Multiple Choice

1. A purposeful collection of people, objects, and procedures for operating within an environment is known as a(n):a) Operationb) Sub -systemc) System d) Sub-operation

2. Which of the following is among the six major elements of a production system?a) Inputsb) Outputc) Monitoring and legislative complianced) Only A and B

3. Value can be added to an entity in all the following ways, EXCEPT:a) Alteringb) Facilitatingc) Storing d) Transporting

4. A type of output that commonly results from a production system is:a) A productb) A servicec) Neither A nor B d) Both A and B

5. Which of the following is NOT considered a characteristic of a service?a) Intangibleb) Labor-intense productionc) Quality difficult to measured) Delayed consumption

6. A distinction between normal goods and information/knowledge is thata) Normal goods wear out, but information/knowledge does notb) Information/knowledge can be given or sold to many othersc) Information/knowledge is subject to diminishing returns, but physical outputs are subject to increasing returnsd) Both A and B

7. Inputs in a bank’s production system may include:a) Loan default rates and the environment b) Interest rates and wage ratesc) Checks and deposits d) Federal Reserve decisions and the economy

1

8. Which of the following uses techniques from Toyota Production System and JIT to eliminate waste and nonvalue-added activities?a) Enterprise and material requirements planningb) Lean Management c) Quality Control d) Capacity Management

9. Learning how to plan and control project activities to meet specifications for performance, schedule, and cost are among the subjects of:a) Project managementb) Lean managementc) Supply chain managementd) Inventory management

10. Customization occurs when a) Products or services are world-class, suitable for most marketsb) Products or services are offered on a made-to-order basisc) Products or services are developed with several optionsd) Both A and C

11. What are the two trends in the range of accommodation to customers’ needs?a) Extraction and deliveryb) Standardization and flexibility c) Customization and standardization d) Experience and flexibility

12. Which of the following is NOT a mass customization strategy? a) Adaptive customizersb) Transparent customizersc) Cosmetic customizersd) Flexible customizers

13. Which of the following is NOT an advantage of rapid response?a) First-mover advantageb) Elimination of overheadc) Improved morale and communicationd) Sharper focus on the customer

14. Which business strategy waits for the product to become fairly standardized and is demanded in large volumes?a) First-to-market

2

b) Cost minimization or late-to-marketc) Second-to-marketd) Market Segmentation

15. Operations management is applicable a. mostly to the service sectorb. to services exclusivelyc. mostly to the manufacturing sectord. to all firms, whether manufacturing and service e. to the manufacturing sector exclusively

16. Which of the following are the primary functions of all organizations?a. operations, marketing, and human resourcesb. marketing, human resources, and finance/accountingc. sales, quality control, and operationsd. marketing, operations, and finance/accounting e. research and development, finance/accounting, and purchasing

17. Budgeting, paying the bills, and collection of funds are activities associated with thea. management functionb. control functionc. finance/accounting function d. production/operations functione. staffing function

18. Which of the following would not be an operations function in a fast-food restaurant?a. advertising and promotion b. designing the layout of the facilityc. maintaining equipmentd. making hamburgers and friese. purchasing ingredients

19. The marketing function's main concern is witha. producing goods or providing servicesb. procuring materials, supplies, and equipmentc. building and maintaining a positive imaged. generating the demand for the organization's products or servicese. securing monetary resources

3

20. Reasons to study Operations Management includea. studying why people organize themselves for free enterpriseb. knowing how goods and services are consumedc. understanding what human resource managers dod. learning about a costly part of the enterprisee. all of the above

21. Reasons to study Operations Management include learning abouta. why people organize themselves for productive enterpriseb. how goods and services are producedc. what operations managers dod. a costly part of the enterprisee. all of the above

22. The five elements in the management process area. plan, direct, update, lead, and superviseb. accounting/finance, marketing, operations, and managementc. organize, plan, control, staff, and managed. plan, organize, staff, lead, and controle. plan, lead, organize, manage, and control

23. Which of the following is not an element of the management process?a. controllingb. leadingc. planningd. pricinge. staffing

24. An operations manager is not likely to be involved ina. the design of goods and services to satisfy customers' wants and needsb. the quality of goods and services to satisfy customers' wants and needsc. the identification of customers' wants and needsd. work scheduling to meet the due dates promised to customerse. maintenance schedules

25. All of the following decisions fall within the scope of operations management except fora. financial analysis b. design of goods and processesc. location of facilitiesd. managing qualitye. All of the above fall within the scope of operations management.

4

26. The Ten Critical Decisions of Operations Management includea. Layout strategyb. Maintenancec. Process and capacity designd. Managing qualitye. all of the above

27. Which of the following is not one of The Ten Critical Decisions of Operations Management?

a. Layout strategyb. Maintenancec. Process and capacity designd. Mass customizatione. Supply chain management

28. The Ten Critical Decisions of Operations Management includea. Finance/accountingb. Advertisingc. Process and capacity designd. Pricinge. all of the above

29. Walter Shewhart is listed among the important people of operations management because of his contributions to

a. assembly line productionb. measuring the productivity in the service sectorc. just-in-time inventory methodsd. statistical quality control e. all of the above

30. Walter Shewhart, in the _____, provided the foundations for ______ in operations management.

a. 1920s; statistical samplingb. United Kingdom; mass productionc. U.S. Army; logisticsd. nineteenth century; interchangeable partse. none of the above

31. Eli Whitney, in the _____, provided the foundations for ______ in operations management.

a. 1920s; statistical samplingb. United Kingdom; mass productionc. U.S. Army; logisticsd. nineteenth century; interchangeable partse. none of the above

5

32. The person most responsible for popularizing interchangeable parts in manufacturing was

a. Frederick Winslow Taylorb. Henry Fordc. Eli Whitney d. Whitney Houstone. Lillian Gilbreth

33. The "Father of Scientific Management" isa. Henry Fordb. Frederick W. Taylorc. W. Edwards Demingd. Frank Gilbrethe. just a figure of speech, not a reference to a person

34. Henry Ford is noted for his contributions toa. standardization of partsb. statistical quality controlc. assembly line operations d. scientific managemente. time and motion studies

35. Who among the following is associated with contributions to quality control in operations management?

a. Charles Babbageb. Henry Fordc. Frank Gilbrethd. W. Edwards Deming e. Henri Fayol

36. The field of operations management is shaped by advances in which of the following fields?

a. chemistry and physicsb. industrial engineering and management sciencec. biology and anatomyd. information technologye. all of the above

37. Which of the following statements is true?a. Almost all services and almost all goods are a mixture of a service and a tangible

product.b. A pure good has no tangible product component.c. A pure service has only a tangible product component.d. There is no such thing as a pure good.e. None of the above is a true statement.

