Production Tracking¶

Production Tracking counts what has been made, and of which SKU, and compares it with the target in real time. It answers "are we making what we planned, at the rate we planned?" Counts come from machine signals, from a line speed, or from operators counting by hand in the Operator Interface.

How it works¶

Where counts come from¶

Source	How it works
Machine signals	The device sends `production_complete_good` (new units) or `production_count_good` (a running count). See Station signals and Machine connectors.
Line speed	For continuous processes with no unit signal, the Speed to Production Ratio on the station turns the `line_speed` signal into a count.
Manual counts	Operators enter counts in the Operator Interface. Turn this on with the Allow Manual Production feature flag on the station.
API	Other systems send counts through the API.

Bad units are sent or entered separately. They are part of Quality.

Each SKU has a performance target: the ideal rate for the SKU. Busroot uses it for targets, for OEE Performance, and for Production Cycle Monitoring downtime. To detect stops from gaps in production, see Downtime (Production Cycle Monitoring).

Production recording¶

Busroot records a production signal as production only while a production schedule is running on the station. Signals during a non-production schedule, or when no schedule is running, are discarded.

Busroot cannot tell real production from dry cycling or maintenance cycling. If production is being recorded during maintenance, the cause is a production schedule that is still running. End it, and start an ad hoc non-production schedule for the maintenance period. Then start a new production schedule when production resumes.

The Minimum Cycle Time filters out signals that arrive faster than the time you set: if more than one signal arrives within it, Busroot counts one unit. It exists to reject contact bounce and repeated pulses for one unit. It does not filter intentional machine operation, and it does not replace schedules: clean, regularly spaced signals during maintenance that are further apart than the Minimum Cycle Time are still recorded.

Production is also not recorded while a manual downtime is running.

Correcting counts¶

During a running schedule: operators can correct the count in the Operator Interface when the Allow Production Correction feature flag is on.
After a schedule has ended: admins can correct the count from the action menu on the schedule list and the Gantt when the Allow Historical Production Correction feature flag is on. See Gantt & Schedules.

Maximum production count¶

The account setting Maximum Production Count per Schedule (Admin > Account, under Formatting & Units) is a safety net against a grossly wrong count. It is not a target. A single mistyped Parts per Cycle value can turn a normal shift into six figures of production. Set the limit a little above the largest schedule you would ever expect, and a schedule stops recording there instead.

The limit is on units: good plus bad, after Parts per Cycle is applied. This is the number shown in the Operator Interface and the Cockpit. It is per schedule, and a schedule belongs to one station.
It applies to every way production is recorded. Cycles from the machine stop being recorded. A manual entry or correction that would take the schedule past the limit is rejected. A negative correction is always allowed, so a schedule can be brought back down.
Once a schedule reaches the limit, its count is shown with (limit) after it, for example 2,000 (limit) / 500. There is no other warning.
A new limit applies at once to every schedule, including running ones. Nothing already recorded is removed: a schedule that is already above the limit keeps its count and records nothing more.

It also limits the Parts per Cycle a schedule can run at. A Parts per Cycle above the limit could never be produced, so Busroot refuses it when it is entered. The message tells you which field to change:

Where the Parts per Cycle comes from	Message
The schedule's own Parts per Cycle (schedule form, API, schedule upload) or the Parts Per Cycle field on an ad hoc schedule	"PPC override exceeds the limit of N units per schedule"
The SKU, when the schedule sets none of its own	"This SKU's PPC exceeds the limit of N units per schedule"
The Operator Interface's Set Parts per Cycle screen, or the API	"PPC exceeds the limit of N units per schedule"

The SKU's own Parts per Cycle is not checked against the limit, so you never have to edit existing SKUs when you set one. Instead, scheduling a SKU whose Parts per Cycle is above the limit is refused. Enter a lower Parts per Cycle on the schedule, or choose a different SKU. The Gantt's Add Schedule dialog has no Parts per Cycle field, so there the message appears on the SKU field as soon as you pick the SKU.
Only the schedule being saved is checked. Schedules created before the limit was set are not affected, even when you edit them.
Busroot processes production in cycles of about 30 seconds, so a schedule can settle a few units above the limit.
Continuous schedules have no planned quantity, but they are limited too, and some run for months. Set the limit high enough for them, or leave it empty.
A schedule at the limit does not cause a stop. On stations with Production Cycle Monitoring, Busroot does not look for stops from the moment the limit is reached until the schedule ends. Stations with Utilisation Monitoring are not affected.
Leave the setting empty for no limit. This is the default.

