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Downtime reason codes template

Downtime reason codes are the short list of reasons an operator picks from when a machine stops, so every lost minute lands in a category someone can act on. A list that works is short enough to pick from in seconds, has one code for each kind of stop, and rolls up to the six big losses, so the minutes feed availability, performance and quality the way OEE does. This template starts you with 26 codes for a filling or packaging line: 3 for time that is not planned and 23 under breakdowns and unplanned stops, setup and adjustments, small stops, reduced speed, process defects and startup rejects. Each code has a description, an example, planned or unplanned, an owner and a rule for when to record it. The Excel log takes codes from a drop-down, turns scrap into minutes, works out availability and a Pareto by code and by big loss, and flags when the catch-all code passes its limit or a code goes unused. The PDF has the code card to post at the line, a paper shift log, the rules for designing your own list and a worked example.

Free to use: print it, copy it and edit it for your team. Enter your name and work email once to download.

Page 1 of the downtime reason codes templateA code card for the line with large codes grouped as breakdowns, waiting, small stops, setup and adjustments, slow running, scrap and rework, unlisted and not planned time, with the rules for small stops, breakdown time and changeovers.
26 starter codesSix big losses mappingPlanned or unplannedOwner and record-when ruleLog with drop-downsPareto by code and by lossAvailabilityCode card for the lineRules for your own listWorked example

When to use it

When to use a downtime reason code list

  • Setting up downtime tracking on a line for the first time, before the first log sheet goes out.
  • When the top reason on your downtime Pareto is Other, Misc or blank.
  • When operators pick different codes for the same stop, or the list has grown past what anyone can scan in a few seconds.
  • Before you track OEE or the six big losses, so each lost minute lands in the right factor.
  • At the 30-day review of a list already in use, to drop unused codes and split the catch-all.

How to fill it in

  1. 1

    Start from the starter list

    Rename the codes for your equipment on the Code list sheet. Keep the first letter for the group (B breakdown, W waiting, S setup, M small stop, R speed, Q quality, X not planned, Z unlisted) and stay at or under 25 loss codes for a machine.

  2. 2

    Write the rules down

    Set your small-stop limit (5 minutes is the starting value), the ideal cycle time, the Unlisted limit and whether planned stops count in availability. Write the small-stop limit on the code card.

  3. 3

    Test it on last week's stops

    Give the same five stops to two people and ask each to code them. Where they disagree, rewrite the Record when rule, not the people.

  4. 4

    Post the card and log every stop

    One row for each stop at or over the limit, with its minutes. Tally shorter stops on M1 or M2 each shift. Scrap and rework go in as parts; the Excel turns them into minutes.

  5. 5

    Read the Pareto every week

    Take the top code to its owner. If Unlisted is over its limit, read the notes and split it into new codes.

  6. 6

    Review after 30 days

    Drop or merge codes nobody used, keep rare costly ones such as a utility failure, reprint the card, then review with the Pareto every month.

The starter list

26 downtime reason codes, grouped by loss

An example list for a filling or packaging line, made for this template, not a standard. Each code rolls up to one of the six big losses or to time that is not planned. Rename the codes to fit your machines and keep the rules.

  • X1

    Reason
    Break or meal
    Big loss
    Not planned time
    Planned or unplanned
    Planned
    Owner
    Production
    Record when
    The whole scheduled break. If the line runs through the break, log nothing.
  • X2

    Reason
    No orders or not scheduled
    Big loss
    Not planned time
    Planned or unplanned
    Planned
    Owner
    Planning
    Record when
    The whole period with no work planned.
  • X3

    Reason
    Planned meeting or training
    Big loss
    Not planned time
    Planned or unplanned
    Planned
    Owner
    Production
    Record when
    Only when it is on the plan and the line stops for it.
  • S1

    Reason
    Changeover
    Big loss
    Setup and adjustments
    Planned or unplanned
    Planned
    Owner
    Production
    Record when
    From the last good part of one product to the first good part of the next.
  • S2

