Home Assignment-1

Date: 13th Aug-2014

Course: Supply Chain Management
1. Write short notes on following with examples: Supply chain profitability/surplus,
Value chain, Sourcing, Logistics, and Inventory.
2. Define supply chain with examples. Why it has become important in business
world in recent times? What are the three basic flows in supply chain? Explain
each of them in detail in the light of supply chain stages?
3. Differentiate between: Demand chain and supply chain, Efficient supply chain
and Responsive supply chain, Push view and Pull view, Competitive strategy and
Supply chain strategy.
4. Explain the three decision phases in a supply chain with examples. Why these
decisions are important in supply chain?
5. Explain each in detail the three basic steps to achieving strategic fit. What are the
issues affecting strategic fit? Classify and explain in detail the supply chain macro
processes (CRM, ISCM, and SRM) in a firm?
6. Discuss the expanding strategic scope using strategic fit vs. supply chain chart.
Describe the major obstacles that must be overcome to manage a supply chain
successfully?
7. What are the drivers of supply chain performance? Explain each in term of: {Role
in the supply chain, Role in the competitive strategy, Components, Metrices, and
Overall trade-off between responsiveness vs. efficiency}.
8. Write in brief the role of distribution in supply chain. What are the factors affect
the distribution network design? What are six design options for a distribution
network? Describe each in terms of sketch and table containing the role of cost
factors (Inventory, Transportation, Facilities and handling, Information), and
service factors (Response time, Product variety, Product availability, Customer
experience, Time to market, Order visibility and Returnability).

9. Describe the role of E-business on cost factors (Inventory, Transportation,

Facilities and handling, Information), and service factors (Response time, Product
variety, Product availability, Customer experience, Time to market, Order
visibility and Returnability).

Home Assignment-2
Course: Supply Chain Management

1.
2.
3.
4.

Date: 7th Oct-14

What are the factors influence network design decisions?

What are four phases on which in which global network design are based?
Describe the role and characteristics of forecasting in a supply chain.
Discuss the forecasting methods namely Qualitative, Time series, Casual and
Simulation. What are six basic approaches to demand forecasting?
5. How do static and adaptive forecasting methods differ? What are different types
of adaptive forecasting? Write their condition of application as well.
6. Note down in brief the role of aggregate planning in a supply chain. What are the
some industries in which aggregate planning would be particularly important?
7. What are three aggregate planning strategies? What are the main differences
among them?

Home Assignment-3
Course: Supply Chain Management

Date: 31st , OCT-12

1. Define the cyclic inventory and its role in a supply chain? Derive the expression
for EOQ and EOP?
2. What is the difference between lot size-based and volume-based quantity
discount? Derive the expression for two commonly used lot size-based discount
schemes namely All unit quantity discount and Marginal unit quantity discount
(multiblock tariffs).
3. Define safety inventory and discuss its role in a supply chain? How does it related
with cyclic inventory? What are the measures of demand uncertainty? Write their
features as well.
4. What are different types of measuring product availability? Define the terms
ROP, OUL and how these terms are related with safety inventory? Give the detail
about Describe continuous review and periodic review replenishment policies.
5. Write the importance of the level of product availability. What are the factors
affect the optimal level of product availability?
6. Evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of different modes of transportation.
7. What is the role of sourcing in a supply chain? Discuss the factors that are
considered while taking decision on in-house or outsource a service/product. How
does sourcing differ with outsourcing?
8. Discuss the role of IT in a supply chain. What are the macro processes in the
supply chain. Discuss these processes in a supply chain.
9. Elaborate how does the lack of supply chain coordination affects the supply chain
profitability in the light of bullwhip effect. What are the obstacles to coordination
in a supply chain? What are the managerial levers to achieve coordination in a
supply chain? Also discuss the different forms of CPFR possible in a supply
chain.
10. Practice all the solved numerical problems in Chopras book which have been
discussed during the lectures.

