Q&A Hero

Q: Aggregate planning is capacity planning for: A. the long range. B. the intermediate range. C. the short range. D. typically one to three months. E. typically one or more years.

Q: Effectively using labor resources during periods of peak demand and low demand would be the goal of aggregate planners in: A. manufacturing. B. military. C. archeology. D. libraries. E. financial services.

Q: Which of the following best describes aggregate planning? A. the link between intermediate-term planning and short-term operating decisions B. a collection of objective planning tools C. make-or-buy decisions D. an attempt to respond to predicted demand within the constraints set by product, process, and location decisions E. manpower planning

Q: In the master production schedule, production is planned for the next period whenever the available-to-promise quantity becomes negative.

Q: After the first period of the planning horizon, available-to-promise is computed only for those periods in which there is an MPS quantity.

Q: A time fence in the master schedule is used to prevent unauthorized people from making changes to the schedule.

Q: Available-to-promise in the first week is equal to beginning inventory plus MPS quantity, if any, less committed customer orders before the next MPS quantity.

Q: Subcontracting "in" would apply to periods in which our organization has excess capacity.

Q: Master schedulers are employed primarily by service organizations.

Q: Departmental budgeting is an example of aggregate planning.

Q: The master schedule indicates the quantity and timing for delivery of a product, but not the dates production will need to start.

Q: Disaggregating an aggregate plan leads to a master schedule.

Q: Aggregate planners typically use mathematical techniques such as linear programming and linear decision rules for planning.

Q: The use of tables and charts in aggregate planning usually enables planners to arrive at an optimal plan.

Q: Aggregate planners commonly use trial-and-error methods in developing aggregate plans.

Q: Ultimately the overriding factor in choosing a strategy in aggregate planning is overall cost.

Q: Linear programming models yield the optimal solution.

Q: An advantage of a "chase" strategy for aggregate planning is that inventories can be kept relatively low.

Q: A level capacity strategy is also known as a chase demand strategy.

Q: Seasonality in demand has the advantage of leveling out requirements for our product or service.

Q: Organizations facing seasonal changes in demand are prevented from using aggregate planning techniques.

Q: Capacity can be modified in aggregate planning by promotion and producing additional product using overtime.

Q: Demand can be altered in aggregate planning by promotion and producing additional product using overtime.

Q: The output from aggregate planning is a detailed business plan covering the next 2 to 12 months.

Q: The assignment of work to specific machines and people are examples of aggregate planning.

Q: Aggregate planning is used to establish general levels of employment, output, and inventories over an intermediate range of time.

Q: Aggregate planners are concerned with the quality and quantity of expected demand.

Q: The goal of aggregate planning is to achieve a production plan that attempts to balance the organization's resources and meet expected demand.

Q: Aggregate planning is capacity planning that typically covers a time horizon of one to three months.

Q: The range chart (R-chart) is most likely to detect a change in: A. proportion. B. mean. C. number defective. D. variability. E. sample size.

Q: A shift in the process mean for a measured characteristic would most likely be detected by a: A. p-chart. B. x-bar chart. C. c-chart. D. R-chart. E. s-chart.

Q: A plot below the lower control limit on the range chart: (I) should be ignored since lower variation is desirable. (II) may be an indication that process variation has decreased. (III) should be investigated for assignable cause. A. I and II B. I and III C. II and III D. II only E. I, II, and III

Q: _______ variation is a variation whose cause can be identified. A. Assignable B. Controllable C. Random D. Statistical E. Theoretical

Q: The probability of concluding that assignable variation exists when only random variation is present is: (I) the probability of a Type I error. (II) known as the alpha risk. (III) highly unlikely. (IV) the sum of probabilities in the two tails of the normal distribution. A. I and II B. I and IV C. II and III D. I, II, and IV E. I, III, and IV

Q: Which of the following is not a step in the quality control process? A. Define what is to be controlled. B. Compare measurements to a standard. C. Eliminate each of the defects as they are identified. D. Take corrective action if necessary. E. Evaluate corrective action.

Q: Which of the following relationships must always be incorrect? A. Tolerances > process variability > control limits B. Process variability > tolerances > control limits C. Tolerances > control limits > process variability D. Process variability > control limits > tolerances E. Process variability < tolerances < control limits

Q: If a process is performing as it should, it is still possible to obtain observations which are outside of which limits? (I) tolerances (II) control limits (III) process variability A. I B. II C. I and II D. II and III E. I, II, and III

Q: A point which is outside of the lower control limit on an R-chart: A. is an indication that no cause of variation is present. B. should be ignored because it signifies better-than-average quality. C. should be investigated because an assignable cause of variation might be present. D. should be ignored unless another point is outside that limit. E. is impossible since the lower limit is always zero.

