BUS 660 Week 7 Assignment | Grand Canyon University | Assignment Help
- Grand Canyon University / BUS 660
- 12 May 2021
- Price: $12
- Management Assignment Help / Business Management Assignment Help
BUS 660 Week 7 Assignment | Grand Canyon University | Assignment Help
BUS 660 Week 7 Assignment 1
Benchmark - Data Analysis Case
Study |
The purpose of this
assignment is to apply a waiting line model to a business service operation in
order to recommend the most efficient use of time and resources.
(This assignment has been adapted from Case
Problem 2 in Chapter 15 of the textbook.)
Use the information
in the scenario provided to prepare a managerial report for Office Equipment,
Inc. (OEI).
Scenario
Office Equipment,
Inc. (OEI) leases automatic mailing machines to business customers in Fort
Wayne, Indiana. The company built its success on a reputation of providing
timely maintenance and repair service. Each OEI service contract states that a
service technician will arrive at a customer’s business site within an average
of 3 hours from the time that the customer notifies OEI of an equipment
problem.
Currently, OEI has 10
customers with service contracts. One service technician is responsible for
handling all service calls. A statistical analysis of historical service
records indicates that a customer requests a service call at an average rate of
one call per 50 hours of operation. If the service technician is available when
a customer calls for service, it takes the technician an average of 1 hour of
travel time to reach the customer’s office and an average of 1.5 hours to
complete the repair service. However, if the service technician is busy with
another customer when a new customer calls for service, the technician
completes the current service call and any other waiting service calls before
responding to the new service call. In such cases, after the technician is free
from all existing service commitments, the technician takes an average of 1
hour of travel time to reach the new customer’s office and an average of 1.5
hours to complete the repair service. The cost of the service technician is $80
per hour. The downtime cost (wait time and service time) for customers is $100
per hour.
OEI is planning to
expand its business. Within 1 year, OEI projects that it will have 20
customers, and within 2 years, OEI projects that it will have 30 customers.
Although OEI is satisfied that one service technician can handle the 10
existing customers, management is concerned about the ability of one technician
to meet the average 3-hour service call guarantee when the OEI customer base
expands. In a recent planning meeting, the marketing manager made a proposal to
add a second service technician when OEI reaches 20 customers and to add a
third service technician when OEI reaches 30 customers. Before making a final
decision, management would like an analysis of OEI service capabilities. OEI is
particularly interested in meeting the average 3-hour waiting time guarantee at
the lowest possible total cost.
Managerial Report
Develop a managerial
report (1,000-1,250 words) summarizing your analysis of the OEI service
capabilities. Make recommendations regarding the number of technicians to be
used when OEI reaches 20 and then 30 customers, and justify your response.
Include a discussion of the following issues in your report:
1.
What is the arrival rate for each customer?
2.
What is the service rate in terms of the number of customers per hour?
(Remember that the average travel time of 1 hour is counted
as service time because the time that the service technician is busy
handling a service call includes the travel time in addition to the time
required to complete the repair.)
3.
Waiting line models generally assume that the arriving customers are in
the same location as the service facility. Consider how OEI is different
in this regard, given that a service technician travels an average of 1 hour to
reach each customer. How should the travel time and the waiting time predicted
by the waiting line model be combined to determine the total customer waiting
time? Explain.
4.
OEI is satisfied that one service technician can handle the 10 existing
customers. Use a waiting line model to determine the following information: (a)
probability that no customers are in the system, (b) average number of
customers in the waiting line, (c) average number of customers in the system,
(d) average time a customer waits until the service technician arrives, (e)
average time a customer waits until the machine is back in operation, (f)
probability that a customer will have to wait more than one hour for the
service technician to arrive, and (g) the total cost per hour for the service
operation.
5.
Do you agree with OEI management that one technician can meet the average
3-hour service call guarantee? Why or why not?
6.
What is your recommendation for the number of service technicians to
hire when OEI expands to 20 customers? Use the information that you developed
in Question 4 (above) to justify your answer.
7.
What is your recommendation for the number of service technicians to
hire when OEI expands to 30 customers? Use the information that you developed
in Question 4 (above) to justify your answer.
