Chapter 5, Problem 7P

Yost-Perry Industries (YPI) manufactures a mix of afford able guitars $\left(\text{A},\text{B},\text{C}\right)$ that are fabricated and assembled at four different processing stations $\left(\text{W},\text{X},\text{Y},\text{Z}\right)$. The operation is a batch process with small setup times that can be considered negligible. The product information (price, weekly demand, and processing times) and process sequences are shown in Figure 5.13. Raw materials and purchased parts (shown as a per-unit consumption rate) are represented by inverted triangles. YPI is able to make and sell up to the limit of its demand per week with no penalties incurred for not meeting the full demand. Each workstation is staffed by one highly skilled worker who is dedicated to work on that workstation alone and is paid $15 per hour. The plant operates one 8-hour shift per day and operates on a 5-day workweek (i.e., 40 hours of production per person per week). Overhead costs are $9,000/week. Which of the four workstations, W, X, Y, or Z, has the highest aggregate workload, and thus serves as the bottleneck for YPI?