Past Year Questions OPM

530
COMPILATION OF PAST YEAR QUESTIONS
OPM 530 INTRODUCTION TO OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT
JAN 2012 OCTOBER 2006
CHAPTER 1- In!"#$%&"n " O'(!)&"n* M)n)+(,(n )n# P!"#$%&-&.
JUN2012
a) Define productivity and elaborate on any four (4) importance of productivity to an organization.
(10 marks)
b) Discuss any five (5) challenged faced by todays operations managers (10 marks)
APR 2011
a) Define operations management !ith the aid of appropriate diagram. (" marks)
b) Discuss any four (4) ethical challenges faced by the operations managers. (1# marks)
OCT 2010
$o!adays% operations management is critical to!ards organizational success. &herefore it is a
challenge for the organizations operation to be aligned !ith the current trends. Discuss any five
(5) ne! trends in operations management !ith appropriate e'amples. (#0 marks)
APR 200/
a) Describe the ma(or components of a production system. )llustrate your ans!ers !ith a diagram.
(10 marks)
b) Discuss any t!o (#) e'amples of ho! changes in the e'ternal environment such as ma(or
increase in oil prices affect the operations management strategy for a company. (10 marks)
CHAPTER 2 - O'(!)&"n* S!)(+. )n# C",'(&&-(n(**
JAN 2012
*+perations ,anagement is the set of activities that creates value in the form of goods and services
by transforming inputs into outputs".
-ased on the above statement% e'plain briefly the ten (10) +perations ,anagement critical
decisions. (#0 marks)
APR 2011
a) .laborate any four (4) reasons for the company involving in international trade. (" marks)
b) /0+&+$ !ill introduce a ne! model kno!n as PO!O" #"$P#% for the ,alaysian market.
&his ne! car model is a collaboration pro(ect bet!een /0+&+$ and ,)&12-)13). ,)&12-)13) is
a 4apanese car manufacturing company !ho is !ell kno!n !ith M#!$&'#$(# )%"*+ model.
PO!O" #"$P#% and M#!$&'#$(# )%"*+ are categorized under same class of specification.
+,tracted from &tusan Malaysia- .une /000
Demonstrate the strategies that can be applied by /0+&+$ to achieve competitive advantage for
PO!O" #"$P#% to compete !ith the established model produced by ,)&12-)13)% named as
M#!$&'#$(# )%"*+. (1# marks)
OCT 2010
a) -riefly e'plain on ho! an organization can achieve competitive advantage in the market !ith
relevant e'amples. (1# marks)
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Past Year Questions
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b) )dentify and e'plain four (4) global operations strategies options
for an organization
to
engage in international business. ( " marks)
APR 2010
Discuss any four (4) strategic decisions in managing operations in an organization. (10 marks)
OCT 200/
a) .'plain five (5) reasons !hy company globalizes their business operations. )llustrate your ans!er
!ith e'ample. (10 marks)
b) Define competitive advantage. )dentify and elaborate ho! organizations can achieve competitive
advantages in their business operations. 1upport your ans!er !ith e'ample.
(10 marks)
OCT 2000
a) -riefly discuss ho! managers achieve competitive advantage through differentiation and
response. /rovide an e'ample for each strategy. (10 marks)
OCT 2001
Discuss any five (5) impacts of globalization on operations management. (#0 marks)
APR 2001
Discuss any five (5) strategic decisions in managing operations in an organization. (#0 marks)
CHAPTER 3 - P!"#$% D(*&+n &n M)n$2)%$!&n+
JAN 2012
a) 5ist the five (5) goals for ethical and environmentally friendly product design. (5 marks)
b) Describe any five (5) factors to be considered by operations managers !hen designing ne!
products. (15 marks)
APR 2010
6uality 7unction Deployment (67D) is a process for determining customer re8uirements and
translating them into the attributes that each functional area can understand and act on. +ne of the
tools of 67D is the 3ouse of 6uality.
i) Define house of 6uality. (9 marks)
ii) .'plain the seven (:) basic steps in performing the 3ouse of 6uality. (: marks)
OCT 200/
-riefly e'plain any five (5) factors that influence ne! product design. (10 marks)
APR 2000
.'plain briefly four (4) benefits of developing ne! products ahead of competitors.(10 marks)
Discuss t!o (#) !ays ho! globalization impacts the design process. (10 marks)
CHAPTER 3 - L"%)&"n S!)(+.