38. Typical differences between goods and services do not include

6

a. cost per unit b. ability to inventory itemsc. timing of production and consumptiond. customer interactione. knowledge content

39. Which is not true regarding differences between goods and services?a. Services are generally produced and consumed simultaneously; tangible goods are not.b. Services tend to be more knowledge-based than products.c. Services tend to have a more inconsistent product definition than goods.d. Goods tend to have higher customer interaction than services.e. None of the above is true.

40. Which of the following is not a typical attribute of goods?a. output can be inventoriedb. often easy to automatec. aspects of quality difficult to measure d. output can be resolde. production and consumption are separate

41. Current trends in operations management include all of the following excepta. just-in-time performanceb. rapid product developmentc. mass customizationd. empowered employeese. All of the above are current trends.

42. Which of the following is not a current trend in operations management?a. just-in-time performanceb. global focusc. supply chain partneringd. mass customizatione. All of the above are current trends.

43. One new trend in operations management isa. global focus b. mass customizationc. empowered employees d. rapid product developmente. All of the above are new trends in operations management.

45. Which of the following is NOT a basic form of transformation systems?a) Job shopb) Flow shopc) Continuous transformation process d) All of the above are basic forms of transformation systems

46. Layout analysis is usually performed for the following purposes:

7

a) Maximize operational efficiencyb) Reduce safety hazard or health hazardsc) Minimize interference or noise between areasd) All of the above

47. A __ is commonly used to produce highly standardized outputs in extremely large volumea) Job shopb) Flow shopc) Continuous transformation process d) Cellular production

48. Continuous processes typically run 24 hours a day, seven days a week because:a) There is a need to spread their huge fixed cost over as large a volume as possibleb) Price is often the single most important factor in competing with their productsc) Facilities are a maze of pipes, conveyors, tanks, valves, vats, and binsd) Both A and B

49. Which of the following is a major difference between continuous processes and flow shops?a) Inputs are fixed for the former and the flow of work is continuous for the latterb) In flow shops, there is a discrete product or service instead of products not naturally divisiblec) Degree of automation is higher for flow shopsd) Both B and C

50. Which of the following is NOT a well-known problem in flow shops?a) Boredomb) Workers may be dehumanized by manufacturing linesc) Absenteeismd) All of the above are well-known problems in flow shops

51. Balancing a production line includes the following tasks, EXCEPT:a) Finding a cycle time in which each workstation can complete its tasksb) Take into account precedence relationships among tasksc) Identify the task with the longest operation timed) Calculate the number of workstations that completes the job in the minimum amount of time

52. Which of the following is FALSE for job shops?a) Unique jobs must be producedb) Output batch size is moderately large, to make it cost effectivec) The flow of work through facilities tends to be intermittentd) Groupings of staff and equipment are done according to function

53. Which form of transportation system utilizes group technology?

8

a) Flow shopb) Job shopc) Cellular production d) Project operations

54. A/An ___ item is produced in batches of some size that is set by the customer, and then delivered upon its completion.a) Make-to-orderb) Make-to-stockc) Order-to-maked) Stock-to-order

56. Of the following, which form of transformation system has the lowest output variety but the highest batch size? a) Job shopb) Cellularc) Projectd) Flow shop

57. In the Service Matrix, to which quadrant does recreation belong? a) Service shopb) Professional servicec) Mass serviced) Service factory

58. Which of the following statements regarding the Dreamliner 787 is true?a. Boeing has found partners in over a dozen countries.b. The new aircraft incorporates a wide range of aerospace technologies.c. The new aircraft uses engines from not one, but two manufacturers.d. Boeing will add only 20 to 30 percent of the aircraft's value.e. All of the above are true.

59. Boeing's new 787 Dreamlinera. is assembled in Washington, D.C.b. uses engines from Japanc. has its fuselage sections built in Australiad. has increased efficiency from new engine technologye. results from a partnership of about a dozen companies

60. Examples of response to the global environment include a. Boeing's worldwide sales and productionb. Benneton's flexibility in design, production, and distributionc. A Chinese manufacturer, Haier, opening plants in the United Statesd. Ford's partnerships with Volvo and Mazdae. All of the above are examples.

9

61. Which of the following is an example of globalization of operations strategy?a. Boeing's Dreamliner has engines with higher fuel/payload efficiency.b. Ford's new auto models have dent-resistant panels.c. A Chinese manufacturer, Haier, now operates plants in the United States.d. Hard Rock Café provides an "experience differentiation" at its restaurants.e. All of the above are examples.

62. Cost cutting in international operations can take place because ofa. lower taxes and tariffsb. lower wage scalesc. lower indirect labor costsd. less stringent regulationse. all of the above

63. Which of the following did the authors not suggest as a reason for globalizing operations?

a. reduce costsb. improve the supply chainc. stockholder approval ratingsd. attract new marketse. All of the above were suggested.

64. Multinational organizations can shop from country to country and cut costs througha. lower wage scalesb. lower indirect labor costsc. less stringent regulationsd. lower taxes and tariffse. all of the above

65. The term maquiladora is most synonymous witha. free trade zones b. Chinese forced labor campsc. home-based or cottage industryd. areas that do not meet U.S. standards for workplace safety and pollutione. none of the above

66. Which of the following represent reasons for globalizing operations?a. to gain improvements in the supply chainb. to improve operationsc. to expand a product's life cycled. to attract and retain global talente. All of the above are valid.

10

67. Which of the following does not represent reasons for globalizing operations?a. reduce costsb. improve supply chainc. reduce responsivenessd. attract and retain global talente. All of the above are valid reasons for globalizing operations.

68. NAFTA seeks toa. substitute cheap labor in Mexico for expensive labor in the United Statesb. curb illegal immigration from Mexico to the United Statesc. phase out all trade and tariff barriers between the United States and Mexicod. phase out all trade and tariff barriers between the United States, Canada, and Mexicoe. All of the above are NAFTA goals.

