the time in
minutes to complete one unit of work. Demand on the process averages 30 units per hour and
each unit must be worked on by all four stages. Administrative clerk(s) do Stage A work. The
assistant manager(s) are cross-trained to do both Stages C and D work. The coding specialist(s)
do Stage B work.
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Stage B (6)
Stage C (4)
13. How many administrative clerks should be hired to do Stage A work, assuming a target
utilization of 85 percent?
a. One
b. Two
c. Three
d. Four
14. What is the current labor utilization of the coders at Stage B if two coding specialists are
currently on duty?
a. Less than 90 percent
b. More than 90% but less than or equal to 95%
c. More than 95% but less than or equal to 100%
d. More than 105 percent
15. The total process (throughput) capacity in units per hour for the four-stage process A
to D assuming 3 administrative clerks, 3 coding specialist, and 3 assistant managers on duty is:
a. less than 10 units per hour.
b. more than 10 units but less than or equal to 20 units.
c. more than 20 units but less than or equal to 30 units.
d. more than 30 units but less than or equal to 40 units.
ANS: C[ Clerks = 12*3 = 36 units/hr; Coders = 10*3 = 30; Mgrs = 7.5*3 = 22.5); Bottleneck is
Mgrs]
Perform a capacity analysis of the process given below and answer questions #16, #17, and #18 to
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help fix the process. The numbers in parenthesis (#) are the time in minutes to complete one unit
of work. Demand on the process averages 27 units per hour and each unit must be worked on by
all five stages. Administrative clerks do Stages A and B. The assistant manager does Stages D
and E. The coding specialist does Stage C.
Stage C (6)
Stage D (4)
16. How many administrative clerks should be hired assuming a target utilization of 90 percent?
a. One
b. Two
c. Three
d. Four
17. What is the current labor utilization of the coders, if two coding specialists are currently on
duty?
a. Less than 90 percent
b. More than 90% but less than or equal to 95%
c. More than 95% but less than or equal to 100%
d. More than 100%
18. The total process (throughput) capacity in units per hour for the five stage process, A to D,
assuming 3 administrative clerks, 2 coding specialist, and 4 assistant managers on duty is:
a. less than 10 units per hour.
b. more than 10 units but less than or equal to 20 units.
c. more than 20 units but less than or equal to 30 units.
d. more than 30 units but less than or equal to 40 units.
ANS: C [ Clerks = 7.5*3 = 22.5 units/hr; Coders = 10*2 = 20; Mgrs = 7.5*4 = 30); Bottleneck
is Coders]
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Problem (use to answer questions #19 to #22)
Perform a capacity analysis of the process given below. The numbers in parenthesis (#) are the
time in minutes to complete one unit of work. Demand on the process averages 20 units per hour
and each unit must be worked on by all four stages. Administrative clerk(s) do Stage A work. The
assistant manager(s) do Stages C and D work and are cross-trained to do both jobs. The coding
specialist(s) do Stage B work.
Stage B (6)
Stage C (4)
19. How many administrative clerks should be hired to do Stage A work, assuming a target
utilization of 85 percent?
a. One
b. Two
c. Three
d. Four
20. What is the current labor utilization of the coders at Stage B if two coding specialists are
currently on duty?
a. Less than 90 percent
b. More than 90% but less than or equal to 95%
c. More than 95% but less than or equal to 100%
d. More than 100% but less than or equal to 105%
21. The process (throughput) capacity in units per hour for the four stage process, A to D,
assuming 2 administrative clerks, 3 coding specialists, and 3 assistant managers on duty is _____.
a. less than 10 units per hour
b. more than 10 units but less than or equal to 20 units
c. more than 20 units but less than or equal to 30 units
d. more than 30 units but less than or equal to 40 units
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ANS: C [ Clerks = 12*2 = 24 units/hr; Coders = 10*3 = 30; Mgrs = 7.5*3 = 22.5); Bottleneck
is Mgrs]
22. Given the base case information and resource levels in question #21, which process
improvement option given below is best to maximize (increase) process (throughput) capacity?