Set it up¶

Set up Asset Utilisation first, so Busroot knows when each station is productive.
Add your SKUs in Admin > SKU, one at a time or by uploading a file. For each SKU, set:
- Code and Name.
- Performance Mode and its performance target: Cycle Time (seconds), Units per Minute, Units per Hour or Independent Process Speed (a line speed target).
- Parts per Cycle, if one signal or entry stands for more than one unit.
- Minimum Cycle Time (optional, in seconds). See Production recording.
- Value, if you want to cost lost production and quality.
In Admin > Station, set:
- Performance Mode and its target. The station's target is used only when the SKU has none.
- Minimum Cycle Time (optional). The SKU's value is used first, and the station's when the SKU has none.
- For line speed: Speed Scale, Speed Offset and Speed to Production Ratio. Contact support to help calibrate them.
Run a production schedule on each station. Plan schedules on Gantt & Schedules, upload them, send them from your ERP through the API, or let operators start ad hoc schedules in the Operator Interface. See Scheduling.
Optional: show Production Progress on a TV and put the Operator Interface at each station. See Operator screens.
Optional: set the Maximum Production Count per Schedule in Admin > Account. See Maximum production count.

Where you see it¶

Operator Interface: the running schedule's count against its target. Operators can count and correct production there, if the station allows it.
Production Progress: each running schedule's count against its target and its estimated finish time, on a large screen.
Cockpit: each station's schedule progress and the last hour's production.
Interval Chart: production against target by the hour or half hour, for short interval control.
Production reports: the Weekly Report, production by Station, by WO Ref. and by SKU, and a list of production entries.
Cycle Time Analysis: specified, average and best cycle times by SKU and station.
Trend Viewer: Total Production Count, Good Production Count and Production Rate (per Hour) over time.
Hierarchy Explorer: target, actual, good and bad production, rolled up from station to plant.

Metrics¶

Production count¶

units

The number of units produced in the range, good and bad.

Notes Shown as "Total Production Count" in the Trend Viewer and "Actual Production Qty" in the Hierarchy Explorer. Parts per Cycle is applied before units are counted.

Good count¶

units

The units produced, minus the bad units.

Good count = production count − bad count

Target count¶

units

The units that should have been produced while a production schedule is running, at the SKU's performance target.

Target count = scheduled production time ÷ cycle time × Parts per Cycle (or the equivalent from Units per Minute or Units per Hour)

Notes Minutes when the station is in downtime add nothing to the Target count, because that time is counted as availability loss. This is the "Target Production Qty" in the Hierarchy Explorer. The dashed target line on the Trend Viewer's Total Production Count does not remove downtime: it shows the ideal count for all scheduled production time. Outside a production schedule, the Target count is zero.

Production rate¶

units/h

The units produced per hour.

Notes The Trend Viewer shows the ideal rate from the performance target as its target line.

Cycle time¶

seconds

The time taken to produce one unit.

Notes Busroot records the cycle time each time a unit is produced during a schedule. It shows three values:
- Spec. cycle time: the performance target set on the SKU.
- Average cycle time: the average over the selected range.
- Best cycle time: the shortest time achieved in the selected range.

Schedule progress¶

%

Units completed as a share of the schedule's target units.

Schedule progress = good units ÷ planned quantity × 100

Notes Shown on Production Progress and the Cockpit. Only schedules with a planned quantity have a progress figure.

FAQs¶

What does cycle time override mean?¶

When you create a schedule, you can enter a cycle time that replaces the SKU's performance target. The override is used only for that schedule.

Busroot is counting fewer units than we produced. Why?¶

Check the Minimum Cycle Time on the SKU and on the station. It is in seconds. If more than one signal arrives within it, Busroot counts only one unit. For example, with a Minimum Cycle Time of 6, two signals 4 seconds apart count as one unit. You usually need it only to filter repeated pulses, or to filter a set-up process on SKUs with long cycle times. Set it to zero so that no units are missed, then contact support to recount production for the affected period.

What are SKU Groups for?¶

A SKU Group is for a machine that makes two products at once, for example a machine with two sides where side A makes one product and side B another. A SKU Group holds both products, so Busroot counts each one separately. It also suits a single machine that makes two different parts in one program.

How do batch counts work?¶

Use Parts per Cycle on the SKU. Busroot multiplies each count from the device or the Operator Interface by it to give the unit count. For example, if you polish 5 items at once and the sensor registers one cycle, set Parts per Cycle to 5 and Busroot counts 5.

Why does one work order show no end time on Production Progress?¶

The SKU on that schedule probably has no performance target. Without one, Busroot cannot work out the target, how far behind the schedule is, or its estimated finish time. This often happens when two SKUs are almost identical and the schedule uses the one without a target. Set a performance target on the SKU in Admin > SKU.

Why does the station show output but 0% utilisation?¶

Production counts alone never make a station productive. The station needs a productive signal, or a Productive Status Mode that matches the signal it sends, and a shift pattern. See Asset Utilisation.

How do I correct the count of a schedule that has already ended?¶

Use the historical production correction on the schedule list or the Gantt. See Correcting counts and Gantt & Schedules.