APR 2011
.'plain any four (4) ma(or factors that affect location decisions. (10 marks)
APR 200/
Discuss any t!o (#) potential advantages and any t!o (#) disadvantages of locating a production
facility in a foreign country instead of using a domestic location. (#0 marks)
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OCT 200/
;reat 4ob .lectronics is considering t!o different locations in the $orthern zone in ,alaysia for
the ne! plant to manufacture table lamps. &he cost structure for each location is as follo!s<
5ocation 7i'ed cost (0,) =ariable cost
(0,) per unit
1ungai /etani 100%000 150
>rau 190%000 190
&he selling price for each table lamp is 0, #10.
a) ?ompute the total cost for each location if the company !ants to produce #%500 units of table
lamp@ Determine the best location in terms of the best cost@ (9 marks)
b) Determine !hich location !ill generate more profit for a production volume of 4%000 units@
(4 marks)
c) >t !hat volume !ill the 1ungai /etani plant can be the best location to produce table lamp !ith
minimum cost@ (4 marks)
d) ?alculate the breakeven point for each location. (4 marks)
OCT 2000
b) -riefly discuss t!o (#) reasons for increased decentralization in plant location strategy. (10
marks)
APR 2000
1tate 2niversity is attempting to locate the best site for a ne! student center and athletic comple'.
&he university administration !ould like to kno! the best location relative to the four main
concentrations of student housing and classroom activities on campus. &he coordinates of the
housing and classroom areas and daily student populations are as follo!s<
?ampus student concentration ?oordinate Daily student population
,eranti Dorm ?omple' (10%1#.5) :00
,elati 3ausing ?omple' (15%#:) A00
>kasia ?lassroom ?omple' (#0%:) 1150
,illenium ?lassroom ?omple' (##%#0) 490
Determine the best site using the centerBofBgravity method.
(10
marks)
APR 2001
1>1 &ech is ready to begin production !ith its e'isting ne! technology. &he company is
evaluating three methods of production <
()) a small production facility !ith older e8uipment ()))
> larger production facility that is more automated
()))) 1ubcontracting to an electronics manufacturer in 1ingapore
&he costs of each alternative are sho!n belo! <
/rocess 7i'ed cost (0,) =ariable cost
(0,) per unit
> #00%000 40
- C00%000 #0
? 0 C0
a) Determine for !hat level of demand each production process should be chosen.
4ustify your ans!er by using the graph paper. (1# marks)
b) -ased on the above ans!er% determine the profit of the company if the management decided
to produce #5%000 units at selling price of 0,C5.00 per unit. (9 marks)
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CHAPTER 5 - P!"%(** S!)(+&(* )n# L)."$ D(*&+n
JUN 2012
a) D&he ob(ectives of process strategy is to build a production process that meets customer
re8uirements and product specifications !ithin cost and other managerial constraints.E-ased on the
above statement%briefly describe the four (4) types of process strategies !ith e'amples.
(1# marks)
b) -riefly e'plain any four(4) techni8ues for improving service productivity in service process design.
(" marks)
JAN 2012
a) .laborate on any five (5) factors to be considered by a manager in planning a good layout.
