A production schedule says which orders run, in what order and when, so they ship on time. The quickest way to see how to make one is to build one. Below, one week at a small plant, step by step.
The example plant
Orders go through cutting, welding, painting and assembly. Welding is where work always waits: it can really run 14 hours a day over two shifts, and every order spends the most time there. Next week there are eight orders due.
Step 1: list what has to ship
Every open order with its due date and quantity. Not the forecast, not what a machine could make: what customers are waiting for.
Step 2: find where the line is paced
Walk the line and note where work waits. Here it is welding, so welding is the pacing point: the one step the schedule is set at. Cutting, painting and assembly follow it.
Step 3: check the load against real capacity
Add up the welding hours for next week’s orders: 63 hours. Welding has 70 hours (14 a day, five days). That is 90% loaded: feasible, but no room for a ninth order without moving a date or adding time.
Step 4: sequence the pacing point
Put the eight orders in due-date order for welding. Where two orders share a setup and moving one doesn’t put a due date at risk, run them back to back. That sequence is the heart of the schedule.
Step 5: set release dates with a buffer
Work needs time to get through cutting before welding, and through painting and assembly after. Give each order a buffer, say three work days before its welding slot, and release it then, not earlier. An order due at welding on Thursday is released on Monday, if its material and drawings are ready.
Step 6: publish one list for the floor
One list, most urgent first: what to release today, what welding runs next, and which orders are at risk. Everyone works from the same list.
Step 7: check it every morning
Ten minutes at the start of the day. Colour each order by how much of its buffer is used: green, amber, red. Every red gets an owner and a date the same morning. More in buffer management explained.
Common mistakes
- Scheduling every machine. The more points you schedule, the sooner the schedule breaks.
- Using nameplate capacity. Use what the pacing point really does per day.
- Releasing early to keep people busy. It adds work in process and lead time, not output.
- Skipping the daily check. A schedule nobody looks at is out of date by lunchtime.
The free template calculates release dates, buffer status and the weekly load for you.
More detail: production scheduling in Excel, finite vs infinite capacity scheduling and drum-buffer-rope. Want it set up on your floor? See our production scheduling consultants.
FAQ
What do I need before I make a production schedule?
A list of open orders with due dates, the route each one takes through the plant, how many hours it needs at the main steps, and an honest number for how many hours a day those steps really run.
How far ahead should a production schedule look?
Detailed sequence for the next one to two weeks at the pacing point, and a rougher load check for the weeks after. Detail further out changes before you get there.
Should I schedule every machine?
No. Schedule the one point the line is paced from and release work to it on time. Every other step works first-in, first-out on what it receives.
How often should the schedule be updated?
Look at it every morning in a short meeting, and resequence the pacing point when new orders arrive or a due date changes.
Can I do this in Excel?
Yes, for one plant with a manageable number of open orders. Our free template does the release dates, buffer status and weekly load check.
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