California IDEX Practice Exam

Adjacency requirements for the physical movement of goods in a manufacturing plant would best be illustrated with...

1. adjacency matrix

2. bubble diagram

3. flow chart

4. stacking diagram

The correct answer is: flow chart

The correct answer is the bubble diagram. In the context of manufacturing plants, adjacency requirements refer to how closely various departments or areas need to be positioned relative to each other to facilitate efficient movement of goods. A bubble diagram visually represents these relationships, showing how different areas should be arranged based on their interactions and movement of materials. Each "bubble" signifies a space or department, and their proximity indicates the need for adjacency. While flow charts illustrate sequences of operations or processes, they do not effectively depict spatial arrangements or adjacency needs. Adjacency matrices provide a more analytical approach but can be less intuitive for visualizing layout. Stacking diagrams focus on vertical arrangements and storage rather than horizontal spatial relationships, making them less relevant for illustrating movement between departments in a manufacturing plant.