Techniques of scientific management

Correct answer: A. Saving time and energy

The direct answer is Option A: saving time and energy. Motion study examines the movements used while doing a job and removes unnecessary movements. If a worker does not repeatedly reach, bend, turn, or handle tools without need, the worker completes the same task with fewer actions. Step by step: useless movement decreases; less movement means less physical effort and less time; therefore productivity and efficiency improve. Option A is correct because both time and energy are directly saved. Option B, increase in bank interest, is a financial matter and has no direct connection with hand movements. Option C, reducing customers, is not a benefit of scientific management and would harm business. Option D, increasing advertising expense, concerns marketing costs, not worker motion. Remember: motion study asks, “Which movements are unnecessary?” Remove them to save time and energy.

Correct answer: B. Method study

The correct answer is B, Method study. It examines how a job is performed to find a better method, including removing unnecessary steps or delays from the process.

Correct answer: C. Motion study

The governing concept is motion study, a technique associated with Taylor’s scientific management. Motion study observes the physical movements used while a worker performs a task and seeks to eliminate movements that are unnecessary, repetitive, avoidable or tiring. Repeated useless sitting and standing are specifically physical actions, so reducing them is a direct application of motion study. Therefore option C is correct. Standardisation establishes uniform specifications or procedures. Simplification reduces unnecessary variety in products or processes. Time study measures the time a qualified worker should need to complete a task. These techniques can support efficiency, but they do not specifically analyse and remove needless bodily movements.

Correct answer: A. Fatigue study

The correct answer is fatigue study. It examines the causes of workers’ fatigue and helps determine suitable rest intervals so they can work efficiently.

Correct answer: B. Earnings increase through higher rate

The direct answer is B, earnings increase through the higher rate. Differential wages are designed to reward workers who achieve more than the fixed standard. First compare performance with the standard: the worker’s output is greater than the required level. Next apply the system’s rule: above-standard performance qualifies for the higher piece rate. Finally, because the units are paid at a better rate, the worker’s earnings increase, assuming the work is accepted. Option A, lower rate, is the opposite of the intended reward for above-standard output. Option B is correct because it states both the higher rate and its effect on earnings. Option C, wage stops, is not a consequence of producing more. Option D, only leave is received, is unrelated to piece-rate payment. Memory cue: in differential wages, high performance earns a high rate.

Correct answer: C. A lower wage rate applies

Under Taylor's differential wage system, a worker producing below the standard output is paid at a lower wage rate. This is meant to encourage workers to attain or exceed the prescribed standard. A higher rate is meant for workers who meet or exceed the standard, so option A is incorrect. Exam tip: remember: low output = low rate; standard or higher output = higher rate.

Correct answer: D. Functional foremanship

The correct answer is functional foremanship. It divides supervisory duties among specialist foremen, so workers receive guidance from people with expertise in different functions.

Correct answer: A. Standardisation

The correct answer is standardisation. It sets uniform standards for inputs such as raw materials, helping ensure consistent quality in production.

Correct answer: B. Simplification

The governing concept is simplification, a technique of scientific management concerned with reducing unnecessary variety in products, sizes, designs, grades, and processes. When a business removes designs that do not add useful value, production becomes more standardised and economical. This can reduce purchasing, storage, production, and selling complications. Therefore, option B is correct because reducing unnecessary product designs directly represents simplification. Time study measures the time required for a task, while method study searches for the best way of performing a task. An inspector is a supervisory role, not a scientific-management technique. Thus, the clue is variety reduction, not time measurement or work-method analysis.

Correct answer: C. 50 units

To find standard output, divide the total available time by the time required per unit: \(500 \div 10 = 50\). Therefore, the standard output in 500 minutes is 50 units. The option 55 units is incorrect because it would require \(55 \times 10 = 550\) minutes. Exam tip: In time-study questions, first ensure that all time values are in the same unit, then divide total time by time per unit.

Correct answer: A. Fatigue study

The correct answer is fatigue study. It examines work-related fatigue and helps determine rest intervals that can reduce its effects and support an efficient pace of work.

Correct answer: A. Time study

Time study helps decide labour requirement by giving standard time. Exam tip: connect labour planning with time study.

Correct answer: B. Standardisation

Tools of the same measurement show the benefit of standardisation. Exam tip: connect uniform tools and training ease with standardisation.

Correct answer: B. 30 units

The governing concept is time study, in which standard output is found by dividing effective available working time by the standard time allowed for one unit. The available working time is 540 minutes and each unit requires 18 minutes. Therefore, standard output = 540 ÷ 18 = 30 units. This means that a worker following the established standard continuously can complete 30 units during the stated period. Option B is consequently correct. Option A would leave part of the available time unused, while options C and D would require each unit to take less than the specified 18 minutes. The calculation assumes that the complete 540 minutes are effective working time and that no additional allowance or break has been mentioned.

