In the ever-changing business world, one thing that remains constant is the need to deliver value to your customers as quickly as possible. This is where Takt time comes in. Takt time is an essential concept in Lean management and one that you need to understand to run your process in the most efficient way possible.
So, what exactly is Takt time, and how important is it for business? This article will answer all these questions as we will discuss Takt time and everything it entails.
What is Takt Time?
Takt is a term that derives from the German word “Taktzeit,” which means “to measure” or “to cycle time.” In the context of Lean management, Takt time refers to the number of minutes or hours it takes to produce a unit of product based on customer demand. For example, if your team receives a new product order every 12 hours, your team needs to finish a product within that same span—or less—to meet demand.
How to Calculate Takt Time?
Calculating the formula for Takt time is quite simple: you’ll need to divide the ‘production time available’ by ‘customer demand.’ So, it would look something like this:
“Sum of Available Production Time / Average Customer Demand = TAKT TIME”
It’s highly advised that you include only the time your team is actually working on the product when measuring Takt time. Exclude any planned or unplanned downtime, such as scheduled breaks, shift changes, or machine maintenance.
When calculating Takt time, you should include a short time frame for the average customer demand (e.g., a week or month). Now that you have the formula for calculating Takt time, let’s use it as an example:
Company A has an available production time of 480 minutes a day. In the past month, they have received an average of 40 customer orders per day.
To calculate Takt time, we would divide 480 minutes (total available production time) by 40 orders (average customer demand), giving us a Takt time of 12 minutes. This means that, on average, it takes the team 12 minutes to produce one product unit.
“248 / 40 = 12 minutes Takt time”
As you may have already figured out, Takt time isn’t rocket science—it’s not as complicated as it may seem. With this data, you can make well-informed choices for managing and maximizing your team’s capacity in accordance with customer demand.
Why is Takt Time Important?
Now that we’ve answered the question “What is takt time?”, it’s important to understand why Takt time is so important—especially for businesses. There are a few key reasons:
- Takt time ensures that you are meeting customer demand.
- Takt time allows you to measure and track your team’s performance.
- Takt time helps you to identify areas of improvement in your process.
- Takt time ensures that you make the most efficient use of your team’s time.
Calculating and defining Takt time is crucial for optimizing your team’s capacity to produce products or services. Takt time gives you a clear understanding of how your team is performing and where to make improvements to increase efficiency.
Takt Time Vs. Lead Time Vs. Cycle Time
Lead time and Cycle time are both important Lean metrics that people tend to confuse with each other and Takt time. While they fall under the same umbrella, all three of these Lean management essentials are completely different. Below is a breakdown of their essentials to further support this claim:
- Lead time is the timeframe between an order received and the client receiving the product.
- Cycle time is the time it takes to produce a unit; it’s the time your team actively spends working on a customer order.
- Takt time is the total amount of time you’ll need to comply with to meet customer demand without overproducing.
As you can see, Takt time, lead time, and cycle time are all related to one another, but they each play a different role in the Lean management process. Lean managers should consider utilizing all three metrics as they are key performance indicators (KPIs) of your workflow.
How does DATAMYTE Correlate with Takt Time?
Calculating Takt time is great, but it won’t be of much value if you cannot execute the data you get from it the right way. That’s where DATAMYTE comes in handy. Once you determine your Takt time, you can utilize DATAMYTE’s Digital Clipboard to turn data into actual results.
The DataMyte Digital Clipboard is a workflow automation software that lets you create workflows for any purpose—including Lean manufacturing. Once you determine your Takt time, you can incorporate this data into your lean management workflow. With our Digital Clipboard’s intuitive drag-and-drop feature, you can create, edit, and update your Lean management workflow in minutes!
If you’re looking for a way to improve your Lean management and incorporate Takt time into the process; look no further than the DataMyte Digital Clipboard! Our software is designed to help you streamline your workflow and optimize your team’s performance. Book a demo today to learn about how we can help you take your business to the next level!
Conclusion
As you can see, Takt time is a crucial concept in Lean management and one that you need to understand to run your process in the most efficient way possible. We hope this article has served as a helpful introduction to Takt time and why it is so important for businesses. Thanks for reading!
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