Scheduling the delivery of raw materials, production runs, and the subsequent shipment of finished products to customers is Kibby and Strand’s operational process, but as we have seen in the simulation scenarios this process can be interrupted if the supply of raw materials is not aligned with pending contracts. The operations manager uses supply chain management to do the following in order to minimize costs and scheduling impacts:
- Manage procurement of raw materials.
- Manage suppliers.
- Manage customer demand.
- Determine if outsourcing is beneficial or needed.
- Identify problem in the supply chain and respond quickly
One option that is often underutilized is outsourcing, because it often has negative connotations. Workers get nervous when management starts discussing outsourcing and they think, “there goes my job.” When utilized correctly, outsourcing enables an organization to meet short term surge demands rather than turn down the work due to a lack of capacity. If employed properly, outsourcing gives the operations manager another alternative to consider when aligning supply with demand. In Unit 7 you will get the opportunity to delve into scheduling and supply chain management problems and evaluate alternatives based on holding costs and other factors.
Unit Learning Outcomes
- Demonstrate how to determine capacity of a critical asset. (CLO 2, 3, 4, and 5)
- Evaluate the capacity of an organization based on forecasting and adjust planning, scheduling and capacity management to accommodate the forecast. (CLO 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7)
- Develop an executable action plan designed to improve aggregated planning, scheduling, and capacity management in organizations. (CLO 6 and 7)
- Consider the ethical implications associated with making operational and supply chain management decisions. (CLO 5)
Directions
End of Chapter Problems (60 points): Answer the following end of chapter problems from the textbook:
Chapter 15 – problems 1 and 3 (page 686, 10 points each).
View the following example videos before working the problems:
C15 Example 15-01 Play media comment. (mp4, 21MB)
C15 Example 15-03 Play media comment. (mp4, 39MB)
Chapter 16 – problems 1, 3, 6, and 8 (pages 723-724, 10 points each).
View the following example videos before working the problems:
C16 Example 16-06 Play media comment. (mp4, 181MB)
C16 Example 16-08 Play media comment. (mp4, 34MB)
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