69. With reference to cultural and ethical issues, the World Trade Organization hasa. succeeded in providing equal protection of intellectual property among nationsb. made progress in providing equal protection of intellectual property among nationsc. phased out all trade and tariff barriers between the United States and Mexicod. eliminated slave labor and child labore. played little role in addressing cultural and ethical issues among nations

70. Which of the following is true about business strategies?a. An organization should stick with its strategy for the life of the business.b. All firms within an industry will adopt the same strategy.c. Well defined missions make strategy development much easier.d. Strategies are formulated independently of SWOT analysis.e. Organizational strategies depend on operations strategies.

71. Which of the following activities takes place once the mission has been developed?a. The firm develops alternative or back-up missions in case the original mission fails.b. The functional areas develop their functional area strategies.c. The functional areas develop their supporting missions.d. The ten OM decision areas are prioritized.e. Operational tactics are developed.

72. Which of the following statements about organizational missions is false?a. They reflect a company's purpose.b. They indicate what a company intends to contribute to society.c. They are formulated after strategies are known.d. They define a company's reason for existence.e. They provide guidance for functional area missions.

11

73. The impact of strategies on the general direction and basic character of a company isa. short rangeb. medium rangec. long range d. temporale. minimal

74. The fundamental purpose of an organization's mission statement is toa. create a good human relations climate in the organizationb. define the organization's purpose in society c. define the operational structure of the organizationd. generate good public relations for the organizatione. define the functional areas required by the organization

75. Which of the following is true?a. Corporate mission is shaped by functional strategies.b. Corporate strategy is shaped by functional strategies.c. Functional strategies are shaped by corporate strategy.d. External conditions are shaped by corporate mission.e. Functional area missions are merged to become the organizational mission.

76. According to the authors, which of the following strategic concepts allow firms to achieve their missions?

a. productivity, efficiency, and quality leadershipb. differentiation, cost leadership, and quick responsec. differentiation, quality leadership, and quick responsed. distinctive competency, cost leadership, and experiencee. differentiation, distinctive competency, quality leadership, and capacity

77. A firm can effectively use its operations function to yield competitive advantage via all of the following except

a. customization of the productb. setting equipment utilization goals below the industry average c. speed of deliveryd. constant innovation of new productse. maintain a variety of product options

78. Which of the following has progressed the furthest along its product life cycle?a. drive-thru restaurantsb. Internet search enginesc. iPodsd. LCD & plasma TVse. Xbox 360

79. A strategy is a(n)a. set of opportunities in the marketplaceb. broad statement of purposec. simulation used to test various product line optionsd. plan for cost reduction

12

e. action plan to achieve the mission

80. Which of the following statements best characterizes delivery reliability?a. a company that always delivers on the same day of the weekb. a company that always delivers at the promised timec. a company that delivers more frequently than its competitorsd. a company that delivers faster than its competitorse. a company that has a computerized delivery scheduling system

81. Which of the following is an example of competing on the basis of differentiation?a. A firm manufactures its product with less raw material waste than its competitors do.b. A firm's products are introduced into the market faster than its competitors’ products

are.c. A firm's distribution network routinely delivers its product on time.d. A firm offers more reliable products than its competitors do.e. A firm advertises more than its competitors do.

82. The ability of an organization to produce services that, by utilizing the consumer's five senses, have some uniqueness in their characteristics is

a. mass productionb. time-based competitionc. differentiationd. flexible responsee. experience differentiation

83. Which of the following best describes "experience differentiation"?a. immerses consumers in the delivery of a serviceb. uses people's five senses to enhance the servicec. complements physical elements with visual and sound elementsd. consumers may become active participants in the product or servicee. All are elements of experience differentiation.

84. Experience Differentiationa. isolates the consumer from the delivery of a serviceb. is an extension of product differentiation in the service sectorc. uses only the consumer's senses of vision and soundd. keeps consumers from becoming active participants in the servicee. is the same as product differentiation, but applied in the service sector

85. Which of the following is the best example of competing on low-cost leadership?a. A firm produces its product with less raw material waste than its competitors.b. A firm offers more reliable products than its competitors.c. A firm's products are introduced into the market faster than its competitors’ products.d. A firm's research and development department generates many ideas for new products.e. A firm advertises more than its competitors.

86. Franz Colruyt has achieved low-cost leadership througha. Spartan headquarters b. absence of voice mail

13

c. low-cost facilitiesd. no background musice. all of the above

87. Which of the following is an example of competing on quick response?a. A firm produces its product with less raw material waste than its competitors.b. A firm offers more reliable products than its competitors.c. A firm's products are introduced into the market faster than its competitors’ products.d. A firm's research and development department generates many ideas for new products.e. A firm advertises more than its competitors.

88. Costs, quality, and human resource decisions interact strongly with the _______ decision.a. layout designb. process and capacity designc. supply chain managementd. goods and service design e. All of the above are correct.

89. Which of the following influences layout design?a. inventory requirementsb. capacity needsc. personnel levelsd. technology decisionse. All of the above influence layout decisions.

90. Response-based competitive advantage can bea. flexible responseb. reliable responsec. quick responsed. all of the above e. none of the above

91. Which of the following is not an operations strategic decision?a. maintenanceb. price c. layout designd. qualitye. inventory

92. Which of the following OM strategic decisions pertains to sensible location of processes and materials in relation to each other?

a. layout designb. goods and service designc. supply chain managementd. inventorye. scheduling

93. Which of these companies is most apt to have quality standards that are relatively

14

subjective?a. Chryslerb. Dell Computerc. Sanyo Electronicsd. Harvard University e. Whirlpool

94. Which of the following will more likely locate near their customers?a. an automobile manufacturerb. an aluminum manufacturerc. an insurance company headquartersd. a medical clinic e. All of the above will tend to locate near their customers.

95. Which of the following statements concerning the operations management decision is relevant to services?

a. There are many objective quality standards.b. The customer is not involved in most of the process.c. The work force's technical skills are very important.d. Labor standards vary depending on customer requirements.e. Ability to inventory may allow the leveling of the output rates.

