Questions from General Operations Management


Q: Webflux is an Internet-based DVD rental business specializing in hard

Webflux is an Internet-based DVD rental business specializing in hard- to-find, obscure films. Its operating model is as follows. When a customer finds a film on the Webflux website and decides to wat...

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Q: A university offers a walking escort service to increase security around campus

A university offers a walking escort service to increase security around campus. The system consists of specially trained uniformed professional security officers that accompany students from one camp...

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Q: While driving home for the holidays, you can’t seem to get

While driving home for the holidays, you can’t seem to get Little’s Law out of your mind. You note that your average speed of travel is about 60 miles per hour. More- over, the traffic report from the...

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Q: Mango Electronics Inc. is a Fortune 500 company that develops and

Mango Electronics Inc. is a Fortune 500 company that develops and markets innovative consumer electronics products. The development process proceeds as follows. Mango researches new technologies to ad...

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Q: A friend of yours approaches you with the business idea of a

A friend of yours approaches you with the business idea of a private home security service. This private home security service guarantees to either dispatch one of their own five guards immediately if...

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Q: A small video store has nine copies of the DVD Captain Underpants

A small video store has nine copies of the DVD Captain Underpants, The Movie in its store. There are 15 customers every day who request this movie for their children. If the movie is not on the shelf,...

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Q: Consider the situation of Mr. R. B. Cheney,

Consider the situation of Mr. R. B. Cheney, who owns a large gas station on a highway in Vermont. In the afternoon hours, there are, on average, 1,000 cars per hour passing by the gas station, of whic...

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Q: Suppose a process contains two workstations that operate with no buffer between

Suppose a process contains two workstations that operate with no buffer between them. Now consider the three possible scenarios below a. Which of the three scenarios will have, on average, the highest...

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Q: XTremely Fast Service Inc. is a call center with several business

XTremely Fast Service Inc. is a call center with several business units. One of its business units, Fabulous 4, currently staffs four operators who work eight hours per day Monday through Friday. They...

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Q: Gotham City Ambulance Services (GCAS) owns eight ambulances. On

Gotham City Ambulance Services (GCAS) owns eight ambulances. On average, emergencies are reported to GCAS every 15 minutes (with a coefficient of variation of 1, no seasonality exists). If GCAS has a...

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