FORMULA AND ASSUMPTIONS
Net shift time equals shift duration minus breaks. Productive operating time is net shift time multiplied by the user-entered operating factor. A joint cycle is welding time plus setup time, so capacity is productive time divided by cycle time.
Arc time is the welding portion of the calculated joint cycles. Labor time is scheduled welder-hours, including breaks and non-productive time. The operating factor is an allowance for fit-up, handling, repositioning and other work not captured as setup; set it to the observed factor for the cell.
For a target, required welders are rounded up: target joint cycles divided by productive minutes available per welder across the planned shifts.