Advanced Planning, Scheduling & APS worked example

Finite Capacity Load at 99% work-center availability: a worked example

This scenario runs the finite capacity load calculation on the strong side: 99% work-center availability, with every other input held at its documented default. a capacity planner needs to check whether a work center is overloaded before releasing the schedule

The inputs for this scenario

  • Available hours per scheduling bucket: 16 hr/bucket (unchanged)
  • Number of finite scheduling buckets: 10 buckets (unchanged)
  • Work-center availability: 99 % (raised for this scenario; the documented default is 88)
  • Schedulable efficiency factor: 92 % (unchanged)

Working through the calculation

  • Applying the documented formula (Calendar capacity before constraints = available hours per bucket × finite scheduling buckets) to the inputs above produces each figure below.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 146 capacity hr for usable finite capacity, the number this scenario is built around.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 160 capacity hr for calendar capacity before constraints.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 1.6 capacity hr for availability capacity loss.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 12.67 capacity hr for efficiency capacity loss.

How this compares with the baseline

  • Against the tool's baseline example, where work-center availability sits at 88% and the headline result is 130 capacity hr, this scenario comes in 12.5% above the baseline at 146 capacity hr.
  • Use it when setting up finite-capacity rules in an APS or MES, when validating a load profile before releasing orders, or when a work center keeps blowing through its planned hours. Treat this as a target state: the delta against the baseline quantifies what the improvement is worth before you commit to chasing it.

Results at a glance

  • Usable finite capacity: 146 capacity hr (headline result)
  • Calendar capacity before constraints: 160 capacity hr
  • Availability capacity loss: 1.6 capacity hr
  • Efficiency capacity loss: 12.67 capacity hr

Run it with your numbers

  • Every input above is editable in the live Finite Capacity Load calculator, which recalculates instantly and can be shared with the inputs intact.

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.