(Each option is independent of any other option; that is, consider each option below as the base
case plus the one option.)
a. Add one clerk to help do the work at Stage A.
b. Add one assistant manager to help do the work at Stages C and D.
c. Transfer one coder from coding to an assistant manager job.
d. Speed up the service time for coders (Stage B) from 6 minutes/unit to 5 minutes/unit.
ANS: B [for a Clerks = 12*3 = 36 units/hr but still 22.5; for b 7.5*4 = 30 so now total
throughput increases from 22.5 to 24; etc]
23. A hospital lab is used for three types of cancer tests, A, B, and C. The time per setup,
processing time, and batch size (in units) is given below. Using the information, determine the
total demand in minutes for this lab.
PROCESSING
Job Type SETUP TIME BATCH (JOB)
TIME
(MINUTES) SIZE (UNITS)
(MINUTES)
A 25 4.5 50
B 60 6.0 80
C 30 5.0 40
24. Given the results in Question #22 and a capacity of 900 minutes, the best short-term capacity
option for the lab is:
a. to buy extra equipment and hire one more lab technician.
b. to sell unused capacity.
c. to add an extra shift of two technicians and related equipment.
d. to work overtime to finish the job.
ANS: D
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A medical equipment testing and calibration service is depicted in Figure 1. The customer usually
brings the equipment to the service center. The service process requires service technicians to
perform three process steps #1 to #3. Each technician is cross-trained so they can perform any of
the three steps. The inspector does Step # 4 alone. After step #4, two parallel work activities are
performed. That is, a shipping clerk packs the work (step 7) while a billing clerk prepares the
invoice (step 5) simultaneously, and the customer is contacted by phone for pick-up (step 6). The
average throughput is 3 equipment units per hour.
5 6
Start 1 2 3 4 End
Figure 1 Flow chart of the medical equipment testing and calibration service process
The table below shows the work content of the process steps, activity times in minutes per unit,
shared and non-shared work activities, and the type of resource required. There are 3 service
technicians on duty: 1 inspector, 1 billing clerk, and 1 shipping clerk.
Activity
Time
Activity (minutes) Activity Performed By
Start --
1 8 Service technician
2 17 Service technician
3 25 Service technician
4 12 Inspector
5 3 Billing clerk
6 7 Billing clerk
7 25 Shipping clerk
End --
25. The labor utilization rate (%) for the billing clerk is _____.
a. 25%
b. 50%
c. 75%
d. 100%
26. The labor utilization rate (%) for the service technician is closest to _____.
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a. 20%
b. 40%
c. 60%
d. 80%
27. The service rate in units per hour for the service technician is _____ units per hour.
a. 1.2
b. 2.4
c. 3.6
d. 7.5
28. An order fulfillment process normally operates two shifts a day, six days per week. Under
normal conditions, 380 orders can be processed per shift. The weekly capacity is _____.
a. less than 1,000 orders per week
b. more than 1,000 orders but less than or equal to 2,000 order per week
c. more than 2,000 orders but less than or equal to 3,000 orders per week
d. more than 3,000 orders per week.
29. The job that represents the bottleneck in this process is that of the _____.
a. service technician
b. inspector
c. billing clerk
d. shipping clerk
ANS: D
31. _____ strategy matches the capacity additions with the demand as closely as possible.
a. Capacity lag
b. Capacity straddle
c. Capacity lead
d. Capacity reduction
ANS: B
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32. _____ is a capacity-expansion strategy with the goal of maintaining sufficient capacity to
minimize the chances of not meeting demand.
a. Capacity lag
b. Capacity straddle
c. Capacity lead
d. Capacity reduction
ANS: C
33. A firm will encounter short periods of over- and underutilization of resources with the _____
strategy.
a. capacity lag
b. capacity straddle
c. capacity lead
d. capacity reduction
ANS: B
34. _____ is a strategy that waits until demand has increased to a point where additional
capacity is necessary.
a. Capacity lag
b. Capacity lead
c. Capacity reduction
d. Capacity match
ANS: A
ANS: B
36. All the following are means to manage capacity by changing or stimulating demand
EXCEPT:
a. varying price of goods or services.
b. adding peripheral goods and/or services.
c. providing reservations.
d. shifting work to slack periods.
