Applied assessment — selecting and piloting solutions

4 of 5 needed to pass

1. 1. A team scores three proposed fixes for late deliveries on a weighted decision matrix (cost, feasibility, impact on CTQ, implementation time): Fix A scores 7.2, Fix B scores 8.6, Fix C scores 6.9. The plant manager personally prefers Fix A because 'it feels simpler.' What should the team do?

   Choose one answer.

   Present Fix B as the data-supported top choice, and if the manager still prefers Fix A, revisit the matrix weights or evidence together rather than silently overriding the scoreAverage all three scores and implement a blended solutionDiscard the decision matrix, since it disagreed with the managerFollow the plant manager's preference regardless of the matrix, since seniority should decide
2. 2. A sewing line has 6 operations with cycle times of 40, 55, 38, 62, 45, and 50 seconds. Customer demand requires a takt time of 48 seconds. What does line balancing analysis show, and what is the priority action?

   Choose one answer.

   Only the fastest operation (38 seconds) needs attention since it is 'wasting' capacityTakt time is irrelevant once cycle times are knownThe line is already balanced since the average cycle time is close to 48 secondsOperations at 55 and 62 seconds exceed takt time and will bottleneck the line; these should be prioritized for work redistribution or method improvement
3. 3. A team plans a 2-factor, 2-level factorial DOE on stitch defect rate, testing thread tension (low/high) and needle size (fine/standard), with 3 replicates per combination. How many total experimental runs are needed?

   Choose one answer.

   8 runs, since replicates only apply to two of the four combinations4 runs (one per combination, no replication)6 runs12 runs (4 combinations x 3 replicates)
4. 4. A pilot of a new inspection checkpoint runs for one shift only, on the best-performing operator, and shows defects dropping from 6% to 1%. The team wants to declare success and roll out plant-wide immediately. What is the concern?

   Choose one answer.

   None — a clear improvement was shown so rollout should proceed immediatelyThe pilot's single shift, single best-operator design likely overstates the expected result under normal, mixed-skill, multi-shift conditions; a broader or longer pilot is needed before full rolloutThe pilot should be rejected outright because any improvement below 0% is insufficientThe 6% to 1% change is too large to be believed, so the data must be fabricated
5. 5. Two future-state process designs both meet the CTQ target. Design 1 costs BDT 300,000 to implement and saves an estimated BDT 40,000/month. Design 2 costs BDT 900,000 and saves an estimated BDT 150,000/month. Using simple payback period, which is faster to pay back and by how much?

   Choose one answer.

   Design 1 pays back in 7.5 months, Design 2 in 6 months — Design 2 pays back 1.5 months fasterBoth pay back in exactly the same time since both meet the CTQDesign 1 pays back faster because it costs less overallDesign 1 pays back in 7.5 months versus Design 2's 6 months, so Design 2 pays back faster