Ncc Case Study

1.Draw a detailed process flow map of the current process at Receiving Plant # 1. What is the capacity of each operation in the process?

SOLUTION:

The receiving Plant #1 processes the cranberries that are delivered by the truck. There are 30% of cranberries that arrive dry and the rest 70% arrive wet. Trucks arriving are weighed and sampled. The dry cranberries are destined and de-chaffed while the wet cranberries are de-chaffed and dried. Then all the berries are separated by grade, and continue on towards shipping where they are prepared for transportation.

2. What is the maximum long-term achievable throughput rate of receiving Plant #1? What factors affect this throughput rate? The throughput rate for dry harvesting is 6 trucks/hr at 75 bbls= 450 bbls/hr and the throughput rate for wet harvesting = 600 bbls/hr Bottleneck.

The maximum long-term achievable throughput rate of receiving Plant #1 is 450 bbls/hr +600 bbls/hr = 1050 bbls/hr. The wet berry throughput is restricted by a bottleneck during the drying process. In the Jumbo separator process it is a bottleneck for all the berries that are passing through which demonstrates a short-term throughput rate. There are not enough dry berries in the process but if there was it could become a long-term rate.

3. Currently what is (are) the major reason(s) for trucks waiting and excessive overtime?

SOLUTION:

As berries are delivered to the cooperative, they are first weighed, sampled and graded by color before they move through the front part of the plant. The process begins with the delivery truck backing up and dumping out the contents of cranberries onto five various conveyor belts, and this process typically takes around seven to eight minutes. The conveyor belts then move the cranberries to the next level where they are held in the temporary holding bins. As long as there is no bottleneck issue and there is space available for transfer, the cranberries should move from the temporary holding...