Ch01 Introduction-3e-S 12-15, 16/06, 06/04/07

Chapter 1
INTRODUCTION
REVIEW QUESTIONS
1.1

What are some of the realities mentioned at the beginning of the chapter that modern manufacturing
enterprises must cope with? Name four.
Answer: The realities mentioned in the text are (1) globalization, (2) international outsourcing, (3) local
outsourcing, (4) contract manufacturing, (5) trend toward the service sector, (6) quality expectations, and
(7) the need for operational efficiency.

1.2

What is a production system?

Answer: As defined in the text, a production system is a collection of people, equipment, and procedures
organized to perform the manufacturing operations of a company (or other organization).

1.3

Production systems can be divided into two categories or levels. Name and briefly define the two levels.
Answer: The two categories given in the text are (1) facilities, which consist of the factory, the equipment
in the factory, and the way the equipment is organized; and (2) manufacturing support systems, which is the
set of procedures used by the company to manage production and to solve the technical and logistics
problems encountered in ordering materials, moving the work through the factory, and ensuring that
products meet quality standards. Product design and certain business functions are included among the
manufacturing support systems.

1.4

What are manufacturing systems, and how are they distinguished from production systems?
Answer: A manufacturing system is a logical grouping of equipment in the factory and the worker(s) who
operate(s) it. Examples include worker-machine systems, production lines, and machine cells. A production
system is a larger system that includes a collection of manufacturing systems and the support systems used
to manage them. A manufacturing system is a subset of the production system.

1.5

Manufacturing systems are divided into three categories, according to worker participation. Name the three
categories.
Answer: The three categories are (1) manual work systems, (2) worker-machine systems, and (3) automated
systems.

1.6

What are the four functions included within the scope of manufacturing support systems?
Answer: As identified in the text, the four functions are (1) business functions, (2) product design, (3)
manufacturing planning, and (4) manufacturing control.

1.7

Three basic types of automation are defined in the text. What is fixed automation and what are some of its
features?
Answer: Fixed automation is a system in which the sequence of processing (or assembly) operations is fixed
by the equipment configuration. Each operation in the sequence is usually simple, but the integration and
coordination of many such operations into one piece of equipment makes the system complex. Typical
features of fixed automation are (1) high initial investment for custom-engineered equipment, (2) high
production rates, and (3) relatively inflexible in accommodating product variety.

1.8

What is programmable automation and what are some of its features?

Answer: In programmable automation, the production equipment is designed with the capability to change
the sequence of operations to accommodate different product configurations. The operation sequence is
controlled by a program, which is a set of instructions coded so that they can be read and interpreted by the
system. Some of the features of programmable automation are (1) high investment in general purpose
equipment, (2) lost production time due to changeovers of physical setup and reprogramming, (3) lower
production rates than fixed automation, (4) flexibility to deal with variations and changes in product
configuration, and (5) most suitable for batch production.

1.9

What is flexible automation and what are some of its features?

Answer: Flexible automation is an extension of programmable automation. A flexible automated system is
capable of producing a variety of parts (or products) with virtually no time lost for changeovers from one
part style to the next. There is no lost production time while reprogramming the system and altering the
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Ch01 Introduction-3e-S 12-15, 16/06, 06/04/07

physical setup. Accordingly, the system can produce various mixes and schedules of parts or products
instead of requiring that they be made in batches. The features of flexible automation are (1) high
investment for a custom-engineered system, (2) continuous production of variable mixtures of products, (3)
medium production rates, and (4) flexibility to deal with product design variations
1.10

What is computer integrated manufacturing?

Answer: As defined in the text, computer-integrated manufacturing (CIM) denotes the pervasive use of
computer systems to design the products, plan the production, control the operations, and perform the
various information-processing functions needed in a manufacturing firm. True CIM involves integrating
all of these functions in one system that operates throughout the enterprise.

1.11

What are some of the reasons why companies automate their operations? Nine reasons are given in the text.
Name five.
Answer: The reasons give in the text are (1) to increase labor productivity, (2) to reduce labor cost, (3) to
mitigate the effects of labor shortages, (4) to reduce or eliminate routine manual and clerical tasks, (5) to
improve worker safety, (6) to improve product quality, (7) to reduce manufacturing lead time, (8) to
accomplish processes that cannot be done manually, and (9) to avoid the high cost of not automating.

1.12

Identify three situations in which manual labor is preferred over automation.

Answer: The five situations listed in the text are the following: (1) The task is technologically too difficult
to automate. (2) Short product life cycle. (3) Customized product. (4) To cope with ups and downs in
demand. (5) To reduce risk of product failure.

1.13

Human workers will be needed in factory operations, even in the most highly automated operations. The text
identifies at least four types of work for which humans will be needed. Name three.
Answer: The four types of work identified in the text are (1) equipment maintenance, (2) programming and
computer operations, (3) engineering project work, and (4) plant management.

1.14

What is the USA Principle? What does each of the letters stand for?
Answer: The USA Principle is a common sense approach to automation and process improvement projects.
U means understand the existing process, S stands for simplify the process, and A stands for
automated the process.

1.15

The text lists ten strategies for automation and process improvement. Identify five of these strategies.
Answer: The ten strategies listed in the text are (1) specialization of operations, (2) combined operations,
(3) simultaneous operations, (4) integration of operations, (5) increased flexibility, (6) improved material
handling and storage, (7) on-line inspection, (8) process control and optimization, (9) plant operations
control, and (10) computer-integrated manufacturing (CIM).

1.16

What is an automation migration strategy?

Answer: As defined in the text, an automation migration strategy is a formalized plan for evolving the
manufacturing systems used to produce new products as demand grows.

1.17

What are the three phases of a typical automation migration strategy?

Answer: As defined in the text, the three typical phases are the following: Phase 1: Manual production
using single-station manned cells operating independently. Phase 2: Automated production using singlestation automated cells operating independently. Phase 3: Automated integrated production using a multistation automated system with serial operations and automated transfer of work units between stations.