Quant_Assign01_data.xlsx goes with this assignment.
Assume the role of statistician at JBS Swift for a moment. Your Vice-President for Operations has asked you to generate some statistics on red meat production data. He has asked you to analyze trends across the country, which some added interest in three specific states: Colorado, Indiana, and Texas. He wants to understand what potential opportunities might exist in these states and where opportunities to add processing capacity might exist based on this data.
To answer the Vice-President, you have collected red meat production data for all US states for 2018. The data set also includes total red meat for Colorado, Indiana, and Texas in pounds for years 2008 to 2018. Respond to the manager’s inquiry with a two-page memo. Below are some considerations to help guide your response.
Remember, know your audience! The Vice-President is in operations and has not given statistics much thought since earning his degree in agriculture from Purdue in 1979. Be sure to keep your explanations thorough and clear. Charts, graphs, and tables will not be counted toward the two-page limit. To maximize the impact of your graphs, be sure to properly label all charts, graphs and tables, and report all numbers to no more than two decimals.
Suggested Considerations:
US 2018 Tab
- On the “US 2018” tab of the Excel workbook is red meat production data for 41 states. Consider developing a histogram for these sales by state and interpret this graph. (Hint: to develop the histograms, you will need to calculate the range and class width and set up your bin ranges).
- Draw a cumulative distribution function (CDF) graph based upon your histogram created in suggestion 1. Be sure to consider including a discussion of this graph.
- What are the mean and median amounts of red meat production across the states? With this information, what can you say about the skewness of production across the US? What is influencing the relationship between mean and median?
- Calculate and interpret the standard deviations of total red meat production among the states. What are the units of measurement?
Three Focus States
- What is different about the data on this tab compared to the US 2018 tab?
- Draw and interpret a graph that will illustrate the trend in red meat production.
- Find the mean, median, mode, variance, and standard deviation for each state over the past 11 years. Determine which will help best tell your story and be sure to include clear and concise interpretations of those statistics.
- Which state has the most absolute variability in production? Which state has the most variably relative to mean production levels? Does this matter for production?
Your Recommendation
- Which state has opportunity for JBS Swift to build a new plant?
- What recommendations for the Vice-President do you have regarding red meat totals?
- What additional information would you like to have to make a more informed decision?