96. Which of these organizations is likely to have the most important inventory decisions?a. a marketing research firmb. a lobbying agencyc. a management consulting firmd. an aluminum manufacturere. a law firm

97. Standardization is an appropriate strategy in which stage of the product life cycle?a. introductionb. growthc. maturity d. declinee. retirement

98. Cost minimization is an appropriate strategy in which stage of the product life cycle?a. introductionb. growthc. maturity d. declinee. retirement

99. Which of the following preconditions does not affect the formulation of an OM strategy?a. knowledge of each product's life cycleb. external economic and technological conditionsc. the company's employment benefits d. competitors' strengths and weaknessese. knowledge of the company's strategy

15

100. The stage in the product life cycle at which it is a poor time to change quality is a. introductionb. growth c. maturityd. declinee. incubation

101. Which of the following changes does not result in strategy changes?a. change in the company's financial situationb. a company's adoption of new technologyc. change in the product life cycled. change in the competitive environmente. change in job scheduling techniques

102. All of these preconditions affect an operations management strategy excepta. external economic and technological conditionsb. competitors' strengths and weaknessesc. maintenance policiesd. knowledge of the company's strategye. knowledge of each product's life cycle

103. Understanding competitors' strengths and weaknesses, understanding current and prospective technological issues, and understanding product life cycle are examples of

a. what is important to the transnational strategy but not the multidomestic strategyb. SWOT analysisc. elements in the formulation of an organization's missiond. preconditions to establishing and implementing a strategye. the critical decision area of supply chain analysis

104. Which of these organizations is likely to have the most complex inventory decisions?a. a marketing research firmb. a stock brokerage firmc. a management consulting firmd. a computer manufacturing companye. a high school

105. The three steps of the operations manager's job, in order, area. develop the strategy, establish the organizational structure, find the right staff b. develop the strategy, find the right staff, establish the organizational structurec. find the right staff, establish the organizational structure, develop the strategyd. find the right staff, develop the strategy, establish the organizational structuree. establish the organizational structure, find the right staff, develop the strategy

106. When developing the operations strategy for a new manufacturing organization, one of the most important considerations is that it

a. requires minimal capital investmentb. utilizes as much automation as possiblec. utilizes an equal balance of labor and automationd. supports the overall competitive strategy of the company

16

e. none of the above

106. Which of the international operations strategies involves high cost reductions and high local responsiveness?a. international strategyb. global strategyc. transnational strategyd. multidomestic strategye. none of the above

107. Which of the international operations strategies involves low cost reductions and low local responsiveness?a. international strategyb. global strategyc. transnational strategyd. multidomestic strategye. none of the above}

108. Which of the international operations strategies uses import/export or licensing of existing products?a. international strategyb. global strategyc. transnational strategyd. multidomestic strategye. none of the above

109. Which of the international operations strategies uses the existing domestic model globally?a. international strategyb. global strategyc. transnational strategyd. multidomestic strategye. none of the above

110. Which of the following statements is FALSE?a) ISO stands for International Standards Organizationb) ISO 9000 and ISO 14000 are two of the best known ISO standards c) ISO 14000 has been updated in December 2008 and is known as ISO 14000:2008d) Over 630,000 organizations in 152 countries have implemented ISO standards

111. As control involves both mechanistic and human elements, it is one of the manager’s most difficult tasks. Which of the following is the best answer about desirable characteristics of control systems?a) Should be as simple as possible to operate and maintainb) Should signal managers if they go out of orderc) Should be focused and admit the least amount of variation

17

d) Both A and B

114. Which of the following is FALSE regarding statistical sampling for control purposes?a) The more samples are taken, the higher the likelihood of accidentally selecting a sample with excessive values when the process actually is still under controlb) Deciding what indicators are high or low enough to be considered out of control is the simplest of the problems facing operation managers c) Measuring upper and lower control limits are the basis for management by exceptiond) Using high thresholds for control increases the risk of not detecting processes that are getting out of control

115. Which of the following is NOT a step in constructing control charts?a) Initial samples of the process to be monitored need to be takenb) Means and ranges for the samples must be calculatedc) Deriving the means by the ranges previously calculatedd) Graphing sample means and ranges chronologically

116. The phases of project management area. planning, scheduling, and controllingb. planning, programming, and budgetingc. planning, organizing, staffing, leading, and controllingd. different for manufacturing projects than for service projectse. GANTT, CPM, and PERT

117. A project organizationa. is effective for companies with multiple large projectsb. is appropriate only in construction firmsc. often fails when the project cuts across organizational linesd. is formed to ensure that programs (projects) get proper management and attentione. a and d are both true

118. Which of the following statements regarding project management is false?a. Gantt charts give a timeline for each of a project's activities, but do not adequately

show the interrelationships of activities.b. A project organization works best for a project that is temporary but critical to the

organization.c. Project organization works well when the work contains simple, independent tasks.d. Gantt charts and PERT/CPM are never used together.e. None of the above is true.

119. A code of ethics especially for project managersa. has been established by the Project Management Instituteb. has been formulated by the Federal governmentc. has been formulated by the World Trade Organization

18

d. is inappropriate, since everyone should use the same guidance on ethical issuese. does not exist at this time

120. Divulging information to some bidders on a project to give them an unfair advantagea. is the same thing as altering a status reportb. is briberyc. is permitted by NAFTAd. is known as bid rigginge. is acceptable for private corporations but not for government agencies

121. Ethical issues that may arise in projects large and small includea. bid rigging b. expense account padding c. compromised safety or health standardsd. briberye. All of the above are true.

122. Which of the following statements regarding Gantt charts is true?a. Gantt charts give a timeline and precedence relationships for each activity of a project.b. Gantt charts use the four standard spines of Methods, Materials, Manpower, and

Machinery.c. Gantt charts are visual devices that show the duration of activities in a project.d. Gantt charts are expensive.e. All of the above are true.

123. Which of the following statements regarding critical paths is true?a. The shortest of all paths through the network is the critical path.b. Some activities on the critical path may have slack.c. Every network has exactly one critical path.d. On a specific project, there can be multiple critical paths, all with exactly the same

duration.e. The duration of the critical path is the average duration of all paths in the project

network.124. Which of the following statements regarding CPM is true?

a. The critical path is the shortest of all paths through the network.b. The critical path is that set of activities that has positive slack.c. Some networks have no critical path.d. All activities on the critical path have their LS equal their predecessor's EF.e. All of the above are false.

125. A simple CPM network has three activities, A, B, and C. A is an immediate predecessor of B and of C. B is an immediate predecessor of C. The activity durations are A=4, B=3, C=8.a. The critical path is A-B-C, duration 15.

b. The critical path is A-C, duration 12.c. The critical path is A-B-C, duration 13.5d. The critical path cannot be determined without knowing PERT expected activity times.e. The network has no critical path.

