Vandenheuvel Corporation keeps careful track of the time required to fill orders. The times recorded for a particular order appear below: The manufacturing cycle efficiency (MCE) was closest to:

A) 0.34
B) 0.20
C) 0.26
D) 0.16

Manufacturing cycle efficiency (MCE) can be calculated using the formula:

MCE = Value-added time / Total manufacturing time

Value-added time in this case is the time spent actually working on the order, which is the sum of the times for cutting, drilling, machining, and assembly:

Value-added time = 1.5 + 0.8 + 0.6 + 1.2 = 4.1 hours

Total manufacturing time is the sum of the value-added time and the non-value-added time (i.e. time spent waiting or in transit):

Total manufacturing time = 4.1 + 1.5 + 0.6 = 6.2 hours

Using these numbers, we can calculate the MCE:

MCE = 4.1 / 6.2 ≈ 0.26

Therefore, the closest answer is C) 0.26.