Downtime reporting becomes useful only when the factory distinguishes meaningful causes and turns the results into preventive action. A machine being stopped is an observation, not yet a root cause.
Define events consistently
Record start and finish times, equipment, affected order and a reason code. Decide how to treat planned maintenance, setup, waiting for material and minor stops before comparing shifts.
Use Pareto carefully
Rank categories by total lost minutes or lost contribution, not only by frequency. Twenty short stops can be less damaging than one major breakdown, depending on the process and bottleneck.
Investigate causes
For the largest loss, examine maintenance records, operator comments, recent product changes, spare-part availability and the actual failure sequence. Use why-why analysis without stopping at blame.
Verify improvements
Track whether corrective actions reduce recurring downtime under similar operating conditions. Assign owners and due dates and distinguish a completed activity from a sustained reduction in loss.
Conclusion
Downtime analytics should create fewer repeat stoppages, not just more attractive reports.
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