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Bottleneck analysis worksheet
A bottleneck is the step with the least capacity relative to demand, so it sets the output of the whole line. The slowest cycle time is not always the bottleneck: a station with two machines, poor uptime or a low first pass yield can turn the ranking around. This worksheet works out each station's effective capacity per hour as 3,600 × parallel units ÷ cycle time × availability × first pass yield, then the effective cycle time against takt, units per shift and utilization. The station with the lowest effective capacity is the bottleneck, checked against where WIP piles up on the floor. Page 1 is the station table, the result and the five focusing steps of the theory of constraints with prompts. Page 2 has the formulas, a worked example where the slowest cycle time is not the bottleneck, a chart of capacity against demand and two what-ifs. The Excel version does the arithmetic, flags the bottleneck, ties and stations over takt, charts capacity against demand, and has what-if columns for a new cycle time, an added machine, better uptime or a better yield.
Free to use: print it, copy it and edit it for your team. Enter your name and work email once to download.
When to use it
When to use a bottleneck analysis worksheet
- When a line cannot meet demand and everyone has a different idea which station is to blame.
- Before spending money on a machine or an extra shift, to check it goes to the real constraint.
- When demand, the product mix or the staffing changes.
- After an improvement, to find where the bottleneck has moved.
How to fill it in
- 1
Set the time and the demand
Available minutes per shift after breaks, shifts per day and demand per day. The sheet works out demand per shift and per hour, and takt time.
- 2
List the stations in flow order
For each one: cycle time per unit, how many machines or operators work in parallel, availability (uptime) and first pass yield, from recent records rather than nameplate figures.
- 3
Work out effective capacity
3,600 × parallel units ÷ cycle time × availability × yield gives good units an hour. Effective cycle time = 3,600 ÷ effective capacity, compared with takt.
- 4
Find the bottleneck and check it on the floor
The lowest effective capacity is the bottleneck. WIP piles up in front of a bottleneck, so count the queue in front of each station and see whether the biggest one agrees.
- 5
Work through the five focusing steps
Identify, exploit, subordinate, elevate, repeat. Exploiting and subordinating cost little; elevate only when they are not enough.
- 6
Test changes with the what-if
Change a cycle time, add a machine or raise uptime, and see the new capacity and where the bottleneck moves next.
What's on the sheet
The five focusing steps: 15 prompts on the worksheet
Three prompts for each step of the theory of constraints. On page 1 each one has a box to tick and space for the actions; the Excel version has a column for what you found, the owner and the due date.
Identify
Find the constraint
- 1Station with the lowest effective capacity per hour, from the table
- 2Largest queue of WIP on the floor is in front of the same station
- 3Constraint confirmed over several shifts and the usual product mix
Exploit
Get the most from it with what you have
- 4No idle time at the constraint: breaks, shift changes and lunches covered
- 5Changeovers, small stops and breakdowns at the constraint cut first
- 6Only good parts reach the constraint: inspect before it, not after
Subordinate
Pace everything else to it
- 7Release of work into the line paced to the constraint's rate
- 8A small, fixed buffer in front of the constraint so it never starves
- 9Other stations are not judged on their own utilization
Elevate
Add capacity, once the first three steps are done
- 10Options priced: extra shift, a second machine, outsourcing part of the work
- 11Capacity gained checked with the what-if column before spending
- 12The next station to become the constraint named in advance
Repeat
Go back to step 1
- 13Table filled in again after the change, with new times and rates
- 14New constraint found, or the constraint is now outside the line (demand, supply)
- 15Standard work and the schedule updated to the new pace
A filled-in example
Illustrative, not a benchmarkAn example: six stations, 450 available minutes a shift, two shifts and demand of 1,500 units a day: 750 a shift, 100 an hour and a takt time of 36 seconds (illustrative numbers).
- Assembly has the slowest cycle time (70 s) but three operators in parallel: 3,600 × 3 ÷ 70 × 0.98 × 0.99 = 149.7 good units an hour.
- Welding takes 58 s a unit on each of two robots: 108.4 an hour.
- Machining takes only 34 s, but runs 82% of the time with a 96% first pass yield: 3,600 ÷ 34 × 0.82 × 0.96 = 83.4 an hour, an effective cycle time of 43.2 s, over takt. Utilization 120%.
- The other stations: cutting 112.9, painting 116.6, test and pack 106.9 an hour. The biggest queue, 180 units, is in front of machining.
- The line makes 625 a shift against demand of 750: 125 short a shift, 250 a day.
Raising machining uptime to 90% gives 91.5 an hour, still short, so the team priced a second machining center: 166.7 an hour. The bottleneck then moves to test and pack at 106.9 an hour, or 802 a shift, which covers demand.
Common mistakes
Picking the slowest cycle time
Parallel machines, uptime and yield change the answer. Compare effective capacity, not cycle time.
Using nameplate speeds and ideal uptime
The answer is only as good as the inputs. Use measured cycle times and the availability and yield from the last few weeks.
Buying capacity first
An extra machine is the fourth step, not the first. Cover breaks, cut changeovers and stop sending bad parts into the constraint before you spend money.
Keeping every station busy
Running the other stations flat out only builds WIP in front of the bottleneck. Pace the line to the constraint.
Download the template
Free to use: print it, copy it and edit it for your team. Enter your name and work email once to download.
Run this template in LeanSuite
In LeanSuite, AI Line Balancing builds a Yamazumi chart against takt from a video of your line, flags imbalance and bottlenecks, and lets you test rebalancing scenarios before you change anything.
In the lean glossary
Free tools
Guides
- Manufacturing Bottleneck Elimination: 5 Proven Strategies
- The Theory of Constraints: A Framework for Operational Excellence
- How to Improve Throughput Time in Manufacturing
- The Three Elements of Standard Work: Takt Time, Work Sequence, Standard WIP
- Yamazumi Chart: Workload Balancing for JIT Production Lines
FAQ
Bottleneck analysis worksheet: common questions
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