126. A simple CPM network has three activities, D, E, and F. D is an immediate predecessor of E

19

and of F. E is an immediate predecessor of F. The activity durations are D=4, E=3, F=8.a. The critical path is D-E-F, duration 15.

b. The critical path is D-F, duration 12.c. Slack at D is 3 unitsd. Slack at E is 3 unitse. Both a and c are true

127. Activity D on a CPM network has predecessors B and C, and has successor F. D has duration 6. B's earliest finish is 18, while C's is 20. F's late start is 26. Which of the following is true?

a. B is a critical activity.b. C is completed before B.c. D has no slack but is not critical.d. D is critical, and has zero slack.e. All of the above are true.

128. Which of the following statements regarding CPM networks is true?a. There can be multiple critical paths on the same project, all with different durations.b. The early finish of an activity is the latest early start of all preceding activities.c. The late start of an activity is its late finish plus its duration.d. If a specific project has multiple critical paths, all of them will have the same duration.e. All of the above are true.

129. Activity M on a CPM network has predecessors N and R, and has successor S. M has duration 5. N's late finish is 18, while R's is 20. S's late start is 14. Which of the following is true?

a. M is critical and has zero slack.b. M has no slack but is not critical.c. The last start time of S is impossible.d. N is a critical activity.e. S is a critical activity.

130. Which of the following statements concerning CPM activities is false?a. The early finish of an activity is the early start of that activity plus its duration.b. The late finish is the earliest of the late start times of all successor activities.c. The late start of an activity is its late finish less its duration.d. The late finish of an activity is the earliest late start of all preceding activities.e. The early start of an activity is the latest early finish of all preceding activities.

131. The time an activity will take assuming very unfavorable conditions isa. the optimistic timeb. the pessimistic timec. the activity varianced. the minimum timee. exactly twice as long as the expected time

20

132. The critical path for the network activities shown below is _____ with duration ______.

Activity Duration ImmediatePredecessors

A 4 ---B 2 AC 7 --D 4 AE 5 B,C,D

a. A-B-D; 10b. A-B-E; 11c. C-E; 12d. A-D-E; 13e. A-B-C-D-E; 22

133. The critical path for the network activities shown below is _____ with duration ______.

Activity Duration ImmediatePredecessors

A 2 --B 4 --C 6 A,BD 1 A,BE 2 B,C,D

a. A-D-E; 5b. B-E; 6c. B-D-E; 7d. A-C-E; 10e. B-C-E; 12

134. The expected activity time in PERT analysis is calculated as a. the simple average of the optimistic, pessimistic, and most likely timesb. the weighted average of a, m, and b, with m weighted 4 times as heavily as a and bc. the sum of the optimistic, pessimistic, and most likely timesd. the sum of the optimistic, pessimistic, and most likely times, divided by sixe. the sum of the activity variances, divided by six

21

135. The critical path for the network activities shown below is _____ with duration ______.

Activity Duration ImmediatePredecessors

A 10 ---B 8 ---C 2 AD 4 AE 5 B,C, D

a. A-C; 12b. A-D-E; 19c. B-E; 13d. A-B-C-D-E; 29e. none of the above

136. Which of the following statements regarding PERT times is true?a. The optimistic time estimate is an estimate of the minimum time an activity will

require.b. The optimistic time estimate is an estimate of the maximum time an activity will

require.c. The probable time estimate is calculated as t = (a + 4m + b).d. Pessimistic time estimate is an estimate of the minimum time an activity will require.e. Most likely time estimate is an estimate of the maximum time an activity will require.

137. Which of the following statements regarding PERT times is true?a. Expected time is an estimate of the time an activity will require if everything goes as

planned.b. The optimistic time estimate is an estimate of the maximum time an activity will

require.c. The probable time estimate is calculated as t = (a + 4m + b)/6.d. Pessimistic time estimate is an estimate of the minimum time an activity will require.e. Most likely time estimate is an estimate of the maximum time an activity will require.

138. The Beta distribution is used in project management toa. calculate slack on activities not on the critical pathb. calculate the probability that a project will be completed within its budgetc. calculate pessimistic and optimistic activity timesd. determine which activity should be crashede. none of the above

139. The Beta distribution is used in project management toa. determine which activity should be crashedb. calculate the probability that a project will be completed within its budgetc. calculate expected activity timesd. calculate slack for activities on the critical path

22

e. none of the above

140. In a PERT network, non-critical activities that have little slack need to be monitored closelya. because PERT treats all activities as equally importantb. because near-critical paths could become critical paths with small delays in these

activities c. because slack is undesirable and needs to be eliminatedd. because they are causing the entire project to be delayede. because they have a high risk of not being completed

141. Which of the following statements regarding PERT analysis is true?a. Each activity has two estimates of its duration.b. Project variance is the sum of all activity variances.c. Project standard deviation is the sum of all critical activity standard deviations.d. Only critical activities contribute to the project variance.e. None of the above is true.

142. Which of these statements regarding time-cost tradeoffs in CPM networks is true?a. Crashing is not possible unless there are multiple critical paths.b. Crashing a project often reduces the length of long-duration, but noncritical, activities.c. Activities not on the critical path can never be on the critical path, even after crashing.d. Crashing shortens the project duration by assigning more resources to one or more of

the critical tasks.e. None of the above is true.

143. Six Sigma is among the most timely topics in business today because of the following, EXCEPT:a) It was developed by Motorolab) High profile organizations report strong benefits from using itc) It can be applied in organizations that produce a tangible output or an intangible serviced) Nonprofit organizations may apply it as well as for profit companies

145. Six Sigma (DMAIC) is best applied when:a) The process is fundamentally flawedb) The process is brand newc) There is too much variation in the processd) There is too much waste in the process

146. Business Process Design (BPD) is also adequately named the following EXCEPT:a) Reengineeringb) Business process innovationc) Business process engineeringd) Downsizing or restructuring

23

147. A literal interpretation of six-sigma is:a) 4.3 defects per million opportunities (DPMO)b) 3.4 defects per billion opportunities (DPBO)c) 3.4 defects per million opportunities (DPMO)d) 3.1 defects per million opportunities (DPMO)

148. DMAIC stands for:a) Define, Measure, Analyze, Implement, Controlb) Define, Maintain, Assure, Implement, Controlc) Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, Control d) Design, Maintain, Analyze, Improve, Control

149. Which term compares an organization’s processes with the best practices to be found in its industry or others? a) Benchmarkb) Performancec) Value propositiond) Bias

