There are four steps to make a uniform:
cutting, sewing, customizing (logos), and packaging.
The cutting station is automatic and one worker can take care of the job. On average, the cutting machine cuts 30 layers of cloth in 60 minutes. Each layer of cloth makes parts for 1 uniform.
The sewing station is a labor-intensive step - there are 20 workers. On average, it takes 60 minutes for one worker to sew one uniform.
Monogramming and customization is the third step with a very fast automated machine with a cycle time of 1 minute 30 seconds.
For the last step of packaging there are four workers. Each worker can pack a uniform in 6 minutes.
Current demand is 150 uniforms a day and all processes work for 8 hours non-stop. Cintastic enforces a policy where they start the day with no inventory, and must finish the day's work with no remaining inventory.
a. What is the factory capacity? (Calculate cycle time of each operation) uniforms/day
b. What is the throughput time for the first uniform made on a typical day?
c. If there are 300 uniforms in various stages of the process at any given time, what is the long term average throughput time of the next uniform that enters production?
d. Demand increases to 200 per day and a separate group of consultants suggests hiring 15 additional workers at sewing (they make no other changes to the original system). What is the new bottleneck? How many bags can the factory produce in a day?