SUPPLEMENT D
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Learning Curve Analysis Analysis
SUPPLEMENT D: LEARNING CURVE ANALYSIS TRUE/FALSE 1.
A line line call called ed a lear learnin ning g curv curvee can can repres represent ent the the lear learnin ning g effe effect. ct. True True (The Learning Effect, easy)
2.
The first first learni learning ng curve curve was develo developed ped by the aircra aircraft ft indust industry ry.. True True (The Learning Effect, moderate)
3.
One One use use of lear learni ning ng curv curves es is for for fina financ ncia iall pla plann nnin ing. g. True True (Using Learning Curves, moderate)
MULTIPLE CHOICE 4.
Which Which of of the the follow following ing stat stateme ements nts abou aboutt learn learning ing curves curves is gene general rally ly T!" T!"## a. $anagemen $anagementt can decide decide to achieve achieve a certain certain rate of learning learning.. b. %earning curves were first first &uantified by the !.'. (ostal (ostal 'ervice. c. !sing the )doubling) )doubling) model* a learning curve with a rate of learning of +, +, -* means the 1,th unit taes +, - of the time that the 2,th unit will tae. d. %earning curves are are a recognition of the concept that the time time a tas taes usually usually decreases with e/perience. d (The Learning Effect, moderate)
0.
Which Which one of the the foll follow owing ing statem statement entss about about learni learning ng curves curves is T!"# T!"# a. A learning learning curve assumes assumes that the direct labor re&uirements re&uirements per unit unit will decrease at an increasing rate as cumulative production increases. b. %earning at a capitalintensive capitalintensive operation usually usually will be less less than it is for a laborintensive laborintensive operation. c. %earning for a simple product will will usually be greater than it is is for comple/ comple/ products. d. %earning curves can can be used only only for individuals* individuals* not for the whole organiation. organiation. b (Multiple sections, moderate)
.
Which Which one one of the follo following wing statemen statements ts is T!" about about the the relatio relationshi nship p between between learning learning curves curves and competitive strategy# a. nowing where your process is is on the learning learning curve will will enable you you to mae fre&uent product modifications. b. 5irms that emphasie low cost cost in their competitive competitive strategy strive to move down the learning curve by increasing volume. c. %earning curves curves enable managers managers to pro6ect fi/ed manufacturing costs for future future production production &uantities. d. (ro6ecting the impact impact of learning curves into the the future is one one effective way way of reducing the the impact of environmental uncertainty. uncertainty. b (Multiple sections, moderate)
11
SUPPLEMENT D
l
Learning Curve Analysis
+.
Which one of the following is an assumption of learning curves# a. The cumulative time of production decreases as production increases. b. Time reduction per unit increases as cumulative production increases. c. The same learning curve should be used when a company increases its level of automation. d. The reduction in time per unit follows an e/ponential curve. d (Multiple sections, moderate)
7.
Which one of the following statements is 8OT a typical assumption related to developing learning curves# a. The total direct labor hours needed to produce the first 1,, units will be double the amount of hours needed to build the first 0, units. b. The direct labor needed per unit will decrease at a declining rate as cumulative production increases. c. The direct labor hours per unit will decrease according to an e/ponential curve as cumulative production increases. d. The direct labor needed to produce the 0,th unit will always be more than the direct labor needed to produce the 01st unit. a (Developing Learning Curves, moderate)
9.
!nder learning curve theory* with a learning rate of +, -* the a. time to produce the second unit will be +, - less than the time to produce the first unit. b. time to produce the second unit will be 3, - less than the time to produce the first unit. c. cumulative average time per unit after producing the first 1,, units will be +, - less than the average time per unit of the first 0, units. d. average time per unit will be cut in half for every +, units. b (Developing Learning Curves, moderate)
1,.
Which one of the following statements about learning curves is 5A%'"# a. The direct labor for the n:1st unit will always be less than the direct labor re&uired for the nth unit. b. The reduction in time will follow an e/ponential curve. c. A benefit of learning curves is that they are unaffected by factors such as product comple/ity and the rate of capital additions. d. The cumulative average number of direct labor hours per unit for a given product after the 1,th unit with an 7, - learning rate will be less than that for the same product with a +, - learning rate. c (Developing Learning Curves, moderate)
11.
;iven that the first unit of a product too 272 hours to build and the learning rate is e/pected to be 7, -* how much time will it tae to build the 4,th unit# a. %ess than or e&ual to +9 b. ;reater than +9 but less than or e&ual to 73 c. ;reater than 73 but less than or e&ual to 7+ d. ;reater than 7+ c (Developing Learning Curves, moderate)
11+
SUPPLEMENT D
l
Learning Curve Analysis
12.
odia has 6ust begun production of a new government contract for 1,,, infrared cameras. The first camera too 0,, hours to produce.
13.
odia has 6ust begun production of a new government contract for 1,,, infrared cameras. The first camera too 0,, hours to produce. 'uppose that odia decides to use a learning rate of 7, -. This learning rate is typical for pro6ects similar to the infrared camera assembly. The production manager wants to now the total time it will tae to assemble the 21st through the 4,th units* inclusive. A copy of Table =.1 is appended to this e/am. a. %ess than or e&ual to 3,,, hours b. ;reater than 3,,, hours but less than or e&ual to 4,,, hours c. ;reater than 4,,, hours but less than or e&ual to 0,,, hours d. ;reater than 0,,, hours b (Developing Learning Curves, moderate)
14.