(10 marks)
b) -riefly e'plain these layouts !ith an appropriate e'ample for each.
i) 7i'ed position layout
ii) /rocessBoriented layout (10 marks)
APR 2011
5ayout is one of the key decisions that determine the longBrun efficiency of operations. >n effective
layout can help an organization achieve its strategy for competitive advantage. -riefly discuss the
five (5) re8uirements for a good layout. (10 marks)
OCT 2010
Differentiate the characteristics bet!een process focus strategy and product focus strategy !ith
relevant e'amples. (" marks)
a) > firm must produce 40 units per day during an "Bhour !orkday. &asks% times% and
predecessor activities are given belo!.
&ask &ime(minutes) /redecessors(s)
> # B
- # >
? " B
D C ?
. 9 -
7 10 D%.
; 4 7
3 9 ;
i) Dra! the precedence diagram for this operation. (9 marks)
ii) ?alculate the cycle time. (1 mark)
iii) ?alculate the theoretical minimum number of !orkstations. (# marks)
iv) Dra! the layout for the assembly line. (4 marks)
v) ?ompute the efficiency and idleness of the assembly line. (# marks)
APR 2010
Discuss four (4) types of process strategies. 1upport your ans!ers !ith e'amples. (10 marks)
OCT 200/
a) > firm must produce 105 chairs per day during a ABhour !orkday !hich includes one hour
break. &he tasks% times and predecessor activities are as follo!s<
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Past Year Questions
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&ask &ime(minutes) /redecessors(s)
> 1.95 B
- #.:# B
? 1.0# >
D #.11 -%?
. #.05 D
7 1.94 D%.
; 1.5# 7
3 1.## .%;
i) Dra! the precedence diagram. (4 marks)
ii) ?ompute the cycle time per chair per day. (# marks)
iii) ?ompute the minimum number of !orkstations re8uired (# marks)
iv) Do the line balancing for the layout. (4 marks)
v) ?ompute the efficiency and the idleness of layout. (9 marks)
b) Describe ho! line balancing affects !ork productivity (5 marks)
OCT 2000
a) Discuss the four (4) types of process strategy in operations management and provide e'amples.
(1# marks)
b) .laborate briefly any t!o (#) analysis tools that can be used in process strategy to transform
resources into goods and services. (" marks)
APR 2000
Discuss any four (4) reasons !hy effective layout is necessary for a process to be efficient (10
marks)
OCT 2001
a) Discuss any four (4) characteristics of the product focused and the process focused strategies.
4ustify your ans!er !ith an industry e'ample for each strategy. (1# marks)
b) )dentify and e'plain briefly any t!o (#) tools of process analysis that can be used in the process
strategies. (" marks)
CHAPTER 6 - J"4 D(*&+n
APR 2010
.laborate any four (4) components of (ob design. (10 marks)
OCT 2001
> time study is performed on an operation% resulting in the data belo!.
>llo!ance per "Bhour shift<
?lothes change 10 minutes
2navoidable delay 90 minutes
5unch 90 minutes
1ho!er and change 90 minutes
&otal 100 minutes
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Past Year Questions
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i) ?ompute the mean observed time for each element in minutes. (4 marks)
ii) ?ompute the normal time for each element and total normal time in minutes. (#.5 marks)
iii) ?ompute the allo!ance fraction for the operation. (1.5 marks)
iv) ?ompute the labor standard for the operation. (# marks)
APR 2001
.laborate on any t!o (#) components of a good (ob design. (10 marks)
CHAPTER 1 - C)')%&. )n# A++!(+)( P5)nn&n+
JUN 2012
a) Define aggregate planning and e'plain any t!o (#) of its importance to an organization.
(5marks)
b) Describe five (5) strategies adopted by operations managers or planners using capacity option.
(15 marks)
APR 2010
a) ?apacity decisions must be integrated into organizationFs mission and strategy. Describe any
four (4) strategies available to operations manager in dealing !ith capacity decision.
