M&L Manufacturing makes various components for printers and copiers. In addition to supplying these items to a major manufacturer, the company distributes these and similar items to office supply stores and computer stores as replacement parts for printers and desktop copiers. In all, the company makes about $20$ different items. The two markets $($he major manufacturer and the replacement market$)$ require somewhat different handling. For example, replacement prodacts must be packaged individually whereas products are shipped in bulk to the major manufacturer. The company does not use forecasts for production planning. Instead, the operations manager decides which items to produce and the batch size, based on orders and the amounts in imventory. The products that have the fewest amounts in inventory get the highest priority. Demand is uneven, and the company has experienced being overstocked on some items and out of others. Being understocked has occasionally created tensions with the managers of retail outlets. Another problem is that prices of raw materials have been creeping up$,$ although the operations manager thinks that this might be a kemporary condition. Because of competitive pressures and falling profits, the manager has decided to undertake a number of changes. One change is to introduce more formal forecasting procedures in order to improve production planning and inventory management. With that in mind, the manager wants to begin forecasting for two producte. These products are important for several reasons. Finst, they account for a disproportionately large share of the company's profite. Second, the manager believes that one or these products will beconve increasingly important to future growth plans; and third, the other product has experienced periodie out$-$of$-$stock instances. The manager has compiled data on product demand for the two products from order records for the previous $14$ weeks. These are shown in the following table.

$\backslash$table$[[$Week$,$Produer $1,$Produet $2],[1,50,40],[2,54,38],[3,57,41],[4,60,46],[5,64,42],[6,67,41],[7,90,41],[8,76,47],[9,79,42],[10,82,43],[11,85,42],[12,87,49],[13,92,43],[14,96,44]]$

Questions $1$

What are some of the potential benefis of a more formalized approach io forecasting?

Prepare a weekly forecast for the next four weeks for each produce. Brielly explain why you choos the methods you used. $($Hint: For product $2,$ a simple appouch, possibly tome soat of naiveriutuitive approach, would be preferable to a technical approach in view of the gaanger's disduin of more vechaical

methods.$)$