    Reason
    Planned cleaning
    Big loss
    Setup and adjustments
    Planned or unplanned
    Planned
    Owner
    Production
    Record when
    From the stop for the clean to the first good part.
  • S3

    Reason
    Planned maintenance
    Big loss
    Setup and adjustments
    Planned or unplanned
    Planned
    Owner
    Maintenance
    Record when
    Only scheduled work. A repair is a B code.
  • S4

    Reason
    Start-up or warm-up
    Big loss
    Setup and adjustments
    Planned or unplanned
    Planned
    Owner
    Production
    Record when
    From start to the first good part after a planned start. After a changeover, use S1.
  • S5

    Reason
    Reel or consumable change
    Big loss
    Setup and adjustments
    Planned or unplanned
    Planned
    Owner
    Production
    Record when
    Each change, or a tally per shift with the total minutes.
  • S6

    Reason
    Unplanned adjustment
    Big loss
    Setup and adjustments
    Planned or unplanned
    Unplanned
    Owner
    Production
    Record when
    Adjustments outside a changeover. Inside a changeover they stay in S1.
  • B1

    Reason
    Mechanical failure
    Big loss
    Breakdowns and unplanned stops
    Planned or unplanned
    Unplanned
    Owner
    Maintenance
    Record when
    From the stop to running again, including waiting for the technician and parts.
  • B2

    Reason
    Electrical or controls failure
    Big loss
    Breakdowns and unplanned stops
    Planned or unplanned
    Unplanned
    Owner
    Maintenance
    Record when
    As B1. An operator reset with no repair is M2.
  • B3

    Reason
    Hydraulic or pneumatic failure
    Big loss
    Breakdowns and unplanned stops
    Planned or unplanned
    Unplanned
    Owner
    Maintenance
    Record when
    As B1.
  • B4

    Reason
    Tooling or change part failure
    Big loss
    Breakdowns and unplanned stops
    Planned or unplanned
    Unplanned
    Owner
    Maintenance
    Record when
    As B1. A planned tool change is S1.
  • B5

    Reason
    Utility failure
    Big loss
    Breakdowns and unplanned stops
    Planned or unplanned
    Unplanned
    Owner
    Maintenance
    Record when
    From the stop to running again. Keep this code even when it is rarely used.
  • W1

    Reason
    Waiting for material
    Big loss
    Breakdowns and unplanned stops
    Planned or unplanned
    Unplanned
    Owner
    Materials
    Record when
    From the stop to the material arriving and the line running.
  • W2

    Reason
    Waiting for operator
    Big loss
    Breakdowns and unplanned stops
    Planned or unplanned
    Unplanned
    Owner
    Production
    Record when
    From the stop to the station staffed and running.
  • W3

    Reason
    Waiting for quality release
    Big loss
    Breakdowns and unplanned stops
    Planned or unplanned
    Unplanned
    Owner
    Quality
    Record when
    From the request to the release.
  • W4

    Reason
    Starved or blocked
    Big loss
    Breakdowns and unplanned stops
    Planned or unplanned
    Unplanned
    Owner
    Production
    Record when
    Only on a log kept per machine. On a whole-line log, use the code of the machine that stopped.
  • M1

    Reason
    Jam or misfeed
    Big loss
    Small stops
    Planned or unplanned
    Unplanned
    Owner
    Production
    Record when
    Under the small-stop limit. Tally the count and the minutes each shift.
  • M2

    Reason
    Sensor trip or fault reset
    Big loss
    Small stops
    Planned or unplanned
    Unplanned
    Owner
    Production
    Record when
    Under the small-stop limit. Tally as M1.
  • R1

    Reason
    Slow running: material
    Big loss
    Reduced speed
    Planned or unplanned
    Not a stop
    Owner
    Production
    Record when
    Minutes lost = minutes run slow × (1 − actual rate ÷ rated rate).
  • R2

    Reason
    Slow running: machine condition
    Big loss
    Reduced speed
    Planned or unplanned
    Not a stop
    Owner
    Maintenance
    Record when
    As R1.
  • Q1

