Operations Management: An Integrated Approach, 5th Edition

CASE: Desserts by J.B.

Jay Brown (J.B. to his friends) is a student at the Northwest Culinary Institute and specializes in preparing elaborate desserts. After graduation, J.B. wants to open up a bakery. The bakery, Desserts by J.B., would offer elaborate, European-style desserts. As J.B. prepares his business plan, the issues of material and capacity planning arise. At the Institute, J.B. never worried about such issues. Someone else was responsible for assuring material was available and for scheduling the equipment.

Since J.B. knows that you are studying business, he has asked for your help. He needs some guidance on material planning and capacity management. In order to assist your analysis, J.B. has asked you to compile a list of necessary information. Once you have adequate information, J.B. needs to know how to determine his material requirements and how to determine his capacity needs.

• (a) Develop a list of the information you will need before you can help J.B.
• (b) Using at least five recipes for elaborate European-styled desserts, demonstrate how you would plan for materials.
• (c) Discuss the factors J.B. needs to consider when determining his capacity needs.
• (d) Explain to J.B. how he will be able to use an MRP approach in his bakery. Be sure to explain issues such as planned orders, projected available quantities, lot sizing rules, BOMs, and inventory records.