Great Valley Root

Abstract

The production supervisor of a global equipment supplier is facing two problems on the factory floor: excess overtime on the assembly line and unacceptable manufacturing lead times through the entire production process. After calculating the capacity and throughput time of the existing system, students must determine the best alternatives to realize the dual goals of 50% reduction in overtime and 50% reduction in throughput time. Excerpt UVA-om-1509 Rev. Mar. 24, 2014 GREAT VALLEY ROOT Great Valley Root (GVR) was a leading global supplier of fuel-dispensing equipment. One of its key products was the Echo line of fuel dispensers. The production process for the Echo product line consisted of three distinct stages: (1) molding plastic parts, (2) automated machining, and (3) assembly. The molding and machining stages were independent of each other. They both produced parts that were sent to the assembly stage. (See Figure 1 for a depiction of the Echo production process.) Figure 1. Echo production process. Notes: Triangles represent inventory and rectangles represent production stages. . . .