You Have Been Asked to Balance a Flow Shop Assembly

question 4

Essay

You have been asked to balance a flow shop assembly operation to achieve an output rate of 80 units per eight-hour day. Task times and precedence relationships are shown in the table below.
$$\begin{array} { | c | c | c | } \hline \text { Task } & \text { Predecessor(s) } & \begin{array} { c } \text { Duration } \\\text { (minutes) }\end{array} \\\hline \text { A } & - - & 1.4 \\\hline \text { B } & - - & 0.8 \\\hline \text { C } & \text { A, B } & 0.4 \\\hline \text { D } & - - & 1.8 \\\hline \text { E } & - - & 0.4 \\\hline \text { F } & \text { C } & 2.1 \\\hline \text { G } & \mathrm { E } , \mathrm { F } & 2.0 \\\hline \text { H } & \mathrm { D } , \mathrm { G } & 1.2 \\\hline\end{array}$$ a. Draw the precedence diagram.
b. Determine the desired cycle time.
c. Determine the theoretical minimum number of stations needed.
d. Balance this line using most following tasks.
e. What is the efficiency of the line obtained in part d?

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Definitions:

Variable Cost

Costs that fluctuate in direct proportion to production or sales figures, including items like direct labor and raw materials.

Mixed Costs

Expenses comprising both fixed and variable components, changing in total with the level of activity but not proportionately.

Merchandising Firm

A business that purchases finished goods for resale in order to make a profit, differentiating itself from manufacturing firms and service firms.

Gross Margin

The difference between sales revenue and the cost of goods sold, expressed as a percentage of sales revenue.