Foundry & Forging worked example

Melt Shop Utilization at 94% target melt-shop utilization: a worked example

What does the result look like when target melt-shop utilization reaches 94%? The full calculation is worked below with real intermediate numbers. Use it when heat size, furnace capacity, charge time, chemistry holds, ladle availability, or pouring demand affects melt-shop loading.

The inputs for this scenario

  • Used melt-shop furnace hours: 38 hr (unchanged)
  • Available melt-shop furnace hours: 48 hr (unchanged)
  • Target melt-shop utilization: 94 % (raised for this scenario; the documented default is 82)

Working through the calculation

  • Applying the documented formula (Melt Shop Utilization utilization = used melt-shop capacity ÷ available melt-shop capacity × 100) to the inputs above produces each figure below.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 79.17 % for melt shop utilization utilization, the number this scenario is built around.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 14.83 points for melt shop utilization gap to target.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 38 value for used melt-shop capacity.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 48 value for available melt-shop capacity.

How this compares with the baseline

  • Against the tool's baseline example, where target melt-shop utilization sits at 82% and the headline result is 79.17 %, this scenario lands almost exactly on the baseline at 79.17 %.
  • A figure at this level is achievable when target melt-shop utilization is genuinely sustained, not just peaked for a shift. High utilization is not automatically good; running near 100 percent can mean no slack for maintenance or demand swings, and the metric says nothing about good metal poured per hour.

Results at a glance

  • Melt Shop Utilization utilization: 79.17 % (headline result)
  • Melt Shop Utilization gap to target: 14.83 points
  • Used melt-shop capacity: 38 value
  • Available melt-shop capacity: 48 value

Run it with your numbers

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

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.