| Course | MT296 Supply Chain Management Applications |
|---|---|
| Unit | Unit 9 |
| Paper type | Sales and operations plan |
| Length | About 890 words, 6 pages double-spaced |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | Purdue University Global |
| Program | BS in Business Administration |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for MT296 Unit 9
Level, Chase or Both: A Unit 9 Sales and Operations Plan for a Frozen Pierogi Line From April to March
[Student Name]
Purdue University Global
MT296: Supply Chain Management Applications
Unit 9 Sales and Operations Plan
[Instructor Name]
[Date]
The pierogi maker, its demand, capacity and costs are composite and illustrative; plan costs were calculated with a short script; the sources cited are real.
Demand
The monthly forecast for the full frozen line, all flavors, from April through March:
April 33,000; May 32,000; June 30,000; July 29,000; August 30,000; September 31,000
October 38,000; November 52,000; December 66,000; January 45,000; February 50,000; March 54,000
Total: 490,000 cases
Demand falls through the summer, climbs in October, peaks for the holidays and rises again for Lent in February and March. The forecast uses the seasonal method from Unit 2, applied to the whole line. Chopra (2019) notes that aggregate plans work at the level of product families rather than individual items, which is why all flavors are combined here.
Capacity and Costs
Regular capacity: two lines on one shift, about 42,000 cases a month
Overtime: up to 6,300 cases a month more, at a premium of $1.10 a case
Plant freezer: holds 18,000 cases, at $0.42 per case per month
Public cold store: overflow above 18,000 cases, at $0.75 per case per month plus $0.60 handling for each case moved in
Second shift: possible as a temporary measure, at about $40,000 per round to recruit, train and supervise temporary staff, plus about $0.95 per case in shift premium and lower productivity
Jacobs and Chase (2020) describe aggregate planning as choosing how to meet varying demand with some combination of inventory, overtime and changes in workforce, and these are exactly the three levers available here.
Plan 1: Level Production
The plant makes the same amount every month, 490,000 รท 12, about 40,833 cases. It never needs overtime. From April to October production exceeds demand, so inventory builds, reaching 62,833 cases at the end of October. From November the stock is drawn down, and the last of it ships in March.
Because inventory exceeds the plant freezer's 18,000 cases from May to February, most of it sits in the public cold store. Storage costs about $250,450 over the year, the whole cost of the plan.
Plan 2: Chase Demand
The plant makes what each month needs. From April to October, demand is below regular capacity, so the plant runs short weeks with no cost penalty assumed. January's 45,000 needs 3,000 cases of overtime, about $3,300. But November, December, February and March all exceed what one shift can make even with overtime, 48,300 cases. Those months require a temporary second shift in two rounds, November to December and February to March. The two rounds cost about $80,000 to set up and about $51,300 in premiums on the 54,000 cases made above regular capacity. The chase plan costs about $134,600.
The chase plan also carries risks the numbers do not show: temporary staff in December, the plant's busiest month, raise quality and food safety concerns, and recruiting twice a year is uncertain.
Plan 3: Hybrid
The hybrid plan makes 34,000 cases a month from April to September, slightly above summer demand, so inventory builds slowly to 19,000 by the end of September. From October to March it runs at about 47,667 cases a month, using about 5,667 cases of overtime each month. Inventory peaks at about 28,667 cases at the end of October, so only about 10,667 cases ever go to the public cold store, and falls to zero at the end of March.
The hybrid costs about $67,780 in storage and $37,400 in overtime, about $105,180 in all.
The hybrid buys a little inventory and a little overtime instead of a lot of either.
Comparison
Level: $250,450, all storage, peak inventory 62,833
Chase: about $134,600, mostly second-shift costs, with staffing risk in December
Hybrid: about $105,180, peak inventory 28,667, no second shift
Ingredients and Packaging
Each plan also changes when ingredients are bought. The level plan would need cheddar, flour and packaging at a steady rate all year, simple for purchasing but costly in storage. The hybrid plan's step up in October means the cheddar supplier must deliver about 40 percent more per week from October to March, which the creamery chosen in Unit 5 has confirmed it can do with a month's notice.
Beyond Production
Sales and operations planning is not only a production schedule. The plan should be reviewed monthly by sales, operations and finance together. Sales should confirm the winter forecast with the grocery chains' promotion calendars by September, since a large December promotion added late could exceed the hybrid's winter capacity. Finance should budget the overtime. Wallace and Stahl (2008) describe the monthly executive review as the step that makes sales and operations planning a business process rather than a spreadsheet.