ANS: D
37. All the following are means to adjust short-term capacity EXCEPT:
a. adding peripheral goods and/or services.
b. adding or sharing equipment.
c. selling unused capacity.
d. changing labor skill mix.
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ANS: A
38. Which of the following is NOT a component of revenue management system (RMS)?
a. Marketing
b. Forecasting
c. Pricing
d. Allocating
ANS: A
ANS: D
40. Revenue management system (RMS) consists of all of the following EXCEPT:
a. forecasting demand.
b. allocating perishable assets.
c. deciding when to overbook and by how much.
d. adding peripheral goods.
ANS: D
41. A doctor’s office charges no-show patients $30 if they do not cancel their appointment 24
hours ahead of the appointment because:
a. insurance will pay the no-show fee anyway.
b. the appointment time and associated revenue is perishable, and the doctor may lose revenue.
c. the doctor’s office does a poor job of forecasting demand.
d. the no-show price of $30 can be added to medical fees for reimbursement.
ANS: B
42. An organization that would typically use a revenue management system (RMS) is a:
a. computer manufacturer.
b. fast-food restaurant.
c. car rental company.
d. package delivery service.
ANS: C
43. According to the Theory of Constraints, _____ is the amount of money generated per time
period through actual sales.
a. throughput
b. nonbottleneck (NBN) work activity
c. nonphysical constraint
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d. utilization
ANS: A
ANS: C
45. Which of the following is NOT a correct statement about bottleneck resources?
a. Work at all times to maximize throughput and resource utilization.
b. An hour lost is an hour lost for the entire process or factory output.
c. Use small order sizes.
d. Work-in-process buffer inventory is placed in front of workstations to maximize
resource utilization.
ANS: C
ANS: B
True/False Questions
ANS: T
ANS: F
ANS: T
4. Economies of scale occur when the average unit cost of a good or service begins to increase as
the capacity and/or volume of throughput increases.
ANS: F
5. Focused factories are often devoted to a specific technology or particular market segments or
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customers.
ANS: T
ANS: F
7. The strategy of matching capacity additions with demand as closely as possible is often called
a capacity straddle strategy.
ANS: T
8. An example of safety capacity would be planning additional capacity to account for employee
summer vacations.
ANS: F
ANS: T
10. Complementary goods or services balance seasonal demand cycles and therefore use excess
capacity available.
ANS: T
ANS: T
12. It is never appropriate to expand capacity in advance of growing demand because the excess
capacity will always be underutilized.
ANS: F
ANS: F
14. Long-term capacity planning must be closely tied to the strategic direction of an
organization.
ANS: T
15. Complementary goods and services are those that require different resources than the
organization's other goods and services.
ANS: F
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16. Large capacity increases help to spread fixed costs of construction and operating system
setup over one large project.
ANS: T
ANS: T
18. Varying the price of goods or services is a way of influencing demand patterns.
ANS: T
19. The ideas and methods surrounding nonbottleneck work activity are often called yield
management.
ANS: F
20. Reservations reduce the uncertainty for both the good or service provider and the customer.
ANS: T
ANS: T
22. Revenue management systems allocate nonperishable assets across market segments.
ANS: F
ANS: T
ANS: F
ANS: T
ANS: T
Case Study Questions (To reward students who attend class, listen and learn, and take good
class notes on the case discussion and/or student team presentation.)
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1. According to the David Christopher, Orthopedic Surgeon, case study, which of the following
statements is TRUE?
a. Total setup and changeover time for both surgeons was 15 percent of total workload time.
b. The best option to fix the demand-capacity shortage is to eliminate hip and shoulder
replacement surgeries.
c. The surgery mix is analogous to a product mix.
d. The best option to fix the demand-capacity shortage is to hire a third surgeon.
