How do you track production?
Where is the order in production? The customer asks sales, sales asks the workshop, the workshop asks the craftsman. The answer is a guess every time. 🏭
If production isn’t visible, delivery dates can’t be given, capacity can’t be planned and bottlenecks are noticed only after delays.
Short answer: production goes digital with work orders, a stage board and short daily records. Where each job is can be seen without walking to the workshop. 👀
Four costs of invisible production
BU BÖLÜMÜN ÖZETİ
- Guessed delivery dates
- Constant questions
- Late-spotted bottlenecks
- Unknown costs
Familiar problems. 🔍
Guessed delivery dates
Promised dates slip; customer trust drops. 📅
Constant questions
Sales calls the workshop daily; production is interrupted. 📞
Late-spotted bottlenecks
A machine or person clogs; by the time it’s seen, work is late. 🚧
Unknown costs
How many hours did a job take? Pricing is a guess. 🧮
The work order
BU BÖLÜMÜN ÖZETİ
- What to make
- For whom, by when
- Materials
- Number
Four details. 📋
What to make
Product, size, quantity, special notes; complete. 📝
For whom, by when
Customer and delivery date; the source of priority. 📅
Materials
Materials needed and stock status; see the warehouse guide. 📦
Number
One work order number linked to the order; see the order guide. 🔢
The stage board
BU BÖLÜMÜN ÖZETİ
- Waiting
- In production
- Quality check
- Ready
Four columns. 🗂️
Waiting
Jobs waiting for materials or their turn; the queue is visible. ⏳
In production
Jobs being worked on and who owns them. 🛠️
Quality check
The inspection stage; errors caught before dispatch. 🔍
Ready
Ready to ship; sales tells the customer. ✅
Short daily records
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- Start and finish
- Downtime reason
- Scrap and errors
- A short morning huddle
Four habits. ⏱️
Start and finish
Two taps per stage; time is measured automatically. 👆
Downtime reason
Machine fault, no materials; one choice. ⚠️
Scrap and errors
How many scrapped, and why; a short record. 🗑️
A short morning huddle
Five minutes at the board; the day’s priorities. ☀️
Four common mistakes
BU BÖLÜMÜN ÖZETİ
- Forcing computers on craftspeople
- Too much detail
- Not updating the board
- Not using the data
All four make people drop the system. 🚧
Forcing computers on craftspeople
Big buttons, few screens; in the workshop’s language. 🖐️
Too much detail
Try to record every screw and nobody records anything. 📚
Not updating the board
A stale board is worse than no board. 🕰️
Not using the data
If time and scrap records don’t feed pricing, the effort is wasted. 📊
What should I do today?
BU BÖLÜMÜN ÖZETİ
- Step 1: write the work order form
- Step 2: set up a four-column board
- Step 3: time one week
- If you want help
Three steps, one hour. 🪜
Step 1: write the work order form
What, for whom, by when, materials; one page. 📋
Step 2: set up a four-column board
On a wall or a screen; today. 🗂️
Step 3: time one week
Stage starts and finishes; review at week’s end. ⏱️
If you want help
Let us set up your production tracking together: use the consult your expert form. For your current setup see the digital audit; the bigger picture sits in the process-by-process roadmap. 🎯
Related reading from the archive: connecting data sources · digital maturity.
📝 Notes From the Field
At a furniture workshop delivery dates kept slipping and sales called the craftsmen daily. A work order form and a four-column board were set up, and stage starts and finishes were recorded with two taps on a tablet. The bottleneck turned out to be the paint shop in the first week. The paint shop schedule changed; on-time delivery rose noticeably and calls to the workshop fell.
📖 Short Glossary
Work order: a document holding all details of a job. Stage board: a board showing which stage each job is at. Bottleneck: the step slowing the whole flow. Downtime: time production stands still.
⚡ Quick Summary
Invisible production turns delivery dates into guesses. 🏭 Work orders hold what, for whom, by when and materials. A four-column board shows waiting, in-production, checking and ready jobs. Start-finish, downtime reasons and scrap are recorded briefly. The tool must speak the workshop’s language.
🎯 Next Step
Let us set up production tracking: use the consult your expert form. The service side sits in the appointments guide; for your setup see the digital audit.
Frequently Asked Questions
Sık Sorulan Sorular
Not at first. Once work orders, the board and short records settle in, the need for a broader system becomes clear.
Often yes, if recording takes two taps and cuts the questions they get. Resistance grows with complex tools and imposition.
Pricing on real cost, accurate delivery dates and seeing bottlenecks. Even a few weeks of data beat guesses.