Blog
Insights on production scheduling, lean manufacturing, and manufacturing software from 35+ years of industry experience.
Everything we have published.
What Is Makespan in Production Scheduling?
Makespan is the total span from the first job's start to the last job's finish. Learn how it is measured and why the optimizer can shorten it.
What Is Manufacturing Resource Planning (MRP-II)?
MRP-II extends material requirements planning with capacity checks, cost rollup, and closed-loop feedback from the floor. Here is MRP-II versus MRP-I, explained.
What Is Markup Percent in Quote Pricing?
Markup percent is the margin added to rolled-up cost to set a unit price. Learn how the markup turns cost into price and how a manual override fits in.
What Is the Nominal Primary in a Work Center Group?
The nominal primary is the first member EDGEBIC stamps onto a group-bound routing step before scheduling, though the engine may still pick a different member.
What Is On-Time Delivery Rate (OTD)?
On-time delivery rate is the percentage of jobs completed on or before their due date. Learn how OTD is measured and how the schedule protects it.
What Is OEE (Overall Equipment Effectiveness)?
OEE is availability times performance times quality, the fraction of scheduled time that produced good parts at full speed. Learn how the three factors combine.
What Is Production Activity Control (PAC)?
Production activity control is the shop-floor execution layer that dispatches, monitors, and reports actual versus planned work. See how EDGEBIC fulfills PAC.
What Is Setup Time in Manufacturing?
Setup time is the time to prepare a machine for a job: tooling, cleaning, calibration. Here is what setup time means for scheduling and changeovers, explained.
What Is Shortest Processing Time (SPT) Scheduling?
Shortest processing time is a priority rule that runs the quickest job first. See how SPT lowers average flow time and how EDGEBIC uses it in its optimizer.
What Is Slack Time in Forward vs Backward Scheduling?
Slack time is the spare time between when work finishes and when it is due. See how EDGEBIC places slack after the work forward, and in front of it backward.
What Is Tardiness in Production Scheduling?
Tardiness is how many hours a job finishes past its due date. Learn how total and weighted tardiness are measured and used to protect priority orders.
What Is the Theory of Constraints (TOC)?
The theory of constraints (TOC) says plant throughput is limited by its weakest link. Here is what TOC means for scheduling around a bottleneck, explained.