8.
What the annual savings of your recommendation in Question 6 are (above)
compared to the planning committee's proposal that 30 customers will require
three service technicians? (Assume 250 days of operation per year.) How was
this determination reached?
Prepare this
assignment according to the guidelines found in the APA Style Guide, located in
the Student Success Center. An abstract is not required.
This assignment uses
a rubric. Please review the rubric prior to beginning the assignment to become
familiar with the expectations for successful completion.
You are required to submit this assignment to LopesWrite. Refer to
the LopesWrite Technical Support articles for assistance.
Benchmark Information
This benchmark assignment assesses the
following programmatic competency:
MBA
2.3 Analyze data using appropriate
statistical modelling.
Topic7 Rubric: Benchmark – Data
Analysis Case Study
Criteria |
%
Value |
1:
Unsatisfactory |
2:
Less Than Satisfactory |
3:
Good |
4:
Excellent |
%
Scaling |
|
0% |
74% |
87% |
100% |
Customer
Arrival Rate |
5% |
The customer arrival rate is not included. |
N/A |
N/A |
The customer arrival rate is included. |
Customer
Service Rate |
The customer service rate is not included. |
N/A |
N/A |
The customer service rate is included. |
|
Explanation
of How Model Determines Total Customer Waiting Time |
15% |
An explanation of how the waiting line model can
determine the total customer waiting time is not included. |
An explanation of how the waiting line model can
determine the total customer waiting time is vague or incomplete. |
An explanation of how the waiting line model can
determine the total customer waiting time considers both the predicted travel
and waiting times. |
An explanation of how the waiting line model can
determine the total customer waiting time considers both the predicted travel
and waiting times, and specifically addresses how the travel time of the
technician affects the model. |
Determination
of Average Customer Waiting Times, Customers in the System, and Cost of
Service Using Waiting Line Model
(2.3 Analyze data using appropriate
statistical modeling.) |
20% |
A determination of the average customer waiting
times, customers in the system, and cost of service using a waiting line
model is not included. |
A determination of the average customer waiting
times, customers in the system, and cost of service using a waiting line
model is incomplete. |
N/A |
A determination of the average customer waiting
times, customers in the system, and cost of service using a waiting line
model is included. |
Analysis
of Three-Hour Service Call Guarantee |
15% |
An analysis of the OEI three-hour service call
guarantee is not included. |
An analysis of the OEI three-hour service call
guarantee is vague or incomplete. |
An analysis of the OEI three-hour service call
guarantee is included. |
A thorough analysis of the OEI three-hour service
call guarantee defends whether or not one technician is sufficient to meet
the need for repairs. |
Technician
Recommendations for Expanding Customer Base |
15% |
Technician recommendations for an expanding base
of both 20 and 30 customers is not included. |
Technician recommendations for an expanding base
of both 20 and 30 customers is vague or incomplete. |
Technician recommendations for an expanding base
of both 20 and 30 customers are included. |
Technician recommendations for an expanding base
of both 20 and 30 customers are thoroughly justified using information
gathered from the waiting line model. |
Comparison
of Annual Savings from Proposed Plans |
15% |
A comparison of annual savings between the
recommended plan and that of the planning committee is not included. |
A comparison of annual savings between the recommended
plan and that of the planning committee is vague or incomplete. |
A comparison of annual savings between the
recommended plan and that of the planning committee is included. |
A comparison of annual savings between the
recommended plan and that of the planning committee is included, along with
an explanation of how this determination was reached using information from
the waiting line model. |
Mechanics
of Writing(includes spelling, punctuation,
grammar, language use) |
10% |
Surface errors are
pervasive enough that they impede communication of meaning.Inappropriate word
choice or sentence construction is used. |
Frequent and
repetitive mechanical errors distract the reader. Inconsistencies in language
choice (register) or word choice are present. Sentence structure is correct
but not varied. |
Some mechanical
errors or typos are present, but they are not overly distracting to the
reader. Correct and varied sentence structure and audience-appropriate
language are employed. |
Writer is clearly in
command of standard, written, academic English. |