Questions on Operations Management
What is the maximum number of applications per hour that can be handled by the present configuration of the process?
Based upon the present configuration, the license renewal department can process 60 applications per hour. As seen in the process map in the attached excel document as well as the flow diagram below, the cycle time for the renewal process is driven by the time it takes to complete the bottleneck activity. In this configuration, the bottleneck activity is step three as it has the slowest flow rate per hour.
STEP Average time to perform (seconds) Number of employees assigned Capacity per hour
1 Review renewal application for correctness 15 1 240
2 Process and record payment 30 1 120
3 Check file for violations and restrictions 60 1 60
4 Conduct eye test 40 1 90
5 Photograph applicant 20 1 180
6 Issue temporary license 30 1 120
In
Out
Where,
2. How many applications can be processed per hour if a second clerk is added to check for violations?
If an additional clerk was added to check for violations, the flow for step three would be doubled allowing for the checking of 120 applications per hour. The total number of applications that could be processed per hour would then be driven by the next longest process, the eye test. Given that it takes 40 seconds to complete the test, the department would then be capable of processing a total of 90 applications per hour.
STEP Average time to perform (seconds) Number of employees assigned Capacity per hour
1 Review renewal application for correctness 15 1 240
2 Process and record payment 30 1 120
3 Check file for violations and restrictions 60 2 120
4 Conduct eye test 40 1 90
5 Photograph applicant 20 1 180
6 Issue temporary license 30 1 120
Out
3. Assuming the addition of one more clerk, what is the maximum number of applications the process can handle?
The effect of adding an additional clerk to the previous configuration would depend upon what
Based upon the present configuration, the license renewal department can process 60 applications per hour. As seen in the process map in the attached excel document as well as the flow diagram below, the cycle time for the renewal process is driven by the time it takes to complete the bottleneck activity. In this configuration, the bottleneck activity is step three as it has the slowest flow rate per hour.
STEP Average time to perform (seconds) Number of employees assigned Capacity per hour
1 Review renewal application for correctness 15 1 240
2 Process and record payment 30 1 120
3 Check file for violations and restrictions 60 1 60
4 Conduct eye test 40 1 90
5 Photograph applicant 20 1 180
6 Issue temporary license 30 1 120
In
Out
Where,
2. How many applications can be processed per hour if a second clerk is added to check for violations?
If an additional clerk was added to check for violations, the flow for step three would be doubled allowing for the checking of 120 applications per hour. The total number of applications that could be processed per hour would then be driven by the next longest process, the eye test. Given that it takes 40 seconds to complete the test, the department would then be capable of processing a total of 90 applications per hour.
STEP Average time to perform (seconds) Number of employees assigned Capacity per hour
1 Review renewal application for correctness 15 1 240
2 Process and record payment 30 1 120
3 Check file for violations and restrictions 60 2 120
4 Conduct eye test 40 1 90
5 Photograph applicant 20 1 180
6 Issue temporary license 30 1 120
Out
3. Assuming the addition of one more clerk, what is the maximum number of applications the process can handle?
The effect of adding an additional clerk to the previous configuration would depend upon what