Q: A control chart used to monitor the number of defects per unit is the: A. p-chart. B. R-chart. C. x-bar chart. D. c-chart. E. Gantt chart.

Q: A c-chart is used for: A. means. B. ranges. C. percent defective. D. fraction defective per unit. E. number of defects per unit.

Q: A p-chart would be used to monitor: A. average shrinkage. B. dispersion in sample data. C. the fraction defective. D. the number of defects per unit. E. the range of values.

Q: A control chart used to monitor the fraction of defectives generated by a process is the: A. p-chart. B. R-chart. C. x-bar chart. D. c-chart. E. Gantt chart.

Q: A control chart used to monitor the process mean is the: A. p-chart. B. R-chart. C. x-bar chart. D. c-chart. E. Gantt chart.

Q: A time-ordered plot of representative sample statistics is called a(n): A. Gantt chart. B. simo chart. C. control chart. D. up-down matrix. E. standard deviation table.

Q: Which of the following quality control sample statistics indicates a quality characteristic that is an attribute? A. mean B. variance C. standard deviation D. range E. proportion

Q: The greater the volume of the process being targeted for inspection, the more attractive __________ inspection is. A. monitored B. controlled C. periodic D. variable E. automated

Q: The amount of inspection needed depends on __________ and __________. A. the amount of automation; the reliability of inspectors B. the quality of the supplier; the target market of the process C. the costs of inspection; the costs of passing on defective items D. where in the process the inspection occurs; the volume of the process E. the cost of the item being inspected; the use of the item being inspected

Q: Acceptance sampling, when it is used, is used: (I) before production. (II) during production. (III) after production. A. I only B. I and III only C. I and II only D. II and III only E. I, II, and III

Q: Inspection is a(n): A. prevention. B. control. C. monitoring. D. corrective. E. appraisal.

Q: The assurance that processes are performing in an acceptable manner is the focus of: A. variability analysis. B. quality assurance. C. capability assessment. D. quality control. E. acceptance sampling.

Q: Quality control tools are not really used to fix quality so much as they are used to: A. highlight when processes are not capable. B. point out when random variation is present. C. alert when corrective action is needed. D. monitor the quality of incoming shipments or outgoing finished goods. E. initiate team-building exercises.

Q: The more effective and all-encompassing a firm's quality control and continuous improvement efforts, the less that company will need to rely on: A. insourcing. B. inspection. C. outsourcing. D. acceptance sampling. E. capability assessment.

Q: Quality control, in contrast to quality assurance, is implemented: A. during production. B. by top management. C. after production. D. by self-directed teams. E. before inspection.

Q: Range control charts are used to monitor process central tendency.

Q: When a process is not centered, its capability is measured in a slightly different way. The symbol for this case is Cpk.

Q: Larger samples will require wider x-bar control limits because there is more data.

Q: The number of defective parts in a sample is an example of variable data because it will "vary" from one sample to another.

Q: Attribute data are counted, variable data are measured.

Q: Control limits are based on multiples of the process standard deviation.

Q: The best way to assure quality is to use extensive inspection and control charts.

Q: Approximately 99.7 percent of sample means will fall within plus or minus two standard deviations of the process mean if the process is under control.

Q: The sampling distribution can be assumed to be approximately normal even when the underlying process distribution is not normally distributed. TRUE

Q: The variation of a sampling distribution is tighter than the variation of the underlying process distribution.

Q: The Taguchi loss function suggests that the capability ratio can be improved by extending the spread between LCL and UCL.

Q: The primary purpose of statistical process control is to detect a defective product before it is shipped to a customer.

Q: Quality control is making sure that processes are performing in an acceptable manner.

Q: The process capability index (indicated by Cpk) can be used only when the process is centered.

Q: Cpk is useful even when the process is not centered.

Q: A run test checks a sequence of observations for randomness.

Q: Statistical process control focuses on the acceptability of process output.

Q: Run tests give managers an alternative to control charts; they are quicker and cost less.

Q: Run tests are useful in helping to identify nonrandom variations in a process.

Q: The output of a process may not conform to specifications even though the process may be statistically "in control."

Q: Patterns of data on a control chart suggest that the process may have nonrandom variation.

Q: Control limits tend to be wider for more variable processes.

Q: Control limits used on process control charts are specifications established by design or customers.

Q: Process capability compares process variability to the tolerances.

Q: Tolerances represent the control limits we use on the charts.

Q: A c-chart is used to monitor the number of defects per unit for process output.

Q: A c-chart is used to monitor the total number of defectives in the output of a process.