Production cycle: duration of the production cycle, components, calculation

In carrying out economic analysis, the corresponding services of the enterprise consider the organization of production from different angles. This makes it possible to compile a real picture of the processes occurring at the site. Based on the analysis, one can draw a conclusion about the expediency of the company's activities. Also, the information obtained during the research makes it possible to forecast the development in the future.

When carrying out this analysis, the production cycle is considered. The duration of the production cycle is an important economic category. It allows you to draw conclusions about the economic activities of the company and develop measures to improve the indicator in the planning period. Therefore, the presented category of economic analysis deserves detailed consideration.

General concept of the production cycle

One of the most important indicators of the company's activity is the production cycle. The length of the production cycle is considered the basis for calculating a multitude of other categories of analysis of the economic activities of the organization. So you can improve the whole system of technical and economic indicators in the future.

The production cycle is a period of time calculated in calendar days for which a batch or product type passes through all stages of its creation. The production of the parts is completed with a stage in which the whole of their aggregate can be sent for sale. This is finished products.

The duration of the production process is measured from the first to the last process operation. Depending on the type of product, this parameter is represented in minutes, hours or days.

Necessity of evaluation

Calculation of production cycles is very important in economic analysis. This approach in the assessment of economic activity is considered the starting point. Based on it, many other indicators are considered.

With its help, the timing of the launch of a new product in production is determined. It takes into account the duration of its creation. Also, the production cycle allows you to assess the capacity of the company's divisions. On its basis, the amount of work in progress is calculated .

Quite a lot of planning and technological assessments are made taking into account the duration of the production cycle. Therefore, it is necessary to know the methodology of its definition and interpretation.

Components of the cycle

The production process is the sequence of certain technological operations, as a result of which objects of labor are moved . At the same time, their shape, properties, and sizes change.

The production cycle consists of several parts. These include working hours, the period of natural processes (for example, drying of paint), breaks. Each element is taken into account when calculating the cycle time. Working time consists of technological and non-technological operations. Interruptions can be interchangeable, as well as arising during periods of employment of equipment. This includes party expectations. There are also pauses caused by irrational organization of the production process. Technique can temporarily stop, among other things, due to unforeseen circumstances. When calculating the duration of a cycle, all breaks are considered, except those caused by unsatisfactory production organization and accidental incidents.

What influences the cycle?

Many factors affect the production cycle. Having an impact on them, you can monitor the effectiveness of the organization. First of all, the length of the cycle is affected by labor intensity. Technically justified standards are developed. They determine the time for which they receive the finished product.

Also, the batch size affects the cycle time. Time is also important for non-technological operations, breaks. One of the important indicators affecting the value of the cycle time is the type of movement of the object of processing in the process of its creation.

Managers, economists, managers of the enterprise in the process of analysis of the duration of production of finished products should pay attention to the constraints. Their elimination increases the efficiency of the company.

Promotion of details

Depending on the principle of movement of parts, elements in the process of manufacturing the final product distinguish several types of cycles. This is taken into account when analyzing, planning the future activities of the company.

Types of production cycles, depending on the conditions of movement of the parts, are divided into parallel, sequential and mixed. This is an important characteristic of the organization of the entire technological process.

With consecutive movement, the whole batch of objects of labor enters the next stage of production only after the completion of the previous treatment. Each stage of production is autonomous, fully completed.

In parallel processing, each part is immediately transferred to the next stage of processing. In this case, the manufacturing time is significantly shortened. With a mixed movement of objects of labor, the parts are partially processed at a single technological stage and are delivered to the next stage in batches. At the same time there are no downtime and no breaks.

Calculation of the consecutive cycle

The production process is a normalized category. Based on this, it is possible to calculate the value of each cycle. This will allow you to compare the duration of several processes. With a consistent movement of objects of labor to their final form, the cycle can be calculated quite simply.

Suppose an enterprise produces products whose batch consists of 3 products. In this case, 4 consecutive processes are performed. The first stage takes 10 minutes, the second - 30 minutes, the third - 20 minutes, and the fourth - 10 minutes. Time in this case is indicated by the normative (it is calculated by technical specialists). The planned cycle time will be:

T = 3 (10 + 30 + 20 + 10) = 210 min.

