Cycle Time

If you are practicing lean manufacturing or have received lean training, you are familiar with the term "cycle time". A process produces a product or provides a service according to a cycle. The duration of this cycle is cycle time. How long does it take the process to "spit out" a product?


One of the objectives of lean is to move product quicker through your system and into the hands of your customers. So, reducing cycle time often becomes a vital project.


I saw a good example of cycle time this weekend. As I pulled into the drive-in lane of a Chick Fil A restaurant in Summerville, SC, I noticed a sign that said " Our goal is to be the fastest drive-in window in the world. Today, we processed 120 cars in one hour".


120 cars per hour or 2 cars per minute. Approximately every minute, two cars exit the drive through process with completed orders.


In lean, it is important to express cycle time in practical terms. In this example, we can say 120 cars per hour, 2 cars per minute, 0.03 cars per second, or 1 car per 30 seconds. If we are trying to be quicker, the smaller the measurement the better. 0.03 cars per second doesn't sound practical so we'll go with 1 car per 30s.


According to QSRMagazine.com, the 2006 industry average drive through wait time was 1.37 cars per 3.3 minutes. Applying the above restaurant's rate, this would equate to 6.6 cars per 3.3 minutes.


So, it appears that the Summerville restaurant is at the upper end of the bell curve.