What Is Lost Time? How to Measure and Manage It in Production
Any condition created by the plant that prevents production from taking place is called lost time. It is one of the leading sources of waste, and it stays invisible until it is measured.
What is lost time?
Lost time is the period an operation stands still because the factory cannot provide the operator with a production requirement such as capital, machine, material or energy. The most common examples are machine breakdown, waiting for work and power cuts.
The critical distinction: lost time does not affect the plant's contribution efficiency, but it directly affects the operator's personal efficiency, that is, performance. Lost time must therefore be attributed to the condition that caused it, not to the operator.
How is lost time measured?
Arge Bilişim records lost time in real time through industrial PC and PLC devices such as Arge Rover, @rgeHypatia and Arge Master, as well as handheld terminals. Before installation, the consulting team works with the plant to identify the lost-time types it actually encounters and defines them in the system.
An operator who stops for any reason reports the start of lost time via keypad or RFID card. At the same moment the warning lights on Arge Rover begin to flash, and the production manager sees immediately which operation stopped and why. Time to action shrinks.
What does it deliver?
Lost time is reported by type, operation, machine and date. Waste is then discussed with data rather than guesswork, and maintenance, planning and material flow can be prioritised accordingly.