CPIM CPIM Capacity Planning and Management Questions and Answers 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What is 'finite capacity scheduling' as opposed to 'infinite capacity scheduling'?
- Finite scheduling enforces actual capacity limits when creating schedules, while infinite scheduling ignores capacity constraints (Correct answer)
- Finite scheduling is used only for short-horizon planning
- Infinite scheduling is more accurate because it uses real-time data
- Finite scheduling requires more detailed BOM data than infinite scheduling
Correct answer: Finite scheduling enforces actual capacity limits when creating schedules, while infinite scheduling ignores capacity constraints
Finite capacity scheduling produces feasible schedules by respecting real resource limits, whereas infinite scheduling reveals overloads but does not automatically resolve them.
Question 2: Which capacity adjustment strategy involves temporarily outsourcing work to a third-party manufacturer?
- Subcontracting (Correct answer)
- Overtime authorization
- Cross-training employees
- Demand management
Correct answer: Subcontracting
Subcontracting transfers production to an outside manufacturer to quickly expand effective capacity without adding permanent internal resources.
Question 3: In production activity control, what is 'queue time' and why does it matter?
- The time a job waits at a work center before processing begins; it represents the largest component of manufacturing lead time (Correct answer)
- The time required to set up a machine before a production run
- The time between order release and first operation start
- The time a finished order waits in the shipping dock
Correct answer: The time a job waits at a work center before processing begins; it represents the largest component of manufacturing lead time
Queue time typically accounts for the majority of total manufacturing lead time, so reducing queues is one of the most effective ways to shorten lead times.
Question 4: What is 'move time' in the context of manufacturing lead time components?
- The time required to physically transport a job from one work center to the next (Correct answer)
- The time a job spends being actively processed at a machine
- The time needed to set up a work center for a new job
- The administrative time to release a work order
Correct answer: The time required to physically transport a job from one work center to the next
Move time is one of the five components of manufacturing lead time (queue, setup, run, wait, move) and represents physical transport between operations.
Question 5: What does 'planned lead time' represent in an MRP and capacity context?
- The expected elapsed time from order release to order completion, used by MRP to offset planned order releases from due dates (Correct answer)
- The actual time measured on the shop floor for a specific job
- The supplier's quoted delivery lead time for purchased items
- The administrative processing time to create a purchase order
Correct answer: The expected elapsed time from order release to order completion, used by MRP to offset planned order releases from due dates
MRP uses planned lead time as a fixed offset to determine when to release orders so that they complete by their required due date.
Question 6: Which technique helps reduce effective lead time by releasing overlapping operations to the shop floor simultaneously?
- Operation overlapping (or lap phasing) (Correct answer)
- Order splitting
- Lot sizing
- Time fencing
Correct answer: Operation overlapping (or lap phasing)
Operation overlapping starts a downstream operation before the upstream operation is fully complete, compressing the total elapsed time for the job.
CPIM CPIM Capacity Planning and Management Questions and Answers 3
What is 'finite capacity scheduling' as opposed to 'infinite capacity scheduling'?