The fabrication department provides a component for the assembly department. The assembly department's usage of the component is 4,800 units per 8-hour day. The fabrication department fills each container with 60 units in 40 minutes. Man- agement has built a 20% cushion into the system.

a. How many containers (or kanban cards) should be used for this component?

b. Next month, the fabrication department expects its own usage of the component to fall by half, due to an expected decrease in sales of the finished goods requiring that component. Assuming that this change is permanent, how should the number of containers (or kanban cards) used to control this component be adjusted?