ANS: C
2. Which of the following statements based on the David Christopher, Orthopedic Surgeon, case
study is TRUE?
a. Hiring a third surgeon allowed all three surgeons to barely meet demand for the surgery mix.
b. The workload of surgeons A and B could be rebalanced and equalized by moving three surgery
procedures from surgeon B to A.
c. To fix the surgeon demand—capacity shortage, one option is to increase the surgeon’s
workday from five to six hours.
d. Setup/changeover time represented 48 percent of the two surgeon’s total surgery time and
workload.
ANS: D
Problems for Manual Grading, Take-Home Exams and Partial Credit (Also, review the OM
Instructor’s Manual for end-of-chapter questions/problems)
1. Define capacity including the two ways it can be viewed. Provide an example of each way.
ANS:
Capacity is the capability of a manufacturing or service resource such as a facility process,
workstation, or piece of equipment to accomplish its purpose over a specified time period.
Capacity can be viewed in one of two ways:
1. as the maximum rate of output per unit of time; or
2. as units of resource availability.
For example, the capacity of an automobile plant might be measured as the number of
automobiles capable of being produced per week. As a resource availability measure, the capacity
of a hospital would be measured by the number of beds available.
2. Define economies of scale and diseconomies of scale. Explain how they relate to capacity
decisions.
ANS:
Economies of scale are achieved when the average unit cost of a good or service decreases as the
capacity and/or volume of throughput increases. Economies of Scale support building larger
facilities with more capacity.
Diseconomies of scale occur when the average unit cost of the good or service begins to increase
as the capacity and/or volume of throughput increases. Diseconomies of Scale suggest that some
optimal amount of capacity exists where costs are at a minimum.
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3. Explain the concept of a focused factory. Include different ways a factory can be focused.
ANS:
A focused factory is a way to achieve economies of scale, without extensive investments in
facilities and capacity, by focusing on a narrow range of goods or services, target market
segments, and/or dedicated processes to maximize efficiency and effectiveness. The focused
factory argues to "divide and conquer" by adopting smaller, more focused facilities dedicated to:
1. a few key products.
2. a specific technology.
3. a certain process design and capability.
4. a specific competitive priority objective such as next day delivery.
5. a particular market segments or customers and associated volumes.
4. An assembly line normally operates two shifts a day, five days per week. Each shift can
produce 475 assemblies. What is the weekly capacity?
ANS:
Capacity = (2 shifts/day) (5 days/week) (475 assemblies/shift) = 4750 assemblies/week.
Hence, the weekly capacity is 4,750 assemblies.
5. An order fulfillment process normally operates two shifts a day, five days per week. Under
normal conditions, 380 orders can be processed per shift. What is the daily capacity?
ANS:
Capacity = (2 shifts/day) (380 orders/shift) = 760 orders/day. Hence, the daily capacity is 760
orders.
ANS:
Safety capacity (often called the capacity cushion) is defined as an amount of capacity reserved
for unanticipated events such as demand surges, materials shortages, and equipment breakdowns.
The actual utilization rates at most facilities are not planned to be 100 percent of effective
capacity. Unanticipated events such as equipment breakdowns, employee absences, or sudden
short-term surges in demand will reduce the capability of planned capacity levels to meet demand
and satisfy customers.
7. For a Marriott hotel call center, the expected service rate was 3.0 minutes per telephone call per
customer service representative (CSR). With 3 telephone CSRs on-duty during the 6:30 to 7:00
am time period, and assuming a 90% target CSR labor utilization rate, how many telephone calls
can these 3 CSRs handle during this time period?
ANS:
Utilization = Arrival (Demand) Rate/ [(Service Rate)(Number of Servers)] or
0.9 = AR/[(20 calls/hour)(3 CSR)] or AR = 54 calls/hour/CSR
8. An assembly line normally operates two shifts a day, five days per week. The planned capacity
of the assembly line is 380 units/shift. Determine the average safety capacity if 700 items are
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assembled a day, on average.
ANS:
Average resource utilization = 700/(2 × 380) = 0.92. Therefore, the average safety capacity is 1 −
0.92 or 8%.
9. A machine in a job shop is used for only two parts, A and B. The time per setup (in minutes),
processing time (in seconds), and order size (in units) is given below. Using the information,
determine the total capacity required for this machine in minutes.
