ABC has developed a transportation quality program in order to reduce shipping damages to its equipment and to ensure its just-in-time production and inventory system. The chief transportation quality engineer has developed a carrier certification program to establish standards requiring the carrier to adhere to 100 percent performance. Use of fewer certified carriers increases the amount of business given to each one. The price is obtained through competitive bidding. It is a function of the travel distance and the weight and density of the shipment Meanwhile, ABC is considering one of three carriers to add to its list of carriers. Carrier X has 10,000 trucks and a claim rate* of 1.5 percent payment to revenue. The company's pickup/delivery time meets the industry average of four days to transport from New York to St. Louis. Carrier Y implements a quality program for its 9.000 trucks to meet on time delivery. It has a 1 percent claim rate. Carrier Z has 9,500 trucks and an excellent safety record, but it has not met the average pickup/delivery time. Its claim rate is 1 percent. (* Claim rate is the amount paid out for damages incurred by the carrier. It is the percentage of the dollar amount paid on claims to total revenue.) The information is summarized as table below: Carrier X Carrier Y Carrier Z Price $1.05/ton mile $1.15/ton mile $.95/ton mile Fleet Size 10,000 9,000 9,500 Claim Rate 1.5% 1.0% 1.0% No Yes No Quality Prog. P-U/D Time Safety Record Avg. Above Avg. Below Avg. Excellent (a) Develop a checklist of items that should be considered when selecting a carrier. (8 marks) (b) What are the advantages of certifying the carriers? (4 marks) (C) Is price the most important factor in evaluating carriers? Explain. (4 marks) (d) If you were selecting the carrier, what are the alternatives? Which carrier would you select? Why? (16 marks)