!sing the logarithmic approach to learning curves* determine the time re&uired to produce the 1,,th unit. The learning rate is estimated to be 7, - and the first unit>s re&uirement was 0, hours. a. %ess than or e&ual to 2, hours b. ;reater than 2, hours but less than or e&ual to 3, hours c. ;reater than 3, hours but less than or e&ual to 4, hours d. ;reater than 4, hours a (Developing Learning Curves, moderate)
10.
The estimated time for producing the first unit of an order is 0 hours.
1.
'uppose the average time for the first 1,,, units you have manufactured is 2.3+0 minutes. ?our rate of learning is 9, -* and you need to find the total time re&uired to manufacture the ne/t 1,,, units. A copy of Table =.1 is appended to this e/am. A copy of Table =.1 is appended to this e/am. The total time is a. not more than 2,,, minutes. b. greater than 2,,, minutes but not more than 2+,, minutes. c. greater than 2+,, minutes but not more than 33,, minutes. d. greater than 33,, minutes. a (Developing Learning Curves, difficult)
117
SUPPLEMENT D
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Learning Curve Analysis
1+.
;iven that the 3rd unit too 1,, minutes and the rate of learning is 7, -* how much time will it tae to build the 9th unit# a. %ess than or e&ual to 3, minutes b. ;reater than 3, minutes but less than or e&ual to 30 minutes c. ;reater than 30 minutes but less than or e&ual to 4, minutes d. ;reater than 4, minutes b (Developing Learning Curves, difficult)
17.
19.
2,.
21.
22.
;iven that the 0th unit too 1, hours to build and the learning rate is 9, -* how much time will it tae to build units 11 through 10# A copy of Table =.1 is appended to this e/am. a. %ess than or e&ual to 37 b. ;reater than 37 but less than or e&ual to 4, c. ;reater than 4, but less than or e&ual to 42 d. ;reater than 42 d (Developing Learning Curves, moderate)
119
SUPPLEMENT D
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Learning Curve Analysis
23.
?B Company has recently started production of a new product.
24.
A company is introducing a new product. The first unit too 1,,, hours to complete* and the fourth unit too +0, hours to complete. What is the rate of learning for this product# a. %ess than 4, b. ;reater than or e&ual to 4, - but less than , c. ;reater than or e&ual to , - but less than 7, d. ;reater than 7, d (Developing Learning Curves, moderate)
20.
The second unit of a new product too 0, hours to build. Assuming a learning rate of 7, -* how long will it tae to build the 3,th unit# a. %ess than 10 hours b. ;reater than or e&ual to 10 hours but less than 19 hours c. ;reater than or e&ual to 19 hours but less than 23 hours d. ;reater than or e&ual to 23 hours c (Developing Learning Curves, moderate) Table '=.1 The production schedule for a new product followsD
The first unit too 1,, hours to complete* and the rate of learning is 7, -. "ach employee wors 4, hours per wee* A copy of Table =.1 is appended to this e/am. 2.
!sing the information in Table '=.1* how much time will it tae to produce the units in wee 1# a. %ess than 7,, hours b. ;reater than or e&ual to 7,, hours but less than 11,, hours c. ;reater than or e&ual to 11,, hours but less than 10,, hours d. ;reater than 10,, hours b (Using Learning Curves, moderate)
2+.
!sing the information in Table '=.1* what is the minimum number of employees needed in wee 3# a. %ess than 2, employees b. ;reater than or e&ual to 2, employees but less than 3, employees c. ;reater than or e&ual to 3, employees but less than 4, employees d. ;reater than 4, employees b (Using Learning Curves, moderate)
12,
SUPPLEMENT D
27.
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Learning Curve Analysis
The production for a new product followsD
The first unit will tae 1,,, hours to produce and the learning rate is 9, -.
The production for a new product followsD
The first unit will tae 2,,, hours to produce and the learning rate is 9, -. Currently* the company employs 4, worers* who each wor 2,, hours regular time per month.
FILL-IN-THE-BLANK 3,.
The EEEEEEEEEEEEE can be represented by a line called a learning curve. learning effect (The Learning Effect, moderate)
31.
One assumption of learning curves is that the reduction in time will follow aFnG EEEEEEEEE curve. eponential (Developing Learning Curves, moderate)
121
SUPPLEMENT D
l
Learning Curve Analysis
SHORT ANSWERS 32.
What are the three ma6or assumptions of the learning curve# !" Direct labor re#uired for the n$!st unit %ill al%ays be less than that re#uired for the nth unit" &" Direct labor re#uirements %ill decrease at a declining rate as cumulative production increases" '" eductions in time %ill follo% an eponential curve" (Developing Learning Curves, moderate)
33.
@ow are learning curves useful in bid preparation# Learning curves help estimate the cost of labor for bid preparation" (Using Learning Curves, moderate)
34.
A manager of a company producing computer chips nows that in the early stages of production for a new product the e/penditures e/ceed receipts whereas in the latter stages the reverse is true. ;ive an e/planation for this phenomenon. rom the learning curve theory, the direct labor costs %ill eceed the average in the early stages of production %hereas the reverse is true in the latter stages" *ricing is often predicted on average costs" (The Learning Effect, moderate)
30.
Why is the learning rate more pronounced for comple/ products than for simple products# Comple products offer more opportunity for improving %or+ methods, materials, and processes" (Managerial Consideration in the use of Learning Curves, moderate)
PROBLEMS 3.
The estimated time to produce the first unit is 7 hours.
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3+.
The estimated time to produce the first unit is 1,, hours.
Ti&e '(r 'ir)! *ni! Uni! n*&+er Ti&e '(r *ni! 3# C*&*a!i0e a0erae !i&e 1er *ni!
4#$#%
3## 3# 5#$25 54$42
122
SUPPLEMENT D
l
Learning Curve Analysis
123