Part Machine Setup Time (minutes) Processing Time (seconds) Order Size (units)
A 55 54 600
B 30 64 700
ANS:
Capacity required (Ci) = Setup time (Si) + [Processing time (Pi) × Order size (Qi)]
For multiple products, total capacity is C = ∑Ci = ∑ [Si + [Pi × Qi]]
C = 55(60 sec/min) + 54(600) + 30(60 sec/min) + 64(700) = 82,300 seconds, or 1,372 minutes.
10. C&M Machining is developing plans for a dedicated production line and needs to determine
how many drill presses will be needed. Engineering estimates are that one drill press will be able
to process 150 parts per hour. Daily demand is 4,000 parts. C&M operates one 8-hour shift per
day. How many drill presses are needed to meet the capacity requirements?
ANS:
One drill press can produce (150 parts/hour) (8 hours/day) = 1200 parts/day. With a demand of
4000 parts/day, C&M would require 4000/1200 = 3.33, or 4 drill presses.
11. A food packaging plant has planned shipments over the next six weeks of 9,500, 8,500,
10,000, 8,800, 8,200, and 9,000 packages. The plant normally operates 2 shifts per day, five days
per week. During each shift, 1000 food products can be packaged and ready to ship. What is the
plant's weekly capacity? At what percentage of capacity is the plant actually operating?
ANS:
Weekly capacity = (2 shifts/day)(5 days/week)(1000 units/shift) = 10,000 units per week.
Planned shipments = 54,000. Percent of capacity used = 54,000/(10,000 × 6) = 0.9 or 90%.
12. A pharmacy lab is used for only two high volume prescriptions, A and B. The time per setup
(in minutes), processing time (in seconds), and order size (in units) is given below. Using the
information, determine the total capacity required for this lab in minutes.
Prescription Setup Time (minutes) Processing Time (seconds) Order Size (units)
A 75 84 700
B 60 54 1,500
ANS:
Capacity required (Ci) = Setup time (Si) + Processing time (Pi) × Order size (Qi)
For multiple products, total capacity is C = ∑Ci = ∑ [Si + Pi × Qi]
C = 75(60 sec/min) + 84(700) + 60(60 sec/min) + 54(1,500) = 147,900 seconds, or 2,465
minutes.
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13. Jack's Ice Cream Parlor produces two types of ice cream on a contract basis for a major
restaurant chain using a large blender. A batch of ice cream A requires a setup time of 45
minutes, a process mixing time of 1.2 minutes per gallon, and 50 gallons are made per day. Ice
cream B requires the same machine to be cleaned and setup which takes 30 minutes, a process
mixing time of 2 minutes per gallon, and 100 gallons are produced per day.
ANS:
A Capacity required (Ci) = Setup time (Si) + Processing time (Pi) × Order size (Qi)
14. What are complementary goods and services and why do firms have them?
ANS:
Complementary goods and services are goods and services that can be produced or
delivered using the same resources available to the firm, but whose seasonal demand
patterns are out of phase with each other. Complementary goods or services balance
seasonal demand cycles and therefore use the excess capacity available. For instance,
demand for lawnmowers peaks in the spring and summer; to balance manufacturing
capacity, the producer might also produce leaf blowers and vacuums for the autumn
season and snowblowers for the winter season.
15. Discuss each of the four strategies for capacity expansion. Include the risks and
benefits of each.
ANS:
1. One large capacity increase: The advantage of one large capacity increase is that the
fixed costs of construction and operating system setup needs to be incurred only once,
enabling the firm to allocate these costs over one large project. However, if aggregate
demand exhibits steady growth, the facility will be underutilized.
2. Small capacity increases that match demand: When capacity is above the demand
curve, the firm has excess capacity; when it is below, there is a shortage of capacity to
meet demand. In this situation, there will be short periods of over and under resource
utilization. This is often called a capacity straddle strategy.
3. Small capacity increases that lead demand: Since there is always excess capacity, safety
capacity to meet unexpected demand from large orders or new customers is provided. This
safety capacity also enables the firm to give good customer service since backorders will
rarely occur. Of course, this strategy is expensive. This is often called a capacity lead
strategy.
