Conveyors worked example

WIP on Conveyor at 99% conveyor wip availability: a worked example

This scenario runs the wip on conveyor calculation on the strong side: 99% conveyor wip availability, with every other input held at its documented default. a manufacturing engineer needs to quantify conveyor WIP for layout, FIFO, or inventory control

The inputs for this scenario

  • Conveyor WIP positions: 95 positions (unchanged)
  • WIP turns per planning window: 6 turns (unchanged)
  • Conveyor WIP availability: 99 % (raised for this scenario; the documented default is 94)
  • Usable WIP yield: 99 % (unchanged)

Working through the calculation

  • Applying the documented formula (Gross conveyor WIP movement = WIP positions × turns) to the inputs above produces each figure below.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 559 parts for usable wip on conveyor, the number this scenario is built around.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 570 parts for gross conveyor wip movement.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 5.7 parts for wip unavailable due to stops.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 5.64 parts for wip lost to quality or aging.

How this compares with the baseline

  • Against the tool's baseline example, where conveyor wip availability sits at 94% and the headline result is 530 parts, this scenario comes in 5.32% above the baseline at 559 parts.
  • Use it when balancing a conveyor line, sizing inter-station buffers, or auditing whether standing conveyor inventory is justified by real throughput. 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 WIP on conveyor: 559 parts (headline result)
  • Gross conveyor WIP movement: 570 parts
  • WIP unavailable due to stops: 5.7 parts
  • WIP lost to quality or aging: 5.64 parts

Run it with your numbers

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

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.