Home-Style Cookies (Case Study)
Q1. Briefly describe the cookies production
process?
Answer:
The production process is as follows:
- The management gets orders from
distributors.
- Orders are used for scheduling the
production.
- Each shift lists of the cookies to be
made that day is delivered to the person in charge of mixing.
- That person checks the master list that indicates
the ingredients needed.
- The computer determines the amount of
each ingredient needed according to the quantity.
- The ingredient are automatically sent to
a giant mixing machine where the ingredients are combined.
- The batter is poured into cutting the
machines.
- Then the cookies are dropped onto a
conveyor belt and transported through one of the two ovens.
- Filled cookies such needs an additional
step for filling and folding.
- Non-filled
cookies are cut rather then round.
- Cookies emerges from the oven then fed on
to spiral cooling racks.
- Cookies come off the cooling racks, and workers place the cookies into boxes manually, removing any broken cookies in the process.
Q2. What are two ways that the company has
increased productivity? Why did increasing the length of the oven result in a
faster output rate?
Answer:
The two ways are:
- The diagonal cookies requires less space
than the straight cookies and that results in a higher level of
productivity.
- Increasing the length of each oven by 25 feet, which increased the rate of production.
The result is a faster
output process and an increase in the number of baked cookies quantity which will
directly lead to a higher production.
Q.4 What factors cause the company to carry minimal amounts of certain
inventories? What benefits result from this policy?
Answer:
The main factor that causes the company to carry this
approach is the fact that the ingredients and the cookies have a short shelf
life. Also, the products are ordered based on current orders.
Benefits from this will include that the company will need small silos
for each ingredient, and that there will be less waste.