150. Which of the following is FALSE about Quality Function Deployment (QFD)?a) It is a powerful tool to translate customer requirements into process capabilitiesb) It utilizes a series of tables to maintain links between the data collected and the final process activitiesc) Because of their shape, the tables are often referred to as “houses of quality”d) Technical requirements are the basic input for the process deployment matrix

115. Quality Function Deployment (QFD) starts by using “voice of the customer” (VOC) data in which of the following matrices?a) Process planningb) Process deploymentc) Output planningd) Output specification

116. Choose a common problem from the Measure phase.a) Calculation of a baseline to evaluate benefits of potential improvementsb) The process mean can shift as much as 1.5 standard deviationsc) Performance metrics based on the availability of data d) 3.4 defects per million opportunities (DPMO) may occur easily in complex operations

117. The relationship between the natural variation in the production system and the product’s design specifications can be quantified using:a) Six sigma

24

b) Control chartsc) A process capability index d) Fishbone diagrams

118. Which of the following is/are (a) primary tenet(s) in the Japanese work systems?a) Waste is minimizedb) Continually improving process and systemsc) Six sigma implementation d) Both A and B

119. The following are characteristics of Lean when contrasted with traditional systems, EXCEPT:a) Priorities are a limited market and few optionsb) Capacity is flexible and moderately utilizedc) Suppliers are many, competitive, deliver to central receiving area and have independent forecasts d) Quality is at the source, continuous and with statistical process controls

120. Which of the following is NOT a direct benefit of lean?a) Cost savingsb) Uncovering problemsc) Improved financial investments d) Revenue increases

121. Which of the following project categories typically seeks the development of a new generation of outputs? a) Derivative projectsb) Breakthrough projectsc) Platform projectsd) R&D projects

122. Which of the following project categories might lead to the other project categories?a) Derivative projectsb) Breakthrough projectsc) Platform projectsd) R&D projects

123. Which of the following terms provides the basis for the project schedule, often formatted as a project Gantt chart?

25

a) Critical path b) Work breakdown structure c) Floatd) Earned value

124. . The set of all project activities graphically interrelated through precedence relationships is known as a/an:a) Activity b) Eventc) Networkd) Path

125. . Any path that if delayed will delay the completion of the entire project is known as a:a) Significant pathb) Critical pathc) Central path d) Network path

126. Duration of critical path – path duration = __________?a) Latest finish time b) Critical timec) Path slackd) Latest start time

127. The amount of time a project manager estimates it will take to complete the activity under ideal conditions is known as:a) Pessimistic timeb) Optimistic time c) Likeliest timed) Utopian time

127. Which of the following statement(s) concerning probabilities of completion is/are incorrect?a) Using the variance of each activity, we can compute the likelihood of completing the project in a given time period. b) The probability of completing a path is found by calculating the standard normal deviate of the desired completion time less the expected completion time.

26

c) The distribution of a path’s completion time will be approximately exponentially distributed if the path has a large number of activities on it.d) Both B and C

128. Which of the following statements about Supply Chain Management (SCM) is correct?a) SCM programs are putting ever greater emphasis on the finance function b) SCM coordinates and integrates several activities into a process by linking the most important partners in the chain c) The goal of SCM is to deliver the right product at the right time, while yielding the lowest possible costsd) SCM enables manufacturers to actively plan and collaborate across a distributed supply chain

129. Which of the following is FALSE about supply chains?a) Just-in-time deliveries (JIT) and lean manufacturing dictate a demand chainb) When customers of a service are also suppliers, they should be attractedc) A supply chain is suggestive of a system of production in which the customer “pulls” the product d) Suppliers that are not customers must be chosen carefully 130. Logistics consist(s) of the following, EXCEPT:a) Compensation and incentivesb) Storage and warehousingc) Transportation and information processingd) Inventories and distribution

131. What is the least expensive transportation mode?a) Air b) Truckingc) Railroads d) Water

132. Organizations that process natural or basic resources as raw materials or other essential inputs to obtain their outputs will locate near their resources if one of the following conditions holds:a) High economies of scale exist for the productb) The raw material can be shipped long distance before being processedc) There is a large loss in size or weight during processing.d) Both A and C

27

133. Purchasing tends to follow three practices; which of the following is NOT one of them?a) They leverage their buying powerb) They work with and help suppliers reduce costsc) They commit to a small number of dependable suppliersd) All of the above are practices followed by purchasing in highly effective organizations

134. Arnold Palmer Hospital uses which of the following quality management techniques?a. Pareto chartsb. flow chartsc. benchmarkingd. Just-in-Timee. The hospital uses all of the above techniques.

135. Which of the following statements best describes the relationship between quality management and product strategy?

a. Product strategy is set by top management; quality management is an independent activity.

b. Quality management is important to the low-cost product strategy, but not to the response or differentiation strategies.

c. High quality is important to all three strategies, but it is not a critical success factor. d. Managing quality helps build successful product strategies.e. Companies with the highest measures of quality were no more productive than other

firms.

136. "Quality is defined by the customer" isa. an unrealistic definition of qualityb. a user-based definition of qualityc. a manufacturing-based definition of qualityd. a product-based definition of qualitye. the definition proposed by the American Society for Quality

137. "Making it right the first time" isa. an unrealistic definition of qualityb. a user-based definition of qualityc. a manufacturing-based definition of qualityd. a product-based definition of qualitye. the definition proposed by the American Society for Quality

28

138. Three broad categories of definitions of quality area. product quality, service quality, and organizational qualityb. user-based, manufacturing-based, and product-basedc. internal, external, and preventiond. low-cost, response, and differentiatione. Pareto, Shewhart, and Deming

139. According to the manufacturing-based definition of quality,a. quality is the degree of excellence at an acceptable price and the control of variability

at an acceptable costb. quality depends on how well the product fits patterns of consumer preferencesc. even though quality cannot be defined, you know what it isd. quality is the degree to which a specific product conforms to standardse. quality lies in the eyes of the beholder

140. The role of quality in limiting a firm's product liability is illustrated by a. ensuring that contaminated products such as impure foods do not reach customersb. ensuring that products meet standards such as those of the Consumer Product Safety

Actc. designing safe products to limit possible harm to consumersd. using processes that make products as safe or as durable as their design specifications

call fore. All of the above are valid.

