1.
Suppose we want
to arrange the 4 departments within a production facility to minimize the total
interdepartmental material handling cost.
All
departments have the same space requirement, 20 feet by 20 feet. The production
facility is 40 feet by 40 feet. Materials are transported in a standard-size
crate. The transportation cost is $1 per crate between adjacent departments.
Only horizontal and vertical moves are allowed in this case. Therefore, for a
layout as following, it would cost $2 per crate to transport from Department 1
to Department 4.
|
Department 1 |
Department 2 |
|
Department 3 |
Department 4 |
The table
below summarizes the interdepartmental flows we need to manage. For example, a
total of 50 crates need to be transported between Department 1 and Department
2. And a total of 75 crates need to be transported between Department 1 and
Department 3.
|
Pair of Departments |
Number of crates |
|
1-2 |
50 |
|
1-3 |
75 |
|
1-4 |
30 |
|
2-3 |
40 |
|
2-4 |
0 |
|
3-4 |
60 |
Now consider
the following process layout:
|
Department 1 |
Department 4 |
|
Department 2 |
Department 3 |
For each
pair of departments listed in the table that summarizes the material flows, how
much does it cost to transport the required amount of material? For each pair of departments, please
provide at least one step of calculation and the correct answer for full
credit. (24 points)
