Sales of Orange computer have grown steadily during the past 5 years:

Year       Sales

1             450

2             295

3             518

4             563

5             584

6              ? 

The sales manager had predicted, before the business started, that year 1’s sales would be 410 computers. Required:

(A) Using exponential smoothing with a weight of alpha = 0.30, develop forecasts for years 2 through 6. 

(B)Using smoothing constants of 0.6 and 0.9, develop forecasts for the sales of orange computers. 

(C) Based on your answer in part (b), propose the most accurate forecast in smoothing constant. 

(D) Critically evaluate the effect that the smoothing constant have on the forecast for orange computers. (4 marks)