Free tool
Throughput time calculator
Throughput time is the total time one unit takes to get through a production process, from the start of the first step to a finished unit. It is the sum of process time, inspection time, move time and wait time. Only the process time changes the product, so process time ÷ throughput time shows how much of the journey adds value.
Throughput timeequalsProcess time + Inspection time + Move time + Wait time
Process cycle efficiencyequalsProcess time divided by Throughput time
ThroughputequalsUnits finished divided by Time
Time spent working on the unit
Checks and tests
Transport between steps
Queues before each step
Pre-filled with the worked example. Use averages for one unit (or one batch) through the whole process. Clear both rate fields to skip the rate.
Throughput time
18 h
Process + inspection + move + wait, start to finish.
Process cycle efficiency
55.6%
Process time ÷ throughput time
Non-value-added time
8 h
Inspection + move + wait
Throughput rate
2 / h
Units finished ÷ hours
Where the time goes
Next step
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Bring this result to a 45-minute demo and we will show where it fits in LeanSuite's Value Stream Mapping.
How to calculate it
Follow one unit through the process
Process time is the time someone or something is working on the unit: machining, assembly, painting. If it differs from unit to unit, use the average.
Inspection time is the time spent checking it, and move time is the time spent carrying it between steps, including the forklift or the walk.
Wait time is the time it sits in a queue, waiting for the next step, a batch to fill or a machine to be free. It is usually the largest part and the hardest to see, so walk the process and count the units waiting in front of each step. Little's Law turns that count into time: the lead time calculator does it from WIP and throughput.
Process cycle efficiency treats all process time as value-added. If part of the processing does not change the product (rework, for example), count only the value-added time for a stricter figure. The optional rate fields give throughput in units per hour from the units finished in a period.
Worked example
Illustrative numbers, not a benchmarkA car plant (the example from our throughput time guide): 10 hours to assemble a car, 1 hour of quality inspection, 2 hours moving it between stations and 5 hours waiting for the next process to start. The plant finished 120 cars in 60 working hours.
- 1Throughput time = 10 + 1 + 2 + 5 = 18 h.
- 2Non-value-added time = 1 + 2 + 5 = 8 h.
- 3Process cycle efficiency = 10 ÷ 18 = 55.6%.
- 4Throughput = 120 cars ÷ 60 h = 2 cars per hour.
Throughput time, cycle time and lead time
| Measure | What it times | Includes waiting? |
|---|---|---|
| Cycle time | One step finishing one unit, or the gap between finished units | No |
| Throughput time | One unit through the whole production process | Yes, between steps |
| Lead time | Customer order to delivery | Yes, before, during and after production |
To compare cycle time with customer demand, use the cycle time calculator; to find the step that limits throughput, use the bottleneck calculator.
Embed this calculator
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<iframe src="https://www.theleansuite.com/tools/throughput-time-calculator/embed" title="Throughput time calculator by LeanSuite" width="100%" height="1390" style="border:0;max-width:1000px" loading="lazy" allow="clipboard-write"></iframe>
<p style="font:13px/1.4 sans-serif"><a href="https://www.theleansuite.com/tools/throughput-time-calculator">Throughput time calculator</a> by LeanSuite</p>How LeanSuite helps
LeanSuite's Value Stream Mapping turns video of each process step into a current-state map with cycle times, inventory and lead time, and converts the inventory it counts between steps into days of WIP.
See Value Stream MappingRead more
- Free template: Lead time worksheet
- Throughput time in the lean glossary
- How to Improve Throughput Time in Manufacturing
- Process cycle efficiency in the lean glossary
- Little's Law in the lean glossary
- Value-Added vs Non-Value-Added Time Explained
- Lead Time: 4 Types, How to Calculate It and How to Cut It
- Cycle time, throughput time and lead time for one part
FAQ
Throughput time calculator: common questions
Add up the four kinds of time a unit spends in the process: process time + inspection time + move time + wait time. If a car takes 10 hours to assemble, 1 hour to inspect, 2 hours to move between stations and waits 5 hours in queues, its throughput time is 10 + 1 + 2 + 5 = 18 hours. Use the same unit for all four.
Cycle time is how long one step takes to finish a unit, or how often a unit comes off the end of the line. Throughput time is how long one unit takes to get through the whole process, including the time it waits and moves between steps. A line can turn out a unit every 60 seconds and still have a throughput time of two days, because each unit spends most of that time in queues.
Throughput time covers the production process only, from the start of the first step to a finished unit. Lead time is what the customer sees: it runs from the order to delivery, so it adds order processing, waiting before production starts and shipping. Throughput time is one part of lead time.
No. Throughput is a rate: how many units the process finishes per hour, shift or day, worked out as units finished ÷ time. Throughput time is a duration: how long one unit takes. The two are linked by Little's Law: work in process = throughput × throughput time, so for the same throughput, more WIP means a longer throughput time.
Process cycle efficiency is process time ÷ throughput time. There is no single target, because it depends on the product and how it is made, but in batch production it is often a small percentage, since units spend most of their time waiting. The useful comparison is your own process before and after a change. Cutting wait time raises it most.
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