Apix Polybob Company

Apix Polybob Company. Following is the information about Polybob model A that Ken suggested as a
representative model to use for the analysis:
Component Lot Size Inventory Lead Time Scheduled Receipts Reorder point
B 80 10 1 None 5
C 150 40 1 None 15
D 200 180 2 None 50
E 400 300 2 None 70
F 500 50 2 500, week 1 80
The following are the master schedule production lots for Model A:
Complete 50 units, week 3
Complete 50 units, week 5
Complete 60 units, week 7
Complete 60 units, week 9
Complete 50 units, week 11

Apix Polybob Company

Upon seeing this information, Jim stated, “Look at how regular our production
schedule is for this model. The reorder points will more than cover requirements, and
none have lead times that make it tough to respond. This analysis should show that all
the work I did on EOQ and reorder points was right, and the real problem lies with
those sales and finance people who don’t understand our production needs.”

Discussion Questions

1. What are the key issues brought about in the conversation? What are the key symptoms,
and what are the underlying problems? Be specific in your answers.
2. Use the product information to develop an MRP approach to the problems. Would
MRP solve the problems? If so, show specifically how MRP would avoid the problems
discussed by Ken and Jim.
3. Do any conditions bother you about the ability of MRP to deal with the problems? What
specifically are those conditions?
4. Suppose it was discovered that only 250 of component E were in stock instead of the 300
listed on the inventory record. What problems would this cause (if any), and what are
some of the ways that these problems could be addressed? How would (if at all) MRP
help you when other methods might not?
5. Suppose that the design engineer advises that he has a new design for component F. It won’t
be ready until sometime after week 2, but he wants you to give a date for the first supplier
shipment to come in, and you should be ready to tell the supplier how many to ship. Since
the change is transparent to the customer, the design engineer advises you to go ahead and
use up any existing material of the model. How will MRP help you to deal with this issue?
6. Can you think of any other “what if” questions that might be more easily addressed by a
systematic approach such as MRP?