4. Small capacity increases that lag demand: This results in constant capacity shortages. It
requires less investment and provides for high capacity utilization and thus a higher rate of
return on investment. However, it may also reduce long-term profitability through
overtime, subcontracting and productivity losses that occur as the firm scrambles to satisfy
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demand. In the long run, such a policy can lead to a permanent loss of market position.
This is often called a capacity lag strategy.
ANS:
a. Adjust short-term capacity levels by adding or sharing equipment, selling unused
capacity, changing labor capacity and schedules, changing labor skill mix, and
shifting work to slack periods.
b. Ways to shift and stimulate demand include varying the price of goods or
services, providing customers with information, advertising and promotion, adding
peripheral goods or services, and providing reservations.
17. Define a revenue management system (RMS) and explain how it works. Give several
examples of assets that can be managed using RMS.
ANS:
A revenue management system (RMS) consists of dynamic methods to forecast demand, allocate
perishable assets across market segments, decide when to overbook and by how much, and
determine what price to charge different customer (price) classes. The ideas and methods
surrounding RMS are often called yield management.
Modern RMS software simultaneously makes changes in the forecast, allocation, overbooking,
and pricing decisions in a real-time operating system. This process does not end until there is no
more opportunity to maximize revenue (because the airplane has taken off, the concert has begun,
the cruise ship has launched, etc.).
Applicable assets might include: a hotel room, an airline seat, a rental car, a concert seat, a room
on a cruise ship, and broadcast advertising space.
18. Define the Theory of Constraints (TOC). How does TOC view throughput differently from
the traditional OM perspective?
ANS:
The Theory of Constraints (TOC) is a set of principles that focus on increasing total process
throughput by maximizing the utilization of all bottleneck work activities and workstations. The
traditional OM definition of throughput is the average number of goods or services completed per
time period by a process. TOC views throughput differently: throughput is the amount of money
generated per time period through actual sales. For most business organizations the goal is to
maximize throughput, thereby maximizing cash flow.
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pacage et les pâturages qui conviennent à la saison et à leur état. Il
semble que l’on trouve là un reflet dans les mœurs, de cette
évolution de l’humidité du climat au Sahara dont il est souvent
question dans ce travail.
Il est d’ailleurs constant que pour certaines régions actuellement
peu sympathiques du pays des Kel Ahaggar, les Touareg vous
parlent d’un temps assez proche (une centaine d’années, pas plus)
où elles étaient plus favorisées sous le rapport des pâturages et des
points d’eau ; à citer en particulier à ce sujet les voisinages de
l’Amadror.
Le pâturage vert est excellent pour remettre en état un chameau,
il est agréable aussi parce qu’il diminue la fréquence de la nécessité
des opérations d’abreuvoir[72], mais c’est un pâturage fade — aussi
les Touareg, quand ils ne peuvent recourir à un pâturage salé,
donnent du sel à leurs chameaux.
L’alimentation du chameau a d’ailleurs un tas de nécessités qui
rendent très complexes son élevage et son entretien, ces nécessités
se superposant avec la question de la pluie. Son étude détaillée
sortirait du cadre de ce travail.
Enfin l’on a la, surprise de trouver parfois des Poissons en abondance ; dans
la mare permanente de Tin-Eselmaken, près d’Amguid, en particulier j’ai eu
l’occasion d’observer la présence de nombreux poissons dont certains
atteignaient une taille de 30 centimètres environ ; je suis arrivé à en capturer
deux qui ont été déterminés par le docteur Pellegrin, du Museum[75] ; ce sont
deux exemplaires du Barbus biscarensis Boulenger, des environs de Biskra.
Une autre espèce de barbeau, le Barbus Deserti Pellegrin, a été récoltée
dans la mare d’Ifedil, dans les Tassilis également, associée à l’espèce
précédente et décrite par le Dr Pellegrin ; il est probable que cette espèce existe
également à Amguid.
