Complete Question:
You are considering the purchase of a new machine to help produce a new product line being introduced. The machine is expected to have a setup time of 10 minutes per batch and a processing time of 2 minutes per part. You plan to have batch sizes of 50 parts. The plant operates 8 hours per day.
What is the capacity of the machine in batches per day?
Answer:
The capacity of the machine in batches = 4 batches per day.
Explanation:
a) Data and Calculations:
Set up time per batch = 10 minutes
Processing time per part = 2 minutes
Batch sizes = 50 parts
Plant operation = 8 hours per day
b) Capacity in batches per day:
Total batch time = 10 + 50 * 2 = 110 minutes
Total minutes of operation per day = 8 * 60 = 480 minutes
Capacity in batches = 480/110 = 4.36 or approximately 4 batches
c) Each batch produces 50 parts with each part taking some 2 minutes and an additional batch setup time of 10 minutes, giving a total of 110 minutes per batch. Since there are some 480 (8 * 60) minutes available per day, it means that the entity can only run about 4 batches (480/110) per day. These 4 batches will consume a total of 440 minutes (110 x 4), leaving some 40 minutes as unutilized time.