    Reason
    Scrap in steady running
    Big loss
    Process defects
    Planned or unplanned
    Not a stop
    Owner
    Quality
    Record when
    Enter the parts. The Excel turns parts into minutes.
  • Q2

    Reason
    Rework in steady running
    Big loss
    Process defects
    Planned or unplanned
    Not a stop
    Owner
    Quality
    Record when
    Enter the parts. A reworked part is not a good part.
  • Q3

    Reason
    Start-up scrap
    Big loss
    Startup rejects
    Planned or unplanned
    Not a stop
    Owner
    Quality
    Record when
    Enter the parts made before the process was stable.
  • Z1

    Reason
    Unlisted (write what happened)
    Big loss
    Breakdowns and unplanned stops
    Planned or unplanned
    Unplanned
    Owner
    Production
    Record when
    Always write what happened. Review it every week and split it when it grows.

A filled-in example

Illustrative, not a benchmark

An example: the filler on line 2, the constraint, logged for 4 weeks of one 480-minute shift a day (illustrative numbers).

The example month's 2,622 lost minutes, by loss

  • Setup and adjustments: 1013, 39% of the total, cumulative 39%.
  • Breakdowns and unplanned stops: 853, 33% of the total, cumulative 71%.
  • Small stops: 599, 23% of the total, cumulative 94%.
  • Scrap and rework: 92, 4% of the total, cumulative 98%.
  • Slow running: 65, 2% of the total, cumulative 100%.

Availability = (planned production time − availability losses) ÷ planned production time

The rule on the card: planned stops such as changeovers count as availability losses.

  1. Planned stops counted: (8,820 − 1,866) ÷ 8,820= 78.8%
  2. The same month with planned stops taken out= 88.5%

Pareto chart of the filler's 2,622 lost minutes: setup and adjustments 1,013, breakdowns and unplanned stops 853, small stops 599, scrap and rework 92, slow running 65. The two availability losses, 1,866 minutes, are the first two bars. Availability is 78.8 percent with planned stops counted as losses, and would read 88.5 percent with them taken out.

By code, the top three are changeover 474 min (18.1%), jam or misfeed 460 (17.5%) and Unlisted 318 (12.1%). Unlisted is over the 10% limit, so its notes became a new breakdown code: the capper torque alarm.
  • Scheduled time 20 × 480 = 9,600 min. Breaks, no orders and team meetings (the X codes) take out 780 min, leaving 8,820 min of planned production time.
  • Setup and adjustments lost 1,013 min and breakdowns and unplanned stops 853 min, so availability is (8,820 − 1,866) ÷ 8,820 = 78.8%.
  • Small stops (339, tallied) cost 599 min, slow running 65 min, and 11,040 scrapped or reworked bottles at 0.5 seconds each 92 min: 2,622 lost minutes in all.
  • Top codes: changeover 474 min (18.1%), jam or misfeed 460 (17.5%), Unlisted 318 (12.1%). Two codes, utility failure and slow running for machine condition, were not used.

Unlisted is over the 10% limit. Its notes show 255 min of one symptom, a capper torque alarm, so the team adds it as a breakdown code. Taking planned stops out of availability instead would show 88.5% for the same month, which is why the rule goes on the card.

Common mistakes

  • An Other code with no limit

    When Other is the easy pick it becomes the top reason and the Pareto says nothing. Make a note compulsory and split it when it passes the limit.

  • Root causes as codes

    An operator can see a jam. A worn cam follower takes a repair to find. Code the symptom and find the cause in a breakdown analysis.

  • Too many codes

    With 80 codes on the list, people pick the first one that looks close. Vorne's guidance is no more than 25 for a machine.

  • Waiting for maintenance as its own code

    It splits one breakdown into two and hides the real repair time. Breakdown time runs from the stop to running again.

  • Changing the planned-stop rule mid-year

    Availability jumps with no change on the line. Pick the rule, write it on the card and keep it.

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 you upload loss data from a spreadsheet and map its columns once; each record is sorted into a cost bucket and a causal or resultant loss, and a loss tree ranked by cost shows which losses to work on first.

See it in a 45-minute demo

FAQ

Downtime reason codes template: common questions

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