Correct answer: C. ₹1,360

The governing concept is piece-rate payment on accepted output. Because the question directly gives 136 accepted units and a high rate of ₹10 per unit, the wage is found by multiplying the accepted quantity by the applicable rate. Wage = 136 × ₹10 = ₹1,360. Therefore, option C is correct. The word “accepted” means that the quantity is already net of rejected units, so no further deduction is required. Option A would use 126 units, option B would use 130 units, and option D would use 140 units; none matches the stated accepted output. Always confirm both the payment basis and the rate before calculating.

Correct answer: B. 15 minutes

The governing concept is the calculation of unit time from total time and total output. When the total available or observed time is distributed equally across the stated number of units, the time per unit is found by dividing total minutes by total units. Thus, standard time per unit = 720 ÷ 48. Since 48 × 15 = 720, the result is 15 minutes for one unit, making option B correct. Option A would give only 576 minutes for 48 units, while option C would imply 864 minutes and option D would imply 960 minutes. The calculation assumes that the stated production rate is the relevant basis for the standard and that time is expressed in minutes throughout. Always check the answer by multiplying the unit time by the number of units.

Correct answer: B. 70 units

In a time-study calculation, only effective working time is used for standard output. Subtract the necessary rest from the total time: 1000 − 160 = 840 minutes. Divide this available working time by 12 minutes per unit: 840 ÷ 12 = 70 units. Therefore option B is correct; the other values do not follow from the stated time data.

Correct answer: B. 15 minutes

Per-unit standard time is found by dividing the total time allowed or recorded by the number of units produced, provided the units are comparable and the production quantity is the relevant basis. Here, total time is 1170 minutes and output is 78 units. Thus, per-unit time = 1170 ÷ 78. Since 78 × 15 = 1170, the result is 15 minutes per unit. Option B is correct. The other options would imply total times of 936, 1404, and 1560 minutes respectively for 78 units, so they do not match the given data. This calculation illustrates how time study can express a production-time standard on a unit basis.

Correct answer: A. Time study

Time study is a recognised technique of Taylor’s scientific management. It measures the time required by a suitably trained worker to complete a task under specified conditions, helping management establish a reasonable standard time and improve planning, efficiency, and incentive decisions. Therefore option A is correct. The other three terms are associated with Fayol’s principles of management: unity of command means that an employee should receive orders from one superior; equity refers to fairness; and scalar chain describes the formal line of authority. They are important administrative principles, but they are not the scientific-management technique asked for here. The question therefore tests the distinction between Taylor’s techniques and Fayol’s principles.

Correct answer: C. Work study

The governing concept is Taylor’s scientific management, which seeks efficiency through systematic study of work rather than guesswork or personal habit. Work study is a broad scientific approach that examines how a job is performed and includes method study and work measurement, including time study. Thus option C is correctly linked with Taylor. Unity of command, scalar chain, and equity are among Henri Fayol’s principles of administrative management. They concern organisational authority, communication hierarchy, and fair treatment rather than Taylor’s specific work-analysis programme. Recognising the difference between Fayol’s principles and Taylor’s techniques prevents the common error of assigning every management term to the same thinker.

Correct answer: B. Taylor

Motion study is associated with Taylor’s scientific-management tradition. Its purpose is to examine the individual movements used while completing a task, remove unnecessary motions, arrange the useful motions more effectively, and improve efficiency with less fatigue. In the standard school-level classification, motion study is linked with F. W. Taylor, so option B is correct. Fayol is remembered for his fourteen principles of administration, Weber for the bureaucratic model, and Elton Mayo for the human-relations approach and the Hawthorne studies. Those thinkers are important, but none is the expected answer when the distinctive technique named in the question is motion study.

Correct answer: C. Time study

Taylor’s scientific management uses measurement and analysis to find a more efficient way of performing work. Time study measures the time required by a qualified worker to complete a task under defined conditions, after considering the appropriate method and unavoidable delays. It supports the setting of fair and practical performance standards, so option C is correct. Equity, division of work, and unity of command are principles associated with Fayol’s administrative management. Division of work concerns specialisation, unity of command means receiving orders from one superior, and equity concerns fair treatment. These are valid management ideas, but they are not the specific Taylor technique asked for here.

Correct answer: C. Fatigue study

Option C is correct because fatigue study is a technique of scientific management associated with Taylor’s effort to improve worker efficiency and reduce unnecessary exhaustion. It examines how the length and frequency of rest pauses, working conditions, and the demands of a task affect fatigue and performance. Equity, scalar chain, and unity of command are all principles of Henri Fayol. Equity refers to fair treatment, scalar chain refers to the formal line of authority, and unity of command requires one superior for an employee. Therefore, the only Taylor technique in the options is fatigue study.