Composites, Fiberglass & Advanced Materials worked example

Autoclave Utilization at 58% target autoclave utilization: a worked example

This worked example runs the autoclave utilization numbers for a tougher week than the baseline: 58% target autoclave utilization instead of the typical 80%. Calculate autoclave utilization for composite cure assets.

The inputs for this scenario

  • Productive autoclave cure hours: 116 hr (held at the documented default)
  • Available autoclave hours: 160 hr (held at the documented default)
  • Target autoclave utilization: 58 % (the input this scenario stresses; the baseline uses 80)

Working through the calculation

  • The calculation starts from the formula this tool documents: Autoclave Utilization = productive autoclave cure hours ÷ available autoclave hours × 100.
  • autoclave utilization works out to 72.5 % at these inputs, and this is the headline figure for the scenario.
  • autoclave utilization gap to target works out to -14.5 points at these inputs.
  • productive autoclave cure hours works out to 116 count at these inputs.
  • available autoclave hours works out to 160 count at these inputs.

How this compares with the baseline

  • Against the tool's baseline example, where target autoclave utilization sits at 80% and the headline result is 72.5 %, this scenario lands almost exactly on the baseline at 72.5 %.
  • Use it for weekly or monthly capacity reviews, to justify capital before buying a second vessel, or to quantify the payback of better cure batching. A result at this level usually justifies acting on the stressed input before touching anything else, because every other figure in the table is downstream of it.

Results at a glance

  • autoclave utilization: 72.5 % (headline result)
  • autoclave utilization gap to target: -14.5 points
  • productive autoclave cure hours: 116 count
  • available autoclave hours: 160 count

Run it with your numbers

  • To rerun this with your own numbers, open the live Autoclave Utilization calculator, set target autoclave utilization to your actual value, and adjust the remaining inputs to match your operation.

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.