141. Which of the following is not one of the major categories of costs associated with quality?

a. prevention costsb. appraisal costsc. internal failuresd. external failurese. none of the above; they are all major categories of costs associated with quality

142. All of the following costs are likely to decrease as a result of better quality excepta. customer dissatisfaction costsb. inspection costsc. scrap costsd. warranty and service costse. maintenance costs

143. Which of the following statements is not true?a. Self-promotion is not a substitute for quality products.b. Inferior products harm a firm’s profitability and a nation’s balance of payments.c. Product liability transfers from the manufacturer to the retailer once the retailer accepts

delivery of the product.d. Quality—be it good or bad—will show up in perceptions about a firm’s new products,

29

employment practices, and supplier relations.e. Legislation such as the Consumer Product Safety Act sets and enforces product

standards by banning products that do not reach those standards.

144. "Employees cannot produce goods that on average exceed the quality of what the process is capable of producing" expresses a basic element in the writings of

a. Vilfredo Paretob. Armand Feigenbaumc. Joseph M. Jurand. W. Edwards Deminge. Philip B. Crosby

145. "Quality Is Free," meaning that the costs of poor quality have been understated, is the work of

a. W. Edwards Demingb. Joseph M. Juranc. Philip B. Crosbyd. Crosby, Stills, and Nashe. Armand Feigenbaum

146. Based on his 14 Points, Deming is a strong proponent ofa. inspection at the end of the production processb. an increase in numerical quotas to boost productivityc. looking for the cheapest supplierd. training and knowledgee. all of the above

147. Regarding the quality of design, production, and distribution of products, an ethical requirement for management is to

a. determine whether any of the organization's stakeholders are violated by poor quality products

b. gain ISO 14000 certification for the organizationc. obtain a product safety certificate from the Consumer Product Safety Commissiond. have the organization's legal staff write disclaimers in the product instruction bookletse. compare the cost of product liability to the external failure cost

148. If 1 million passengers pass through the St. Louis Airport with checked baggage each month, a successful Six Sigma program for baggage handling would result in how many passengers with misplaced luggage?

a. 3.4b. 6.0c. 34d. 2700e. 6 times the monthly standard deviation of passengers

149. Which of the following is true about ISO 14000 certification?a. It is not a prerequisite for ISO 9000 certification.b. It deals with environmental management.

30

c. It offers a good systematic approach to pollution prevention.d. One of its core elements is life-cycle assessment.e. All of the above are true.

150. Suppose that a firm has historically been achieving “three-sigma” quality. If the firm later changes its quality management practices such that begins to achieve “six-sigma” quality, which of the following phenomena will result?

a. The average number of defects will be cut in half.b. The specification limits will be moved twice as far from the mean.c. The average number of defects will be cut by 99.9997%.d. The average number of defects will be cut by 99.87%.e. The average number of defects will be cut by 99.73%.

151. To become ISO 9000 certified, organizations musta. document quality proceduresb. have an onsite assessmentc. have an ongoing series of audits of their products or serviced. all of the abovee. none of the above

152. Total quality management emphasizesa. the responsibility of the quality control staff to identify and solve all quality-related

problemsb. a commitment to quality that goes beyond internal company issues to suppliers and

customersc. a system where strong managers are the only decision makersd. a process where mostly statisticians get involvede. ISO 14000 certification

153. A successful TQM program incorporates all of the following excepta. continuous improvementb. employee involvementc. benchmarkingd. centralized decision-making authoritye. none of the above; a successful TQM program incorporates all of the above

154. Which of the following statements regarding "Six Sigma" is true?a. The term has two distinct meanings—one is statistical; the other is a comprehensive

quality system.b. Six Sigma means that about 94 percent of a firm's output is free of defects.c. The Six Sigma program was developed by Toyota in the 1970's.d. The Six Sigma program is for manufacturing firms, and is not applicable to services.e. Six Sigma certification is granted by the International Standards Organization (ISO).

155. Building high-morale organizations and building communication networks that include employees are both elements of

a. ISO 9000 certification

31

b. Six Sigma certificationc. employee empowermentd. Taguchi methodse. the tools of TQM

156. ISO 9000 seeks standardization in terms ofa. productsb. production proceduresc. suppliers' specificationsd. procedures to manage qualitye. all of the above

157. Costs of dissatisfaction, repair costs, and warranty costs are elements of cost in thea. Taguchi Loss Functionb. Pareto chartc. ISO 9000 Quality Cost Calculatord. process charte. none of the above

158. A quality loss function includes all of the following costs excepta. the cost of scrap and repairb. the cost of customer dissatisfactionc. inspection, warranty, and service costsd. sales costse. costs to society

159. A manager tells her production employees, "It's no longer good enough that your work fall anywhere within the specification limits. I need your work to be as close to the target value as possible." Her thinking is reflective of

a. internal benchmarkingb. Six Sigmac. ISO 9000d. Taguchi conceptse. process control charts

160. If a sample of parts is measured and the mean of the measurements is outside the control limits, the process is

a. in control, but not capable of producing within the established control limitsb. out of control and the process should be investigated for assignable variationc. within the established control limits with only natural causes of variationd. monitored closely to see if the next sample mean will also fall outside the control

limitse. none of the above

161. When a sample measurement falls inside the control limits, it means thata. each unit manufactured is good enough to sellb. the process limits cannot be determined statisticallyc. the process output exceeds the requirements

32

d. if there is no other pattern in the samples, the process is in controle. the process output does not fulfill the requirements

162. Which of the following is false regarding control charts?a. Values above the upper control limits always imply that the product’s quality is

exceeding expectations.b. Control charts are built so that new data can be quickly compared to past performance

data.c. Control charts graphically present data.d. Control charts plot data over time.e. None of the above is false.