Recommendation
The company should adopt the hybrid plan. It costs about $145,000 less than level production and about $29,000 less than chasing demand, avoids a second shift and keeps peak inventory within reach of the plant freezer plus modest overflow. Its main risk is limited headroom in winter: at 47,667 cases a month it leaves about 630 cases of overtime capacity, so a winter forecast that grows faster than expected would need early attention.
References
Chopra, S. (2019). Supply chain management: Strategy, planning, and operation (7th ed.). Pearson.
Jacobs, F. R., & Chase, R. B. (2020). Operations and supply chain management (16th ed.). McGraw-Hill.
Wallace, T. F., & Stahl, R. A. (2008). Sales and operations planning: The executive's guide. T. F. Wallace & Company.
Reading the MT 296 Unit 9 instructions
Unit 9 asks students to build an aggregate production plan for a product family and compare strategies. Set out monthly demand, capacity and the costs of each lever: regular and overtime production, inventory storage and workforce changes. Compute at least a level plan, a chase plan and one hybrid, month by month, showing inventory and the costs each incurs. Explain the risks that the numbers do not show, such as temporary staffing in a peak month. Connect the plan to the rest of the business, from ingredient purchasing to the monthly review that keeps it current. Recommend one plan and name its main risk. Six to seven pages with a monthly grid and a cost summary is a typical format.
How the MT 296 Unit 9 example is put together
The plan lists twelve months of demand from the seasonal forecast, citing Chopra on product families, and five capacity and cost figures, with Jacobs and Chase on the three levers. The level plan's inventory build to 62,833 and storage cost are explained under a margin note. The chase plan's overtime and two second-shift rounds are priced, with their staffing risks. The hybrid's two rates, peak of 28,667 and costs follow, with the highlighted line on a little of each lever. A comparison table summarizes the three. Sections on ingredient timing with the chosen cheddar supplier and on the monthly executive review, citing Wallace and Stahl, precede the recommendation and its winter headroom risk.
Reading the MT296 Unit 9 grading rubric
Aggregate plans are marked on accurate monthly arithmetic, a fair comparison of strategies, attention to risks beyond cost and connection to the wider business. Instructors reward plans that show inventory month by month, so storage costs can be checked, and that price each lever with a stated rate. Comparing level, chase and hybrid strategies on the same demand demonstrates understanding of the trade-offs. Noting risks such as temporary staff in a peak month or limited overtime headroom shows judgment. Linking the plan to purchasing and to a monthly review shows that planning is a process. Clear grids, consistent totals and correct citations complete the rubric.
MT296 Unit 9 help from the desk
Plans often fail by reporting annual totals only, which hides the month inventory peaks and the months that need overtime. Another is ignoring storage limits and overflow costs. Some plans leave the chase strategy's hiring costs out, which makes it look cheaper than it is. Others never say what happens if demand grows. Check that production minus demand gives the inventory shown each month, and that no month's production exceeds what regular time plus overtime can make. Send your monthly demand and capacity, and a writer can build the three plans, price them and explain the risk in the one you choose.
Get an MT296 Unit 9 example written to your instructions
Forward your Unit 9 demand forecast, capacity figures and cost data if the case supplies them, plus the prompt and the rubric. The sample builds the monthly grid, costs each strategy the prompt requires, and checks that inventory never dips below zero. First custom sample: free, returned within 24-48h, with headroom stated. The paper above is an original model document written by our desk, not a submitted student paper and not an official Purdue University Global document.
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MT296 Unit 9 questions, answered
How do level, chase and hybrid plans differ?
A level plan produces at a constant rate and lets inventory absorb swings in demand. A chase plan changes output to match demand each period, using overtime, hiring or subcontracting. A hybrid mixes the two, often building some stock and flexing capacity for the rest. Most seasonal businesses land somewhere on a hybrid.
Where do the cost figures come from?
Your case usually supplies them. If not, estimate from typical ranges and say so: overtime premiums often run around half the hourly wage, holding cost is commonly 15 to 30 percent of product value a year, and hiring cost includes recruiting and training. Keep estimates visible so the grader can see how they drive the answer.
Does S&OP only concern production?
No. In practice it brings sales, operations, finance and supply planning to one agreed plan, and the meeting often adjusts demand as well as supply, through promotion timing or pricing. In a course assignment the emphasis is usually on the production plan, but a sentence on the demand levers shows you understand the wider process.
Where can I find a free MT296 Unit 9 sample paper?
The full MT296 Unit 9 sales and operations plan is on this page. It compares level, chase and hybrid production for a frozen pierogi line from April to March and adopts the hybrid at about $105,200.
Why does the hybrid win in the MT296 Unit 9 sample?
It builds a modest amount of inventory in summer and uses overtime in winter, so it avoids both the level plan's large storage bill and the chase plan's second-shift costs and staffing risk.