(10 marks) b)
Differentiate bet!een chase strategy and level strategy in aggregate planning. Describe the
advantages and disadvantage of each strategy. (10 marks)
APR 200/
)dentify and describe any four (4) different capacity options in aggregate planning that can be
applied in any organizations. (1# marks)
APR 2000
Discuss any four (4) strategies used in aggregate planning and ho! they can be applied in the
organization. (10 marks)
OCT 2001
a) .'plain the relationships of long% medium% and short range production plan. (10 marks)
APR 2001
Discuss briefly ho! aggregate planning in service differs from aggregate planning in manufacturing.
(10 marks)
CHAPTER 0 - O'(!)&"n* S%6(#$5&n+
APR 2011
> lab technician has si' (obs a!aiting processing. /rocessing time and due dates are given in the
table. >ssume that (obs arrive in the order sho!n. 1et the processing se8uence according to 7irst
?ome 7irst 1erve (7?71) and evaluate the performance of this se8uence in terms of effectiveness%
efficiency% (ob lateness and utilization.
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Past Year Questions
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4ob 4ob /rocessing &ime (Days) 4ob Due Date (Days)
> C ##
- 1# 14
? 14 90
D #9 1"
. 10 #5
7 4 94
OCT 200/
a) Differentiate bet!een back!ard scheduling and for!ard
scheduling. (5 marks)
b) &he strategic implication of short term scheduling is it !ill help companies to use their assets
more effectively and create greater capacity per dollar invested. .'plain the goals of short term
scheduling. (10 marks)
APR 200/
.'plain briefly any four (4) priority rules used to assign (obs at a !orkstation. (10 marks)
APR 200/
> production scheduler must determine the se8uence to process si' customer orders. .ach of
the orders must go through t!o principal operations< insertion and soldering. &he scheduler has
developed these production time estimates for the si' orders.
?ustomer order number ?omponent insertion (hours) 7lo! soldering (hours)
> " :
- A :
? : C
D 4 5
. 5 C
7 9 5
>ssume the operations need not change over to ne! (obs at the same time.
i)2se 4ohnsonFs rules to set the se8uence of producing the orders in the t!o operations.(1 mark)
ii) ?ompute ho! many hours !ill be re8uired to produce all the orders through both
operations.
(" marks)
iii) ?ompute the idle time for both principal operations. (1 mark)
APR 2000
Discuss t!o (#) reasons !hy it is so difficult to schedule !orkers in the service environment.
(10
marks)
APR 2001
)n trying to meet customer demands% companies need to carry out a proper production
scheduling using the resources and capacity available. Discuss five (5) different approaches in
scheduling that can minimize delivery problems so as to ensure customersF good!ill. (15 marks)
CHAPTER / - In-(n"!. M)n)+(,(n
JAN 2013
Discuss any four (4) impacts of globalization on operations management
JAN 2012
a) Differentiate !ith e'amples dependent demand and independent demand inventory
management system. (C marks)
b) > large architect firm uses an average of 50 bo'es of copier paper a day. &he firm operates
#C0 days a year. 1torage and handling costs for the paper are 0,40 a year per bo'. )t costs
0,:0 to order and receive the shipment of paper.
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Past Year Questions
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i) ?alculate the economic order 8uantity (.+6). (# marks)
ii) ?alculate the total annual cost. (# marks)
iii) ?alculate the optimal number of orders per year. (# marks)
iv) ?alculate the optimal number of days bet!een any t!o orders. (# marks)
=) &he office manager is currently using an order size of #50 bo'es. &he partners of the firm e'pect
the office to be managed *in a costBefficient mannerF. Gould you recommend the office manager to
use the optimal order 8uantity instead of #50 bo'es@ 4ustify your ans!er in terms of annual cost
saving. (5 marks)
APR 2011
)n managing inventory% t!o main issues should be considered of !hich includes ho! inventory items
can be classified (called >-? analysis)H and ho! inventory records can be maintained. >-?
