Operations Management: An Integrated Approach, 5th Edition

CASE: Sawhill Athletic Club (B)

Sawhill Athletic Club, an athletic facility in Scottsdale, Arizona, was known for providing a high level of customer service to its members. Member complaints were taken seriously and immediately addressed. Lauren Nicole, the new manager of Sawhill, was now faced with having to resolve another service problem.

Sawhill provided a clean towel to each member upon entering the women's or men's locker room. However, the facility had been regularly running out of clean towels for some time. Over the past month, members have complained loudly that something had to be done because they were tired of waiting for clean towels.

Currently the facility had one industrial-size washing machine and one dryer, each with a capacity to hold 20 towels. The washing machine took 20 minutes to complete a load, and the dryer took 60 minutes. Following the drying process, the towels were folded and made available to members. The folding process took approximately 1 hour for 60 towels. The washing, drying, and folding of towels was done on an almost continual basis with at least one full-time person assigned to the area. The demand averaged 60 towels per hour. The process operated as follows:

“The solution is simple. We will purchase an additional washer and dryer. That will solve the problem.” Lauren said confidently.

Case Questions

1. What is the reason Sawhill is regularly ...