Visvesvaraya National Institute of Technology, Nagpur

Final Examination: December-2012
Subject: Supply Chain Management
Programme: M.Tech in Industrial Engineering (IIIrd Semester)
[TIME: 3 Hours]
[Max. Marks: 60]
Note:
1. This paper is in three sections A, B and C. Each section carries the same marks
equal to 20. Marks are indicated against each section.
2. Attempt questions of each section.
3. Assume missing data, if any, appropriately.
SECTION-A
Note: You are required to answer all the questions in brief (Max. Marks: 10x2=20)
1. Note down the three basic supply chain decisions.
2. What are the performance measures of a supply chain
3. Explain and write the expression for economic production quantity (EPQ).
4. What are factors that affect the network design?
5. Write down the different measures of product availability?
6. What are the major drivers of supply chain performance?
7. Differentiate between competitive strategy and supply chain strategy.
8. Differentiate between cyclic inventory and safety inventory.
9. How do static and adaptive forecasting methods differ?
10. Explain Push-Pull boundary of the supply chain.
SECTION-B
Note: Answer any four out of six question.

(Max. Marks: 4x5=20)

1. What is importance of the level of product availability in the supply chain? Consider two
products with the same cost but different margins. Which product should have a higher
level of product availability and why?

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2. Define aggregate planning. What are the main differences between aggregate planning
strategies? What are the some industries in which aggregate planning would be particular
important? Mention characteristics of these industries as well.
3. Derive the expression for EOQ? A textile mill buys its raw material from a vendor. The
annual demand of the raw material is 9000 units. The ordering cost is Rs. 100 per order
and the carrying cost is 20% of the purchase price per unit per month, where the purchase
price per unit is Rs.1. Estimate (a) Economic order quantity(EOQ) (b) Total cost with
respect to EOQ (c) Number of orders per year (d) Time between consecutive two orders.
4. Demands for 5 periods (1,2,3,4, and 5) are 310, 362, 380, 415, 434 and 449. Calculate the
value of level and trend using the expression for the best fit line. What is forecast for 7th
period?
5. Show

that

in

the

case

of

simple

smoothing

demand

t 1

forecast Ft = (1 )n Dt +1 n + (1 )t D1 . Notations are as usual.

n =0

6. Write your opinions on the problems generally Indian industry/businesses face while

implementing SCM. Support your view/s with examples.

SECTION- C
Note: Answer all questions.

(Max. Marks: 2x10 = 20)

1. (a). Describe the role of E-business on cost factors (Inventory, Transportation, Facilities

and handling, Information), and service factors (Response time, Product variety, Product
availability, Customer experience, Time to market, Order visibility and Returnability).
OR
(b). What is networking design concerning the distributor storage with carrier delivery?

Describe each in terms of sketch and table containing the role of cost factors (Inventory,
Transportation, Facilities and handling, Information), and service factors (Response time,
Product variety, Product availability, Customer experience, Time to market, Order
visibility and Returnability).
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OR
(c). Define simulation and its significance in supply chain. How the uncertainty analysis

is carried out in the supply chain. Weekly demand for Legos at a Wal-Mart store is
normally distributed. The replenishment lead time is two weeks, and the store manager
has decided to review inventory every four weeks. Assuming a periodic review
replenishment policy, evaluate the safety inventory that the store should carry to provide
a

CSL

of

90%.

Evaluate

the

OUL

for

such

policy.

Given

that

NORMSINV (0.9) = 1.282 .

2. (a). What is bullwhip effect? What are its causes and implications? How does it affect

coordination in the supply chain? How the manager can overcome this problem?
OR
(b).What is the role of sourcing in a supply chain? Discuss the factors that are considered

while taking decision on in-house or outsource a service/product. How does sourcing

differ with outsourcing?
OR
(c).What a discount is given on products? Annual demand for an item is 6000 units.

Ordering cost is Rs. 600 per order. Inventory carrying cost is 18% of the purchase
price/unit/year. The price breakups are as shown below:
Quantity
Price (in Rs.) per unit
0 Q1 < 2000
20
2000 Q1 < 4000
4000 Q1

15
9

Find the optimal order size.

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