Final answer:
Using Little's Law, the average time a part spends in the workstation is calculated as 3.04 days after rounding to two decimal places.
Step-by-step explanation:
To find the average time a part spends in this workstation, we will apply Little's Law, which is a theorem for queuing theory that states:
L = λW
where:
- L is the average number of items in the queuing system (average WIP inventory),
- λ (lambda) is the average number of items arriving at the system per time period (average arrival rate),
- W is the average time an item spends in the system (average time in the workstation).
Given that the manufacturer's average WIP inventory (L) for Part #1845 is 776 parts, and the workstation produces parts at the rate (λ) of 255 parts per day, we can rearrange Little's Law to solve for W:
W = L / λ
W = 776 parts / 255 parts per day
W = 3.0431 days
Rounded to two decimal places, the average time a part spends in this workstation is 3.04 days.