If work-in-process is 10 pieces and cycle time is 2.5 days, what is the throughput rate?

If work-in-process is 10 pieces and cycle time is 2.5 days, what is the throughput rate?

• A. 25 pieces per day
• B. 4 pieces per day
• C. 2.5 pieces per day
• D. Impossible to calculate with this dataset

Answer: (B)

Throughput rate comes from the relation between work-in-process and cycle time: throughput = WIP / cycle time. With 10 pieces in process and a cycle time of 2.5 days per piece, you get 10 ÷ 2.5 = 4 pieces per day. So the throughput rate is 4 pieces per day. This assumes a steady state where the average WIP and cycle time are representative; the other options would misinterpret the relationship or assume different timing.

Throughput rate comes from the relation between work-in-process and cycle time: throughput = WIP / cycle time. With 10 pieces in process and a cycle time of 2.5 days per piece, you get 10 ÷ 2.5 = 4 pieces per day. So the throughput rate is 4 pieces per day. This assumes a steady state where the average WIP and cycle time are representative; the other options would misinterpret the relationship or assume different timing.