Then, with this indicator, the actual production time is compared. If necessary, identify and eliminate the constraints.

Calculating the duration of a parallel cycle

The manufacturing of parts that occurs in parallel takes less time. If technology makes it possible to apply such a movement of objects of labor, it turns out to be much more profitable. The formula for calculating the cycle time in this case is as follows:

T = t / C + (np) tmax / Cmax, where p is the batch size, t is the duration of each operation, C is the number of jobs, tmax is the longest operation, Cmax is the maximum number of shift jobs.

If you take the data of the previous calculation example, take the batch size as 1, the cycle will be as follows:

T = (10 + 20 + 30 + 10) + (3-1) 30 = 130 min.

This is for 80 min. Faster than in a consecutive cycle.

Effect on profit

The faster the batch of products is produced, the better. However, its quality should not deteriorate. Reducing the production cycle leads to increased profits from sales. This indicator is part of the cycle of working capital. From this coefficient depends how many times a year the enterprise will be able to realize a batch of finished products.

If the turnover increases, the same will happen with sales revenue. That is why it's important to reduce the time for which the products are manufactured. If the cycle of working capital is accelerated, resources are released for expansion and modernization.

Also, the volumes of work in progress are shrinking. The company releases liquid material resources. Therefore it is extremely important to fully load the production capacity.

Features of the indicator in different sectors

The duration and components of the production cycle depend on many factors. These include the type of branch of the national economy, the level of mechanization, the organization of the process of manufacturing products, and so on.

For industries with a high share of mechanization (engineering, mining, chemical industry, etc.), the acceleration of the cycle is very important. With a reduction in the number of technological operations, a stable positive effect is observed. However, all measures aimed at increasing the volume of production are developed taking into account the technological requirements for the organization of the process. Reduction of operations, acceleration of the promotion of objects of labor will not be advisable without maintaining a high level of quality. Only deliberate, calculated actions to compress the production cycle can be implemented in practice.

Steps to speed up the cycle

The organization of the production cycle is carried out according to the laws and requirements of the approved technologies. However, there are 3 possible directions to increase the speed of turnover. They are held simultaneously.

At the same time, the time of labor and natural processes is reduced, and all breaks are completely eliminated or reduced to the minimum duration. This is possible when modernizing production technology and equipment.

The design of products can also undergo changes. This will reduce the number and duration of technological operations. Some processes of processing due to modern scientific developments can significantly accelerate. This requires investments of capital. Without this, it is extremely difficult to create a competitive product. Properly thought-out design of the finished product allows you to introduce instead of a consistent parallel advance.

Acceleration of additional operations

To improve the economic performance of the enterprise in the planning period, it is initially required to determine the production cycle in the reporting year. After his analysis, measures are being developed to speed up the turnover.

In addition to improving the basic operations, you should pay attention to additional processes. These include control and transportation. To speed up the delivery of the elements of the articles, new processing equipment is used for processing articles. These can be modern conveyors, elevators, loaders, etc. This allows us to apply the principle of directness, continuity of transportation.

The control stage can also be accelerated by automation, mechanization. And this is possible when combining this operation with the technical stage of processing.

Intensification of production

The efficiency of the company's activities is influenced by a competently organized production cycle. The duration of the production cycle is accelerated by the intensification of production. This allows you to maximize the load capacity. At the same time, the share of intra-plant and inter-plant costs decreases. The cost of finished products also decreases.

Therefore, the management of the organization must find reserves to reduce the cycle time. This is possible due to the improvement of equipment and technology, deepening of cooperation and specialization, the introduction of the latest scientific developments. Only a reasonable organization of the entire production process gives a positive result and leads to an increase in profits.

Having familiarized themselves with the calculation procedure and the peculiarities of interpretation, controlling services can correctly determine the normative and actual production cycle. The duration of the production cycle is reduced in various ways. Having competently developed measures to reduce it, the company can get a bigger profit in the current period than in the previous year.