Steps
- Measure throughput or cycle time per process step
- Find the slowest step (or the step with the longest queue in front of it)
- Quantify how much output you lose there
- Raise the capacity of that one step in a targeted way
- Measure again; the bottleneck moves to the next step
Worked example (illustrative)
Four steps with a throughput of 120, 100, 85 and 110 units per hour.
- Step 3 (85/hour) is the bottleneck
- The line output is therefore 85/hour, not 100. The other steps spend part of their time waiting
Why disruptions keep coming back
Capacity often leaks away at a step nobody has identified as the constraint. Mark senses that output is disappearing, but cannot say where. VDS measures throughput and downtime per step so that the real bottleneck becomes visible; acting on it stays your decision.
Frequently asked questions
How do you find the bottleneck?
By measuring throughput per step and pinpointing the step with the lowest effective capacity.
Does the bottleneck move?
Yes. As soon as you widen the constraint step, another step becomes the new limit. That is why you measure again.
What is the difference between a bottleneck and downtime?
Downtime is lost time on a machine; a bottleneck is the step that structurally limits the throughput of the whole line.
JW
