Production worked example

Line Balance with station 1 time of 110 sec: a worked example in production

What does the result look like when station 1 time reaches 110 sec? The full calculation is worked below with real intermediate numbers. Use when assigning work across stations or checking whether a line can meet takt.

The inputs for this scenario

  • Station 1 time: 110 sec (raised for this scenario; the documented default is 42)
  • Station 2 time: 55 sec (unchanged)
  • Station 3 time: 48 sec (unchanged)
  • Station 4 time: 39 sec (unchanged)
  • Target takt: 60 sec / unit (unchanged)

Working through the calculation

  • Applying the documented formula (Bottleneck time = longest station time) to the inputs above produces each figure below.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 57.27 % for balance efficiency, the number this scenario is built around.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 110 sec for bottleneck time.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 188 sec for idle time per cycle.
  • At this operating point the engine returns -50 sec for takt gap.

How this compares with the baseline

  • Against the tool's baseline example, where station 1 time sits at 42 sec and the headline result is 83.64 %, this scenario comes in 31.52% below the baseline at 57.27 %.
  • A figure at this level is achievable when station 1 time is genuinely sustained, not just peaked for a shift. It assumes fixed, deterministic station times and a serial line with one operator per station; it does not model variability, buffers, parallel stations, or walk and changeover time, all of which affect real throughput.

Results at a glance

  • Balance efficiency: 57.27 % (headline result)
  • Bottleneck time: 110 sec
  • Idle time per cycle: 188 sec
  • Takt gap: -50 sec

Run it with your numbers

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

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.