Maskintimmar

Maskintimmar, meaning machine hours, is a unit of measure used in manufacturing to quantify the time a machine is in operation for producing goods. It is commonly used in capacity planning, cost accounting, and performance measurement.

Calculation: The total is the sum of running time of each machine during a period. In batch production it can be expressed as the number of machines times hours of operation, or by converting cycles into time.

Use in costing: Overhead absorption can be based on machine hours, using an overhead rate = estimated total overhead / estimated machine hours. Standard costing uses standard machine hours per unit to set expected costs; actual hours are compared with standard hours to compute variances.

Capacity and efficiency: Machine hours are used to assess capacity utilization (actual machine hours divided by available machine hours) and to identify bottlenecks or unplanned downtime. They support scheduling, maintenance planning, and throughput analysis.

Data quality: Reliable tracking requires timekeeping, machine log data, or ERP/manufacturing execution systems.

Limitations: Maskintimmar may not reflect idle time, maintenance downtime, setups, or labor variations; should be complemented with other metrics such as setup hours or labor hours.

Example: A plant with four machines running 9 hours a day for 20 days accumulates 4 × 9 × 20 = 720 machine hours.

In practice, maskintimmar are used in many industries and can be reported per product line or operation to support budgeting, costing and capacity decisions.