163. The goal of inspection is to a. detect a bad process immediatelyb. add value to a product or servicec. correct deficiencies in productsd. correct system deficienciese. all of the above

164. Which of the following is not a typical inspection point?a. upon receipt of goods from your supplierb. during the production processc. before the product is shipped to the customerd. at the supplier's plant while the supplier is producinge. after a costly process

165. A good description of "source inspection" is inspectinga. materials upon delivery by the supplierb. the goods at the production facility before they reach the customerc. the goods as soon as a problem occursd. goods at the supplier's plante. one's own work, as well as the work done at the previous work station

166. Which of the determinants of service quality involves having the customer's best interests at heart?

a. accessb. courtesyc. credibilityd. responsivenesse. tangibles

33

167. Which of the determinants of service quality involves performing the service right the first time?

a. accessb. courtesyc. credibilityd. reliabilitye. responsiveness

168. The layout strategy that deals with low-volume, high-variety production isa. fixed-position layoutb. retail layoutc. warehouse layoutd. office layoute. none of the above

169. "A special arrangement of machinery and equipment to focus on production of a single product or group of related products" describes what layout type?

a. fixed-position layoutb. intermittent productionc. focused factoryd. work celle. warehouse layout

170. A good layout requires determininga. material handling requirementsb. capacity and space requirementsc. environment and aestheticsd. cost of moving between various work arease. all of the above

171. The fixed-position layout would be most appropriate in which of the following settings?a. a fast-food restaurantb. a doctor's officec. a casual dining restaurantd. a cruise ship assembly facilitye. none of the above

172. Because the fixed-position layout problem is so difficult to solve on-site, operations managers

a. virtually never employ this layout strategyb. utilize this approach only for construction projects such as bridges and office towersc. increase the size of the sited. often complete as much of the project as possible off-sitee. utilize this layout only for defense contractors

173. One factor impacting the fixed-position layout strategy isa. minimizing difficulties caused by material flow varying with each productb. requiring frequent contact close to one another

34

c. the provision of low-cost storage with low-cost material handlingd. the movement of material to the limited storage areas around the sitee. balancing product flow from one work station to the next

174. The type of layout which features departments or other functional groupings in which similar activities are performed is

a. process-orientedb. product-orientedc. fixed-positiond. mass productione. unit production

175. One of the major advantages of process-oriented layouts isa. high equipment utilizationb. large work-in-process inventoriesc. flexibility in equipment and labor assignmentd. smooth and continuous flow of worke. none of the above

176. Which type of layout is specifically designed to encourage employees to interact?a. warehouseb. job shopc. open officed. retaile. repetitive/continuous

177. Which of the following is true for process layouts, but false for product-oriented layouts?

a. low in-process inventoriesb. flexibility in equipment and labor assignmentsc. low variety of productsd. high volume of outpute. often solved by assembly line balancing

178. A big advantage of a process-oriented layout isa. its flexibility in equipment and labor assignmentsb. its low costc. the simplified scheduling problem presented by this layout strategyd. the ability to employ low-skilled labore. its high equipment utilization

179. Balancing low-cost storage with low-cost material handling is important in a(n)a. fixed-position layoutb. process-oriented layoutc. office layoutd. repetitive and product-oriented layout

35

e. warehouse layout

180. Which of the following is not an advantage of work cells?a. reduced direct labor costb. decreased use of equipment and machineryc. heightened sense of employee participationd. reduced raw material and finished goods inventorye. reduced investment in machinery and equipment

181. Balancing a work cell is donea. before the work cell equipment is sequencedb. as part of the process of building an efficient work cellc. before takt time is calculatedd. so that each assembly line workstation has exactly the same amount of worke. to minimize the total movement in a process layout

182. A process layout problem consists of 4 departments, each of which can be assigned to one of four rooms. The number of different solutions to this problem is _____, although not all of them may have different material handling costs.

a. 1b. 4c. 16d. 24e. unknown

.183. In assembly line balancing, the minimum number of workstations is

a. the ratio of the sum of all task times to cycle timeb. always (when a fraction) rounded upward to the next larger integer valuec. not always possible to reach when tasks are actually assigned to stationsd. all of the abovee. none of the above

184. In assembly line balancing, cycle time (the ratio of available production time to scheduled production) is the

a. minimum time that a product is allowed at each workstationb. maximum time that a product is allowed at each workstationc. optimum time that a product is allowed at each workstationd. desired cycle time that a product is allowed at each workstatione. all of the above

185. Cycle time is computed asa. desired output divided by the daily operating timeb. daily operating time divided by the product of desired output and the sum of job timesc. the product of desired output and the sum of job times divided by daily operating timed. daily operating time divided by the scheduled outpute. 1.00 minus station time

36

186. Daily capacity of a product layout is determined bya. operating time divided by cycle timeb. cycle time divided by operating timec. operating time divided by total task timed. total task time divided by cycle timee. cycle time divided by total task time

187. An assembly line consists of 21 tasks grouped into 5 workstations. The sum of the 21 task times is 85 minutes. Cycle time for the line is 20 minutes. The efficiency of this line is

a. 4.2 percentb. 17 percentc. 85 percentd. 100 percente. none of the above

188. In the make-or-buy decision, one of the reasons for making isa. to reduce inventory costsb. to obtain technical or management abilityc. inadequate capacityd. reciprocitye. to assure adequate supply in terms of quantity

188. In the make-or-buy decision, which of the following is a reason for making an item?a. management can focus on its primary businessb. lower production costc. inadequate capacityd. reduce inventory costse. None of the above is a reason for making an item.

189. In the make-or-buy decision, one of the reasons for buying isa. to assure adequate supplyb. to obtain desired qualityc. to remove supplier collusiond. inadequate capacitye. to maintain organizational talents

190. In the make-or-buy decision, which of the following is not a reason for buying?a. inadequate capacityb. to obtain desired qualityc. patents or trade secretsd. lower inventory costse. All of the above are reasons for buying.

191. Outsourcinga. transfers traditional internal activities to outside vendors

37

b. utilizes the efficiency which comes with specializationc. lets the outsourcing firm focus on its critical success factorsd. None of the above are true of outsourcing.e. All of the above are true of outsourcing.

192. The transfer of some of what are traditional internal activities and resources of a firm to outside vendors is

a. a standard use of the make or buy decisionb. not allowed by the ethics code of the Supply Management Institutec. offshoringd. outsourcinge. keiretsu

193. In supply chain management, ethical issuesa. are particularly important because of the enormous opportunities for abuseb. may be guided by company rules and codes of conductc. become more complex the more global is the supply chaind. may be guided by the principles and standards of the Institute for Supply Managemente. All of the above are true.

194. Which of the following is not an advantage of the "few suppliers" concept?a. suppliers' willingness to participate in JIT systemsb. trustc. vulnerability of trade secretsd. creation of value by allowing suppliers to have economies of scalee. suppliers' willingness to provide technological expertise

195. Which of the following supply chain strategies creates value by allowing suppliers to have economies of scale?

a. suppliers becoming part of a company coalitionb. vertical integrationc. long-term partnering with a few suppliersd. negotiating with many supplierse. developing virtual companies

38