Tels sont les deux points du Massif Central Saharien où la présence des
poissons a été reconnue avec certitude et les espèces déterminées.
Ces barbeaux se rencontrent certainement en d’autres mares permanentes
du Tassili de l’Ajjer, en particulier probablement dans l’oued Mihero ; les Touareg
m’en ont signalé également dans l’Emmidir (dans un aguelmam de l’oued Arak).
Ils se rencontrent peut-être également dans le Pays cristallin.
Foureau a signalé des Clarias (Siluridés) dans les Tassilis de l’Ajjer ; je n’en ai
point rencontré et je me demande s’il n’y aurait pas eu confusion.
Les Touareg ne mangent pas les poissons sous prétexte qu’ils sont impurs,
se nourrissant, disent-ils, d’excréments !
C’est la même raison qui leur fait ne pas manger de poulet (disent-ils) ; mais il
se peut qu’il y ait plutôt dans ces coutumes une cause ancienne religieuse.
Si l’on examine ces eaux avec une grande attention on y trouve de nombreux
Crustacés de petite taille ; j’ai observé en particulier la présence de Branchipus
en trois aguelmams différents : l’un près de Tin-Edness, vers 900 mètres
d’altitude, dans lequel ils étaient très nombreux ; l’autre dans le Telleret’ba, vers
1.500 mètres d’altitude, le troisième dans l’oued Ens-Iguelmamen (au pied de la
gara Ti-Djenoun).
Enfin voilà des montagnes ; nous sommes cette fois en vrai pays targui : ce
sont les plateaux nus et brûlants des Tassilis dont les vallées encaissées cachent
dans le fond de gorges fantastiques des bosquets de lauriers-roses et de
mimosas[82] fleuris et odorants, de petits lacs qu’animent de nombreux poissons
et des marécages touffus, retraites noires de quelques vieux crocodiles.
En parcourant ces oueds de légendes dans les replis desquels les surprises
se succèdent aux yeux émerveillés, je comprends maintenant les yeux
nostalgiques des officiers sahariens au moindre souvenir des pays touareg ; ne
nous a-t-il pas paru à tous comme une île enchantée, ce pays targui, après la
traversée monotone du Sahara arabe ? et comme il m’apparaît naturel
maintenant le prestige extraordinaire du nom « Hoggar » sur toutes les
populations sahariennes : pays fabuleux et magique en vérité quand on le
compare aux autres régions sahariennes, et dont on ne peut considérer les
descriptions merveilleuses comme le fallacieux effet de l’emphase arabe que tant
qu’on ne le connaît pas ! A mesure qu’il se dévoile, il apparaît digne de sa
renommée.
Je renonce à décrire ces vallées ombreuses et parfumées des Tassilis
enserrées dans leurs hautes murailles comme un trésor dont la terre garde un
soin jaloux ; ne serait-ce pas un sacrilège ?
On y surprend souvent au détour d’une gorge, soit la timide gazelle aux
gracieux effrois, reposant mignonnement à l’ombre du térébinthe ou du mimosa,
soit le sauvage mouflon au front noble et vaillant buvant longuement à quelque
flaque d’eau miroitante laissée dans le creux du rocher par une récente pluie.
Dans les Tassilis, au Tahihaout, je rencontre des traces récentes de chèvres,
d’ânes et de chameaux ; des tribus de Touareg nomadisent donc non loin ; j’ai
besoin d’un guide ; j’envoie mon méhariste, Mahomed-ben-Hamouillah, sur leurs
traces essayer de m’en trouver un ; il revient bientôt, et voici un Targui devant
moi : Amdor-ag-Amadou, des Eaohen-n-ada.
Au côté un glaive de ligne sobre et pure gainé de cuir écarlate évoque les
chevaliers.
Ainsi m’apparaît, superbe et mystérieux, le guerrier targui Amdor ag Amadou.
Quelle volupté que l’ombre fraîche des figuiers d’Idelès ; comme je suis tenté
de m’arrêter quelques jours ici.
