A Small Electronics Company Assembles Microchips for Use in Computers

question 1

Essay

A small electronics company assembles microchips for use in computers, printers and fax machines. They want to set up an assembly line to make their operation more efficient and plan to use line balancing with the longest-task-time heuristic. The demand for microchips is 70 per hour, and the productive time per hour is 52 minutes. The following table provides details on their operation. $\begin{array}{ccc}\text { Task } & \text { Time (n minutes) } & \text { Predecessor(s) } \\\text { A } & 0.54 & \text { none } \\\text { B } & 0.34 & \text { A } \\\text { C } & 0.11 & \text { A } \\\text { D } & 0.09 & \text { A } \\\text { E } & 0.43 & \text { B, C } \\\text { F } & 0.22 & \text { D } \\\text { G } & 0.62 & \text { E } \\\text { H } & 0.35 & \text { F, G } \\\text { I } & 0.21 & \text { H } \\\text { J } & 0.57 & \text { H } \\\text { K } & 0.33 & \text { I. J }\end{array}$
a.What is the cycle time?
b.What is the theoretical minimum number of workstations?
c.What tasks go into the first workstation?
d.How many workstations are needed for the entire line?
e.What is the assembly-line efficiency?

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Definitions:

Manufacturing Overhead Cost

Indirect costs related to manufacturing that are not directly tied to a specific product, such as factory maintenance and utilities.

Normal Costing System

An accounting system that assigns costs to products based on the normal levels of materials, labor, and overhead.

Inventory Accounts

Accounts used to track the cost of goods a company has in stock during an accounting period, including raw materials, work in progress, and finished goods.

Actual Overhead Costs

The real costs that a company incurs for its indirect materials, indirect labor, and other overhead expenses.