Augos Factory / Learn / Recoverable time
Learn · recoverable time
Time your line has already shown it can win back.
In short
Recoverable time is the minutes each stop ran past its target, added up. The target is the recommended time: the median less the median absolute deviation of that stop reason's events this calendar year to date, a pace the line already reaches on its faster stops. It is measured paid time, not a forecast saving.
The arithmetic
A target, then the minutes above it
Two steps, for every stop reason on every line. First a target from the line's own record. Then the minutes each stop ran past that target, added up; a stop that beat the target counts zero.
Planned and unplanned stops differ in one place. For a planned stop, outliers (beyond Q3 + 1.5 × IQR) are set aside before the target is worked out, but the minutes above the target still count every stop, outliers included. For an unplanned stop, every stop feeds both. The typical time shown on screen is the plain median of every stop.
Target
Recoverable time
your own estimate in rand = recoverable hours × rand value of an hour of net production
Worked example
Twelve film changes, one target
Film change on a packing line · planned stop rule
Illustrative| Step | Working | Result |
|---|---|---|
| The events | 5.8, 6.2, 6.5, 6.9, 7.4, 8.1, 8.8, 9.2, 9.6, 10.4, 12.5 and 24.0 min | 12 changes |
| Typical time (shown) | Median of all twelve | 8.45 min |
| Outliers | Above Q3 + 1.5 × IQR; set aside for the target only | 24.0 min, one event |
| Target median | Median of the eleven kept events | 8.1 min |
| Target (recommended) | 8.1 − 1.5, the median absolute deviation of the same eleven | 6.6 min |
| Minutes above the target | 0.3 + 0.8 + 1.5 + 2.2 + 2.6 + 3.0 + 3.8 + 5.9 + 17.4, over all twelve | 37.5 min |
| Of which the one outlier | 24.0 − 6.6 | 17.4 min |
Nine of the twelve ran slower than 6.6 min. Almost half of the 37.5 minutes come from one event, so check the outlier share before quoting a figure. Twelve events is enough for a target to show; under 30, treat it as provisional.
Illustrative events, not a customer. The same arithmetic on 82 measured CIP cycles is on the Method page.
Where it sits
Five places, each with its own benchmark
Recoverable time is not one number for the line. Each kind of stop is measured against a benchmark of its own, and sits with the person who can win it back.
| Where | Benchmark | Who can win it back | Read more |
|---|---|---|---|
| Planned stop overrun: changeovers, CIP, cleaning | The allocated time, the plant's own standard | The line team (Operator Compliance) | The method › |
| The planned stop standard itself | The line's own best against the allocated time | Planning (Planning Efficiency Loss) | SMED and changeovers › |
| Operator variation on the same task | The best operator's median | The line team, coached by the best operator | Best operator, trainer and trainee › |
| Unplanned stops | Median − MAD per stop reason; split by stage with maintenance calls | The operator, or the technician who accepted the call | Maintenance calls › |
| Interruptions (short stops) | None: counted and ranked, not priced | The line team | The research › |
Speed loss and quality loss are shown as losses, not as recoverable time: there is no proven best to measure them against in the same way.
Limits
What recoverable time is not
Not a forecast saving
It is paid time the line has already beaten on its own record. The platform shows it in hours; a rand figure is your own estimate from what an hour of net production earns.
Not firm under 30 events
A target shows from ten events, ten non-outlier events for a planned stop. From 10 to 29 it rests on a handful of values, so treat it as provisional.
Not free of one-off events
For planned stops the minutes above the target count every stop, outliers included. A reason with a few very long stops can show hours that come mostly from them.
Not speed or quality loss
Those are reported as losses against the rated speed and the good count. They have no proven best to recover against.
Questions
Recoverable time, answered
Is recoverable time the same as Potential Gain?
Yes. Potential Gain is the on-screen name in Performance Overview and on the Planned Stoppage Analysis tiles. Recoverable time, or recoverable hours, is the plain term for the same figure.
Why median minus MAD, and not the fastest stop ever?
The fastest single stop may be a fluke. The median less the median absolute deviation is a pace the line reaches regularly, so it is a target the same crews have already met many times.
How many events before a target shows?
Ten, this calendar year to date. For a planned stop that is ten events after outliers are set aside. From 10 to 29 events the target rests on a handful of values, so treat it as provisional when you quote it.
Related
The method in full › The three numbers, who each lost hour sits with, and the same arithmetic on 82 measured CIP cycles.
In the toolbox
See recoverable time on your line.
Thirty minutes with a manufacturing specialist: your top five stop reasons, each with its typical time, its target and the minutes above it.
- Your reasons, your durations
- Targets from your own record
- Prices in rand, ex VAT
A manufacturing specialist replies within two business hours to set a 30-minute call.