Light Up My Light, Inc.

by | Sep 24, 2022 | Operations management

Oh, oh!
The engineers are in a pinch. At the most recent staff meeting one pf the topics discussed was that one of the newer light fixtures was having some problems. This is the model L799AC. They are being returned at a rate that is much higher than anticipated. It appears that the L799AC is just are not as durable as customers are expecting from a light fixture. The planned MTBF was 1,800 hours. The Operating time until failure for the 8 returned units ranged from 99 to 199 hours. That is an eye-watering difference!
Customers and the LUML engineers know that there is a “mixture” of factors (e.g., reliability; maintainability even though is most cases customers plan on doing very little maintenance beyond changing the bulb once the fixture is installed; and availability).
The CEO asked them to look into this situation, come up with some areas that should be looked into; and to send information on the situation.
Alas, the engineers are not agreeing on what the situation is or how to proceed. With somewhat bruised egos, then have asked your boss Tom Perkins (VP/Director of Logistics) for assistance in analyzing the situation and writing the reply to the CEO.
Perkins said sure; go ahead and coordinate with {your name}.
After some review and discussion, here are the “issues” that need to be looked at.
Q1. (100 points) The idea of a “bathtub” is often used to describe the failure rate curve. When searching the Internet and other sources (some old textbooks) they got a zillion hits (or at least a very large number) on the subject. But what is needed is a concise answer to explain this concept to the non-engineer, non-logistician CEO. Probably a figure. And then a brief explanation of the elapsed time and the failure rate. A time period/region (or is that periods/regions?). And the characteristics of each period/region that the cycle/curve covers.
Q2. (100 points) Luckily some customers kept records on failure of the fixtures. So when asked they could give accurate numbers instead of just a notion pf failed-too-early. Here is a summary of the 8 units returned due to failure.
Returned Unit # Operating time until failed
(hours)
1 133
2 155
3 199
4 176
5 148
6 165
7 160
8 99

[NOTE: This is obviously a small sample of 8 observations. But treat this as if it represented a large sample so, for example, you do not need to try to apply a finite population correction factor, etc.]

Q2a. If the returned fixtures were in the stage where the exponential reliability function applied, based on these actual MTBF’s what was the theoretical reliability at 200 hours of operation? [Note: if answering as “percent” then to 2 decimal places; if answering as a proportion then to 4 decimal points.]
Q2B. Show your work and explain your answer.
Q3. (100 points) The fixture has three major parts which act in series. [Note: final answers to 2 decimal places.]
Part #1 has a reliability of 0.99.
Part #2 has a reliability of 0.95.
Part #3 has a reliability of 0.90.
Q3a. What is the theoretical reliability of the system/product?
Q3b. If LUML is going to work on improving the reliability of the system/product, which part do you recommend the engineers initially concentrate on? Why?
Q3c. If LUML can improve the reliability of that part by 5 per cent, what should the new reliability be for the system/product? [Interim calculations to 6 decimals. Final to 2 decimals.]
Q4. (100 points) As noted, the planned MTBF was 1,800 hours. The average corrective maintenance time was planned to be 1 hour. [Note: satisfactory conditions, etc., etc.]
Q4a. What was the planned inherent availability of the system/product?
Q4b. Explain your work.
Q4c. What are the implications for LUML?
Q5. (50 points) One aspect of MGT5061 is to address “policy”. Give and explain two policies concerning RMA that LUML should consider implementing. Include the reason(s) why the policy would be appropriate? (Or, if you prefer, consider it RAM knowing RAM distorts the relationship to some degree.)
No real limits on length. On the one hand, I am not looking for multiple pages. On the other hand, you do need to cover the topic. Usually a few sentences with solid reasons for each is sufficient.

 

Sample solution

Dante Alighieri played a critical role in the literature world through his poem Divine Comedy that was written in the 14th century. The poem contains Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso. The Inferno is a description of the nine circles of torment that are found on the earth. It depicts the realms of the people that have gone against the spiritual values and who, instead, have chosen bestial appetite, violence, or fraud and malice. The nine circles of hell are limbo, lust, gluttony, greed and wrath. Others are heresy, violence, fraud, and treachery. The purpose of this paper is to examine the Dante’s Inferno in the perspective of its portrayal of God’s image and the justification of hell. 

In this epic poem, God is portrayed as a super being guilty of multiple weaknesses including being egotistic, unjust, and hypocritical. Dante, in this poem, depicts God as being more human than divine by challenging God’s omnipotence. Additionally, the manner in which Dante describes Hell is in full contradiction to the morals of God as written in the Bible. When god arranges Hell to flatter Himself, He commits egotism, a sin that is common among human beings (Cheney, 2016). The weakness is depicted in Limbo and on the Gate of Hell where, for instance, God sends those who do not worship Him to Hell. This implies that failure to worship Him is a sin.


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God is also depicted as lacking justice in His actions thus removing the godly image. The injustice is portrayed by the manner in which the sodomites and opportunists are treated. The opportunists are subjected to banner chasing in their lives after death followed by being stung by insects and maggots. They are known to having done neither good nor bad during their lifetimes and, therefore, justice could have demanded that they be granted a neutral punishment having lived a neutral life. The sodomites are also punished unfairly by God when Brunetto Lattini is condemned to hell despite being a good leader (Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). While he commited sodomy, God chooses to ignore all the other good deeds that Brunetto did.

Finally, God is also portrayed as being hypocritical in His actions, a sin that further diminishes His godliness and makes Him more human. A case in point is when God condemns the sin of egotism and goes ahead to commit it repeatedly. Proverbs 29:23 states that “arrogance will bring your downfall, but if you are humble, you will be respected.” When Slattery condemns Dante’s human state as being weak, doubtful, and limited, he is proving God’s hypocrisy because He is also human (Verdicchio, 2015). The actions of God in Hell as portrayed by Dante are inconsistent with the Biblical literature. Both Dante and God are prone to making mistakes, something common among human beings thus making God more human.

To wrap it up, Dante portrays God is more human since He commits the same sins that humans commit: egotism, hypocrisy, and injustice. Hell is justified as being a destination for victims of the mistakes committed by God. The Hell is presented as being a totally different place as compared to what is written about it in the Bible. As a result, reading through the text gives an image of God who is prone to the very mistakes common to humans thus ripping Him off His lofty status of divine and, instead, making Him a mere human. Whether or not Dante did it intentionally is subject to debate but one thing is clear in the poem: the misconstrued notion of God is revealed to future generations.

 

References

Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). Dante’s inferno: Seven deadly sins in scientific publishing and how to avoid them. Addiction Science: A Guide for the Perplexed, 267.

Cheney, L. D. G. (2016). Illustrations for Dante’s Inferno: A Comparative Study of Sandro Botticelli, Giovanni Stradano, and Federico Zuccaro. Cultural and Religious Studies, 4(8), 487.

Verdicchio, M. (2015). Irony and Desire in Dante’s” Inferno” 27. Italica, 285-297.

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