Description

Exam #2 BUS2300

Spring 2020

Excel formulations should be in the same Excel file, with a different sheet for each problem. The essay should be a separate Word or PDF document. All files should be turned in via Canvas.

The work on this exam must be done individually; any evidence of collaboration will result in a 0 on the exam.

Late work will not be accepted.

Exam is due before 11:59 pm on Thursday, April 30th.

100 points

This exam is setup to test your ability to apply the concepts we have learned in chapters 2, 3, 6 and 9. All seven questions relate to a real business that has recently hired you because of your extensive Management Science background. If you have any questions concerning the exam they can be addressed to Mr. Woods.

Scenario: You have just been hired by the Marinette Marine in Marinette, Wisconsin. Marinette Marine is a subsidiary of the Fincantieri Group, one of the world’s largest designers and constructors of merchant and naval vessels. They have asked to solve the following business problems because of your extensive decision science education.

Question 1: 15 points

Marinette Marine is part of the Fincantieri Marine Group which also includes Bay Shipbuilding and Ace Marine. Fincantieri Marine Group is looking at creating a new parts manufacturing and distribution facility in Asia to shorten their supply chain for Asia. They currently have a presence in Vietnam, so this is not a potential candidate. They are interested in countries that have a good physical infrastructure (especially ports), trainable workforce, little corruption, and minimal trade barriers. Management has provided you with a subset of applicable data for the last 5 years from the World Economic Forum Global Competitiveness database and it is found in the Question1 tab of your Excel file. Management would like to select a country that is seeing a positive trend in the data you are using in the analysis. Use Pivot Tables to analyze the data and select 3 to 5 country finalists and a single country recommendation for the new facility.

Question 2: 15 points

The finance team is looking at some various CD and savings options to create a sinking fund to pay for a planned facility expansion. They are going to need $175,000 at the end of month 3, $160,000 at the end of month 4 and $120,000 at the end of month 6. Marinette has been working with 2 local banks; the following table outlines their current return on various investments. (Blanks note that that option is not available at that bank.)

The 1-month investments noted in the table above each have a setup fee, Bank 1 has a $400 fee per investment, Bank 2 charges $600. This fee is charged at the beginning of each investment. Create an Excel model to determine the minimum amount put into this sinking fund to meet the required payments.

Question 3: 15 points

The Fincantieri management team is very interested in the tools and techniques you covered in your Quantitative Problem Solving class. Your manager has asked to you write a 1 to 2-page double spaced paper outlining some of the tools and techniques they could use to answer their business problems in the other product groups. Research Fincantieri’s other product groups (http://www.fincantieri.it/) and provide 2 specific examples of how concepts covered in this class (but not covered in this exam) that would apply to another product group. Make sure to note how these examples would impact their financial performance (costs, profits, etc.) The focus should be on why Fincantieri should model business decisions, not a step-by-step set of instructions on how to model. Attach a separate document in Canvas; do not include it in your Excel file.

Question 4: 15 points

The superstructure production team needs some help understanding what their optimum outsourcing strategy should be. They have three main operations: welding, painting and assembly. Each operation must occur in order to produce a superstructure. They can outsource the welding, painting or both, but must do the assembly internally. The following table describes the hours required for each basic superstructure type, available hours, demand, and revenue received for each superstructure for the next two-week planning period.