Time Per Unit Metric (TPU)

TPU (Time Per Unit) is similar to LMPU. Both measure time to produce a single part. The difference is that LMPU uses Total time, and TPU only uses Available time. TPU is a good metric to measure operator performance.

Calculation

Calculating TPU for a single pitch

We use the following formula to calculate TPU for a single pitch:

TPU = (Operator Count × (Planned Production Minutes - Downtime)) ÷ Actual

Calculating TPU for multiple pitches

Since Operator Count is not constant for multiple pitches, it cannot be averaged. It cannot be summed, either. In order to calculate an accurate TPU, Operator Count must be abstracted from the above calculation. Once abstracted, we can perform the TPU calculation using the sums of the abstracted pieces.

TPU = sum(Pitch Active Labor Minutes) ÷ sum(Pitch Actual)

Pitch Active Labor Minutes = Pitch Operator Count × (Pitch Planned Production Minutes - Pitch Downtime)

Example

Total TPU: 435/ 550 = .79

Quick Tip: The same theory and calculations apply to NPM: Non-Production Minutes 

TPM must be calculated for each pitch and then summed because Operator Counts vary from pitch to pitch: an average operator count cannot be used to calculate NPM. Hence, the pitch by pitch basis. 

Prorating

This metric will be prorated in certain areas of the application. Please see the article on Prorated Production Metrics for more information.

Related Articles

• Labor Minutes Per Unit Metric (LMPU)
• Performance Metric (PPP %)