The key to realizing greater savings from more informed management decisions is to predetermine the "True" cost of downtime for each profit center category. TDC is a methodology of analyzing all cost factors associated with downtime, and using this information for cost justification and day to day management decisions. Most likely, this data is already being collected in your facility, and need only be consolidated and organized according to the TDC guidelines.

Typically daily management decisions related to equipment downtime are made based primarily on labor cost. Of course, production demand is also at the top of the priority list too. The bottlenecks are taken into account in the decisions when they are realized. Some facilities overlook equipment as a bottleneck, like air compressors, boilers, and strappers out in the warehouse. The decision making balance to maintain is between production demand and “True Downtime Cost”, not primarily production demand and direct labor cost.

Using a TDC methodology, the “Overhead” bucket becomes very small, making clear to all, the areas of greatest opportunity. In these times of economic turmoil, it is ever more important to look at the “True Downtime Cost” in it’s respective categories, not only to see the greatest opportunity, but to profit from the valuable insight this methodology will bring. You will learn that many of the metrics with cost savings bottom line improvement opportunities, far outweigh the labor category and the immediate temporary gains of downsizing.