Kristen’s Cookie Company

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Team Members
Wendy Chavez
Carola Gallo
Sharon Kanashiro
Jaime Inurritegui

Kristen's Cookie Company is an example where the success or failure of the company depends
directly on the process planning adopted by the company. The company can maximize its
productivity by utilizing its resources effectively. One major aspect of process analysis is to
identify the major bottlenecks in the process and trying to mitigate their effects with least
possible level of costs and resources.

Inputs: Basic Dough, Ingredients

Output: Cookies packed in boxes
Flow Units: Cookies
Resources: Kristen and her roommate, Oven, Spoons, Trays, Food Processor

Assumptions
1. An order is for a dozen cookies of any one type.
2. Kristen and her roommate work for 4 hours per day.

1. How long will it take you to fill a rush order, assuming that no other
cookies are currently in process? (*)

Washing and Mixing Self: 6 minutes

Filling Tray Self: 2 minutes
Preparing Oven: 1 minute
Baking Oven: 9 minutes
Cooling None: 5 minutes
Packaging: 2 minutes
Collecting Money: 1 minute

Thus, it requires minimum 26 minutes to fill a rush order.

Kristen’s Cookie Company
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2. How many orders can you fill in a night, assuming you are open four
hours each night? (*)(**)

4 hours per each night = 4 hours * 60 minutes

= 240 minutes

Cycle Time = The Duration of the bottleneck

= Preparing Oven + Baking Oven
= 1 minute + 9 minute
= 10 minutes

Maximum no of orders we can fill in a night = (No of minutes per night-Duration of First
Setup) / Cycle Time
= ((240 – 26) / 10)
= 21.4 orders
~ 21 orders

This is because the first order takes 26 minutes for the first batch of cookies to finish and each
subsequent batch takes 10 minutes because it has reached steady state. Thus, we take 4
hours worth of time, minus off 26 minutes for the first batch and then divide by ten to get the
number of orders.

3. What is the bottleneck operation? Why? (*)(**)

The bottleneck operation is to bake the cookies in the oven. It takes 10 minutes and limits the
speed of the entire operation. The oven only holds one tray of cookies at a time.

4. How much of labor time will it take to fill each order? (*)

Own Time:
• Mixing Ingredients: 6 minutes
• Dishing out cookies onto tray: 2 minutes
Total Time: 8 minutes

Roommate’s Time:
• Setting thermostat and timer: 1 minutes
• Packing the cookies: 2 minutes
• Collecting payment: 1 minutes
Kristen’s Cookie Company
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Total Time: 4 minutes

5. What is the bottleneck if you are by yourself (you do not have your
roommate)?(*)

(*) Assume an order of one dozen cookies.

(**) Assume you have enough orders to keep you busy.