See Where Your Line Is Actually Being Constrained
Identify constraining operations, understand whether a station is causing the loss or reacting to it, and focus improvement efforts where they will have the biggest impact on throughput.
10in6 turns machine states, line context, and station interactions into a clear view of where your production flow is being held back.
In a connected line, downtime alone does not tell the full story.
A machine may be stopped, but that does not always mean it is the real problem. It may be blocked because the next station is down or full. It may be starved because material is not arriving from upstream. It may be waiting on a feeder, a robot, a chute, or another dependency outside of the machine itself.
If every stopped machine is treated the same, the analysis gets misleading. The team sees downtime, but not the real source of the lost flow.
That makes it harder to know where to focus. A station may show poor efficiency, even though it is spending much of its time reacting to issues somewhere else in the line. Another station may be quietly constraining output over and over again, but not getting enough attention because the data is buried inside broader downtime categories.
To improve throughput, teams need more than downtime totals. They need to see which operations are truly constraining the line, how often it happens, and what kind of condition is driving it. 10in6 helps make that visible.
Line context that turns machine data into a clearer picture.
Machine and line states are captured automatically
10in6 collects running state information directly from connected machines, PLCs, and line signals across the operation. Instead of looking at each machine in isolation, the system builds a picture of how stations are interacting in real time.
This creates the foundation for understanding whether a machine is running, blocked, starved, overcycling, or being affected by conditions elsewhere in the process.
Stops are interpreted in line context
A stop by itself is not enough. 10in6 looks at the surrounding line conditions to help distinguish between a station that is causing lost flow and one that is being impacted by upstream or downstream issues.
That context is what makes the analysis useful in assembly and multi-step production environments — and what separates true constraints from secondary effects.
The line is shown visually
The module provides a visual representation of the process flow, using color, numeric indicators, and live state visibility to show how each operation is performing at a glance.
Teams can quickly see which stations are healthy, which are being impacted, and which ones are repeatedly constraining output — without having to interpret raw event tables or long reports.
Constraint patterns build over time
As events accumulate, 10in6 builds a clearer picture of chronic constraints across the line. Teams can review live conditions, but they can also look historically by timeframe, shift, product, and other filters to see where the same limitations continue to show up.
That turns the module from a live dashboard into a tool for improvement planning.
What it looks like
Color indicates OEE threshold. State badges show current operating condition. Starved and blocked states help identify which stations are reacting to constraints elsewhere in the line.
Not which machine stopped. Where the line actually lost flow.
With 10in6 Constraint Analysis, your team can see:
- Where chronic constraints are located in the line
- Which stations are most frequently limiting throughput
- Whether a machine is blocked, starved, cycling, overcycling, or waiting
- How long each station has been in its current state
- How station impact changes over time
- Live constraint conditions across the process
- Historical constraint reports by timeframe, shift, product, and more
- Which operations deserve attention first
Why context changes the analysis
In a line environment, poor performance at one station does not always mean that station is the real issue. A machine can look inefficient simply because it is waiting on something else. If that context is ignored, teams can spend time improving the wrong area while the true source of lost throughput stays in place.
When the line is visualized clearly and each station's impact can be seen in context, supervisors can respond faster, engineers can target the right problems, and plant leaders can make better decisions about where to focus continuous improvement efforts. That is how this module goes beyond measuring efficiency at the machine level — it helps show what is actually holding the line back.
Constraint Analysis works especially well alongside:
Constraint Analysis questions
- What is the difference between downtime and a constraint?
- Downtime tells you that a machine stopped. A constraint tells you where production flow is actually being limited. In a connected line, those are not always the same thing.
- Can 10in6 identify whether a machine is blocked or starved?
- Yes. In many environments, 10in6 can use connected machine and line signals to identify conditions such as blocked, starved, cycling, and overcycling.
- Is this only for live monitoring?
- No. The module supports both live visibility and historical reporting so teams can analyze chronic constraints across shifts and time periods.
- Can reports be filtered by timeframe or product?
- Yes. Reports can be reviewed by timeframe, shift, part number, product, and other relevant filters depending on the deployment.
- Does Constraint Analysis replace Downtime Tracking?
- No. It complements Downtime Tracking by adding line context. Downtime tells part of the story. Constraint Analysis helps explain how individual stops affect the overall production flow.
- Can the visual be adapted to our process layout?
- Yes. The visual representation can be tailored to reflect the structure of your line and the stations that matter in your operation.
Works alongside these MES capabilities
Need this configured around your actual equipment and workflows?
Every 10in6 deployment includes our team — connecting your equipment, configuring your workflows, and supporting your operation long after go-live.
Find the operations that are really limiting throughput.
See where your line is being constrained, understand the context behind the stops, and focus improvement efforts where they will matter most.