Packaging Throughput Planner
Enter your monthly production target and shift pattern — get a side-by-side comparison of fleet options with machine count, investment estimate, floor space, installed power, and operator staffing. Free B2B engineering tool used by packaging professionals in 80+ countries.
Fleet options
Enter your target and click Calculate to see fleet options.
Get a custom quote
Tell us about your project — we'll reply within one business day with a formal quote for the selected fleet.
Frequently asked questions
How is OEE calculated for packaging machines?
OEE = Availability × Performance × Quality. The industry-standard reference is Seiichi Nakajima's 1988 TPM framework, which sets world-class OEE at 85%, typical at 60%, and recommends 75% as a conservative planning default.
What shift pattern should I choose for my packaging line?
1-shift suits pilot lines (~175 hr/month). 2-shift (~350 hr/month) is the most common B2B pattern. 3-shift (~525 hr/month) suits high-volume food. 7×24 (~720 hr/month) is for commodities with high capital cost.
How many spare machines should I plan for?
The N+1 policy: for every N machines required, add 1 spare so maintenance can happen without losing capacity. For fleets of 4+ machines, N+1 is strongly recommended.
Does this calculator account for machine downtime?
Yes — downtime is baked into the OEE factor. Default 0.75 assumes 25% capacity loss to planned + unplanned downtime, speed losses, and quality rejects.
How are monthly operating hours calculated?
1 shift (Mon–Fri, 8 hr/day) = 8 × 5 days × 4.33 weeks = 175 hr/month. 2 shifts = 350, 3 shifts = 525, 7×24 continuous = 24 × 30 = 720 hr/month. The 4.33 factor is 52 weeks ÷ 12 months.
How is per-machine monthly capacity computed?
capacity = rated_max_speed_bpm × 60 × monthly_hours × OEE. We use the rated max speed (not derated) because OEE already accounts for performance loss, availability loss, and quality loss.
How is floor area estimated?
total_area = machine_count × machine_footprint × 2.0. The 2.0× clearance factor covers operator access (1.5m front), maintenance access (1m rear), side clearance (0.5m each side), and infeed/outfeed conveyor space.
How is installed power calculated?
installed_power = machine_count × rated_power_per_machine (nameplate sum). For transformer sizing, apply a 0.8 diversity factor — not all machines peak simultaneously.
How are operator staffing requirements estimated?
Industry rule-of-thumb ratios by machine series: VFFS 1 operator per 3 machines, small VFFS (sachet) 1 per 4, premade pouch / vacuum pouch / HFFS-quad / tea bag 1 per 2, cartoning 1 per 1.
Are the investment estimates accurate?
Each machine's price is an industry-tier-class average (entry / mid / premium). Actual quotes vary by configuration, options, import duties, and destination — treat the displayed total as an order-of-magnitude estimate, then request a formal quote.