Nous continuons cependant notre route et gagnons les hautes régions de
l’Atakor, le massif du Tahat qui, avec ses 3.000 mètres d’altitude, est le point
culminant, la clef de voûte du Sahara central, et je descends en raid sur
Tamanrasat, de l’autre côté de la Koudia où, avec le lieutenant Vella, le résident
du Hoggar, je fais le pèlerinage sacré : la tombe du Père de Foucauld, le
monument du Général Laperrine et de son ami, et le château du Père de
Foucauld contre les murs duquel il fut assassiné — chose surprenante d’ailleurs
pour un prêtre en pays musulman.
Ensuite je remonte dans l’Atakor dont je n’oublierai jamais, je crois, les cimes
étranges et déchiquetées, ni les aurores merveilleuses quand, dans la fraîcheur
du matin, alors que le soleil levant fait rougeoyer les aiguilles fantastiques de la
Koudia, la caravane s’ébranle dans l’ombre d’une vallée.
Je gagne l’oued Arrou dans les contreforts Nord-Ouest de l’Atakor ; oued
enchanté : sa gorge est toute bruyante de la chanson d’un ruisseau, de la
délicieuse chanson de l’eau et c’est une joie immense ! toute la journée en le
suivant, c’est de la folie.
C’est une des surprises de ces contreforts Nord et Nord-Ouest de l’Atakor ;
on y trouve des ruisseaux, de vrais ruisseaux bondissants et joyeux, dans de
l’herbe et des fleurs, sous de frais bosquets de Tamarix, de Térébinthes et de
Jujubiers.
Enfin, c’est dans l’Atakor que l’on rencontre en général l’élite de la
tahouggera (noblesse) des Kel-Ahaggar, des Kel-Ettebel (fils de suzeraineté) :
les Kel-Rala, tribu dans laquelle est choisi l’Amenoukal (roi) des Kel-Ahaggar,
dont la souveraineté d’ailleurs n’est plus établie sur tous les Kel-Ahaggar, mais
principalement sur les Kel-Efella (gens du haut) seulement, les Kel-Ataram (gens
d’aval) constituant actuellement un ettebel (ensemble de vassaux) distinct du
grand ettebel (celui des Kel-Rala et des Tedjéhé-Mellet, celui de l’Amenoukal),
l’ettebel des Taitok[89].
Alors que les nobles guerriers de l’Ahaggar, leurs époux, sont en expédition
lointaine, c’est là, dans les hautes vallées principalement, que vivent leurs
femmes et leurs enfants avec les troupeaux, les biens de la famille, à l’abri,
autant qu’on peut l’être, des rezzous.
C’est là le centre, le cœur de l’Ahaggar et son ultime réduit.
C’est d’ailleurs une région privilégiée de pâturage vert (d’Acheb), car les
pluies tombent relativement souvent sur ces hautes montagnes et elles sont
fréquemment couvertes d’un véritable manteau de fleurs violettes (le Krom) ainsi
que d’une sorte de rougeoyante oseille, qui font le bonheur des chamelles et des
chèvres et permettent à leurs maîtres de vivre dans l’abondance du lait, d’être
des heureux du Sahara.
Ces hauts plateaux de l’Atakor sont donc souvent très habités, et très
noblement habités ; on mène alors dans la société targui une vie mondaine
infiniment attachante.
La vie en Koudia ! que de douceur de vivre est contenue dans ces mots pour
un targui.
J’ai vécu avec les Touareg, comme les Touareg, et leur vie mondaine de
guerriers, d’amoureux et de poètes m’a profondément enchanté.
On n’oublie pas le charme de leurs Ihallen (pl. d’Ahal, réunion), au doux son
des Imzaden (pl. d’Imzad, violon monocorde).
L’ahal est très en honneur dans l’aristocratie targuia, et pour l’ahal, les
chevaliers touareg accourent de très loin sur leurs plus beaux mehara, le glaive
(takouba) au côté, dans l’espoir d’avoir l’occasion d’y briller devant dames et
damoiselles et plus particulièrement devant celles dont leurs vers célèbrent la
beauté.
Planche XIV.
Le Pays cristallin.
Une aiguille volcanique près de Tamanrasset.