What the heck is OEE and how can it benefit my manufacturing business?

Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) is more than just another manufacturing acronym – it's the fundamental metric for measuring and improving manufacturing efficiency. This powerful metric helps teams identify and eliminate the most significant sources of efficiency loss by providing real-time visibility into production inefficiencies and their root causes.

How is OEE measured?

The OEE score is calculated as a percentage, with 100% representing perfect production: manufacturing only good parts, as fast as possible, with no downtime. The overall OEE score is determined by measuring three individual component scores - availability, performance, and quality. Each component is scored as a percentage, with their combination providing a simple, powerful gauge of your manufacturing efficiency.

Availability Score

Measures the planned run time that is available for production:

=
Planned Production Time - Downtime
Planned Production Time

Accounts for losses from:

  • ✓ Equipment Breakdowns
  • ✓ Changeovers
  • ✓ Cleanings

Performance Score

Compares actual production line run speed against target:

=
Ideal Cycle Time × Total Count
Planned Production Time - Downtime

Accounts for losses from:

  • ✓ Reduced Operating Speed
  • ✓ Minor Stops / Small Adjustments
  • ✓ Operator Inefficiencies

Quality Score

Measures the amount of product that meets quality requirements:

=
Good Count
Total Count

Accounts for losses from:

  • ✓ Production Rejects
  • ✓ Scrap / Yield Loss
  • ✓ Startup Rejects

OEE Score

The total OEE score combines all three factors into a single measurement.

= Availability Score × Performance Score × Quality Score

How does an OEE platform enable manufacturing efficiency improvement?

By providing a unified productivity metric, teams can objectively compare performance across different facilities, production lines, shifts, and products within their manufacturing operations. As teams track their OEE scores over time, they can measure the impact of continuous improvement initiatives on their manufacturing process efficiency. And let's be honest – once people start seeing those OEE numbers, a healthy competitive spirit tends to emerge. There's nothing quite like the satisfaction of watching your production line edge past another facility's score, even if you pretend you're not keeping track!

What benefits can OEE deliver to my manufacturing company?

Implementing OEE in your manufacturing operation can deliver substantial benefits across multiple dimensions of your business. Here are some key advantages you can expect:

Year 1 Business Impact

OEE Benefits Overview

Ongoing Business Impact

A successful OEE implementation continues to provide long-term business benefits:

Scale Effectively

Maintain operational excellence as you grow with unified OEE standards and tracking.

Better Capital Planning

Make informed decisions about capital investments to maximize top-line revenue and bottom-line profitability.

Improvement Culture

Build a workplace culture focused on ongoing optimization of manfuacturing efficiency.

Manufacturing efficiency starts here.

Schedule a demo to see how Essembi can rapidly help you drive efficiency at your manufacturing business.

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