analysis is an established system for managing inventory. -riefly discuss the >-? analysis !ith the
aid of diagram. (10 marks)
OCT 2010
a) )nventory can be defined as an organizations merchandise% ra! materials% finished and
unfinished products !hich have not yet been sold. .laborate the four (4) functions of
inventory in an organization. (" marks)
b) &he ob(ective of inventory management is to strike a balance bet!een inventory investment and
customer service. -riefly e'plain the four (4) techni8ues of inventory management that
can be used by the operations manager. (1# marks)
APR 2010
;emilang ?omputers 1dn. -hd. assembles custom home computer systems. &he company
operates 5# !eeks per year !ith 5 !orking days per !eek. >nnual demand for the computer is
5500 unitsH annual inventory cost is 0,: per unit% and the cost to place the order is estimated to be
0,C0. ?alculate the follo!ing.
i) .conomic order 8uantity (.+6). (1.5 marks)
ii) &he total annual cost. (9.5 marks)
APR 200/
Discuss any t!o (#) reasons !hy inventory items are grouped into >-? classification in inventory
management. (" marks)
CHAPTER 10 - P!"7(% M)n)+(,(n
JUN2012
a) /ro(ect management involves three phases< planning% scheduling and controlling. -riefly e'plain
the controlling phase as it is often considered as the most critical stage. (5 marks)
b) > pro(ect has been defined to contain the follo!ing list of activities% along !ith their re8uired
times for completion.
&ask )mmediate predecessors &ime in days
> B 1
- > 4
? > 9
D > :
. - C
7 ?%D #
; .%7 :
3 D A
;%3 4
"
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Past Year Questions
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i) ?onstruct the net!ork for this pro(ect. (4 marks)
ii) ?alculate the .arliest 1tart (.1)% .arliest 7inish (.7)% 5atest 1tart (51)% 5atest 7inish (57) and
slack time for each of the activity. (" marks)
iii) )dentify the critical path (1 mark)
iv) Ghat !ould happen if activity 7 revised to take four days instead of t!o@ )dentify the ne!
critical path and the ne! completion time (# marks)
APR 2010
Iour boss gives you the follo!ing information on a ne! pro(ect. &he information includes
the activities% the time estimates% and the precedence relationship
&ask )mmediate predecessors &ime in days
> B 5
- B 4
? > C
D > 9
. -%? C
7 ?%D :
; .%7 5
3 ; 4
i) ?onstruct the net!ork for this pro(ect. (4 marks)
ii) ?alculate the .arliest 1tart (.1)% .arliest 7inish (.7)% 5atest 1tart (51)% 5atest 7inish (57) and
slack time for each of the activity.
("
marks)
iii) )dentify the critical path and the critical activities for the pro(ect.
(#
marks)
iv) Determine the e'pected completion time for this pro(ect. (1 mark)
OCT 2000
a) Discuss the importance of pro(ect planning% scheduling and controlling.
(10
marks)
b) ,onel ,anufacturing ?ompany is planning to install a ne!% fle'ible manufacturing system. &he
activities that must be performed% their immediate predecessors% and estimated activity time as
sho!n in the table belo!<
&ask )mmediate predecessors &ime in days
> BB 4
- B #
? > "
D >%- A
. ?%D 4
7 ?%D 11
; . 5
3 7 C
) ;%3 10
i) Dra! the pro(ect net!ork diagram. (# marks)
ii) ?ompute earliest start% earliest finish% latest start J latest finish time. (C marks)
iii) ?ompute the overall pro(ect completion time and the critical path of the pro(ect.
(# marks)
APR 2000
a) Discuss the three (9) phases of pro(ect management. 1upport your ans!er by providing
e'amples. (10 marks)
b) -riefly discuss on any five (5) factors that contribute to a pro(ect success. (10 marks)
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Past Year Questions
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CHAPTER 11 - M)&n(n)n%( M)n)+(,(n
APR 2011
Grite short notes on the follo!ing<
a) 0eliability
b) ,aintenance (10 marks)
OCT 2010
a) Define the maintenance management. ?ompare and contrast bet!een breakdo!n
maintenance and preventive maintenance. (10 marks)
b) Discuss the importance of maintenance program in organization. (10 marks)
APR 200/
a) .'plain briefly any four (4) impacts of machines malfunctions on a production system. (10
marks)
b) Gith the aid of a diagram% discuss the relationship bet!een breakdo!n maintenance and
preventive maintenance. (10 marks)
APR 2000
"#f a machine brea5s do6n- operations managers have no choice 4 repairs must be made. On the
other hand- the decision to have regularly scheduled inspections- machine ad7ustments- lubrication-
and parts replacement as a part of a preventive maintenance program is discretionary."
>dopted from< ;aither% $. J 7razier% ;. (1AAA). Productions and Operations Management. "th ed.
?incinnati< 1outhBGestern ?ollege /ublishing.
?omment on the above statement. 1upport your ans!er by outlining t!o (#) reasons !hy
operations managers have preventive management programs in their organizations. (10 marks)
OCT 2001
a) .'plain four (4) reasons ho! preventive maintenance can be an important factor in achieving
operations strategies. (10 marks)
b) .'plain the relationship bet!een the costs of prevention and the cost of making repairs. )llustrate
your ans!er !ith a diagram. (10 marks)
APR 2001
a) .'plain five (5) reasons !hy it is necessary to have a good preventive maintenance program in
place prior to the implementation of 4ust in &ime (4)&) system. (10 marks)
CHAPTER 12 - Q$)5&. M)n)+(,(n
JUN2012
a) -riefly e'plain any five (5) stages of the production or service process !here inspection is
needed. (10 marks)
b) +ne of the ingredients in an organizations &6, program is benchmarking. .laborate on the
five (5) steps for developing benchmarks. (10 marks)
JAN 2012
a) Define &otal 6uality ,anagement (&6,). (# marks)
b) >n automobile manufacturer aims to achieve customer delight. Iou as the
/roduction ,anager plans on ho! to achieve the goal using &otal 6uality ,anagement (&6,)
concepts. Discuss any three (9) &6, concepts practiced by companies to!ards achieving
customer satisfaction. (1" marks)
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APR 2011
5ist and define any five (5) concepts for an effective &6, program.
(10
marks)
OCT 2010
a) Define &otal 6uality ,anagement (&6,). Discuss t!o (#) reasons of !hy 8uality is important to
an organization. (10 marks)
b) Discuss any four (4) determinants of service 8uality for a local transportation provider.
(10marks)
APR 2010
a) Describe any five (5) problem solving tools applied in &otal 6uality ,anagement (&6,). (10
marks)
b) .'plain any four (4) barriers to implement 8uality management in service sectors.(10 marks)
OCT 2000
)dentify and elaborate on any four (4) strategies and techni8ues for improving service productivity.
/rovide an e'ample for each techni8ue given. (#0 marks)
a) .'plain briefly any t!o (#) concepts of an effective &otal 6uality ,anagement program. ("
marks)
b) &o empo!er employees and implement &otal 6uality ,anagement as a continuing effort%
everyone in the organization must be trained in the techni8ues of &otal 6uality ,anagement.
Describe three (9) tools for generating ideas in &otal 6uality ,anagement. (1# marks)
APR 2000
Discuss any four (4) dimensions of 8uality for a service organization. (10 marks)
OCT 2001
a) )dentify and e'plain four (4) factors that make 8uality management more difficult to implement in
services than in manufacturing industries. (10 marks)
b) 7rom the above ans!er% discuss the approaches that have been developed to lessen the
effects of these difficulties. (10 marks)
APR 2001
a) Describe any five (5) dimensions of product 8uality. (10 marks)
b) .'plain briefly the general principles of !hen to carry out inspection(s) in a production process.
(10 marks)
8 GOOD LUC9 FOR FINAL 8
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