A production schedule template turns orders into dated work on a named person, machine or workstation. For a small workshop, start with the required quantity, due date, material readiness, setup time, run time and review time. Then check that the work fits the available hours on each resource, not just the weekly total.
The example below follows a fictional canvas-accessories workshop with one sewing workstation. All times and quantities are planning assumptions. Use your own observed process times before making delivery commitments. This is a manufacturing work schedule; for social posts and videos, use the separate content production capacity guide.
Choose a weekly view and a job-detail row
Use the weekly page to see where work is booked. Give each resource its own row per day. Keep the detail page for the job ID, SKU, quantity, material check, predecessor task, setup, production, inspection and packing. A colored calendar block without these assumptions can look feasible while hiding several hours of unfinished work.
| Field | Example entry | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Job and quantity | J-101, 60 navy pouches | Connects the work to an order |
| Resource and owner | Sewing station S1; Sam | Exposes competing bookings |
| Ready condition | Cut fabric and zippers checked | Distinguishes planned from ready |
| Setup / run / check | 0.5 h / 3 h / 0.5 h | Includes work beyond sewing |
| Start, finish and due | Monday morning; dispatch Tuesday | Separates production from delivery |
| Actuals and exceptions | Completed quantity, hours, blocker and owner | Makes the next estimate better |
Smartsheet's production scheduling template collection distinguishes daily, weekly and finite-capacity schedules. The original starter here deliberately uses a small weekly layout. It suits a few jobs sharing limited resources, not a factory-wide scheduling engine.
Calculate available time before placing orders
The workshop opens for eight hours each weekday. In this example, breaks, routine maintenance and administration remove two hours from the sewing station's planned day. That leaves six hours Monday through Friday, or 30 hours for the week. Do not count the same person's time twice just because two machines are available.
Write the daily deductions explicitly. If a machine service takes another two hours on Wednesday, Wednesday capacity becomes four hours and the weekly total becomes 28. A maintenance appointment is not extra work that can sit outside a fully booked calendar. The equipment maintenance due planner can organize due work; it does not reserve production time automatically.
Use one time unit throughout. If the run rate is three minutes per item, 60 items require 180 minutes, or three hours. For this example, planned job hours equal setup hours plus quantity multiplied by minutes per unit divided by 60, plus the separate inspection and packing allowance.
Worked production schedule: three jobs, one station
Assume all three jobs use the same workstation and operator during their stated setup, run and check time. Materials for J-101 and J-103 are ready Monday. J-102's fabric is due Tuesday but must be received and checked before that job starts. The workshop leaves its customer dispatch commitments on the order record.
| Job | Quantity | Setup | Run calculation | Check / pack | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| J-101 navy pouches | 60 | 0.5 h | 60 × 3 min = 3 h | 0.5 h | 4 h |
| J-102 natural totes | 40 | 0.75 h | 40 × 6 min = 4 h | 0.75 h | 5.5 h |
| J-103 zip cases | 30 | 0.5 h | 30 × 5 min = 2.5 h | 0.5 h | 3.5 h |
Total planned load is 13 hours. Against 30 available hours, the booked share is about 43.3%, leaving 17 hours unallocated. That does not mean a large new order fits before Tuesday. The date, material readiness and resource sequence still matter.
| Day | Station S1 work | Booked | Unallocated | Start condition |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | J-101 | 4 h | 2 h | Materials checked |
| Tuesday | J-103 | 3.5 h | 2.5 h | Materials checked |
| Wednesday | J-102 | 5.5 h | 0.5 h | Tuesday receipt accepted |
| Thursday | Unallocated | 0 h | 6 h | Review new demand |
| Friday | Unallocated | 0 h | 6 h | Review new demand |
Mark Wednesday's J-102 booking as conditional until the material check is complete. A supplier's promised delivery date is not proof that usable fabric is available. Track receipts with the partial shipments and backorders workflow, including what remains outstanding.
Test a rush order against the actual day
A customer asks for a new job requiring three hours on Monday, with finished goods needed Tuesday morning. Monday has only two unallocated hours. The proposed load is 4 + 3 = 7 hours against six available hours, so it is one hour over capacity. The week's 17 spare hours do not solve a Monday conflict.
Record an explicit decision: change the dispatch promise, move another job with approval, use a genuinely available qualified resource, or decline the rush date. Do not silently assume overtime or shorten an inspection allowance. If you move part of a job to Tuesday, check the customer's required finish time and whether stopping creates another setup.
For example, splitting a run across two days might add a 0.25-hour restart that the original estimate omitted. Record it as a new assumption and recalculate the affected day. The template does not decide which jobs may safely pause; that depends on your process.
Keep material readiness and lot records separate
For each job, verify the required materials, available quantities, condition and the version of the work instruction. A material reservation is a planning commitment, not proof that every component is physically on the shelf. Where inventory looks uncertain, use an inventory count sheet before confirming the start.
Record a material or finished-goods lot reference when your operation uses one. The production schedule says when work is planned; the batch and lot log records what was actually used, produced and shipped. Keep the connection without treating the calendar as a replacement for traceability records.
Update the schedule using completed work
Suppose J-101 actually takes 4.75 hours and produces 58 accepted pouches with two awaiting rework. Record all three facts: actual time, accepted quantity and unresolved quantity. The remaining Monday capacity is then 6 − 4.75 = 1.25 hours, not the original two. Sixty units sewn does not mean 60 units ready for dispatch.
If the two pieces need an estimated 0.5-hour rework session on Tuesday using S1, Tuesday's booked load rises from 3.5 to four hours. Keep the original plan and enter the revision with its reason. Confirm the accepted quantity and order requirement before promising that the job is complete.
At the daily review, ask which jobs finished, which start conditions remain open and which dates changed. Carry unfinished work forward as remaining work, rather than copying the original full job hours into every day. This avoids counting hours already consumed as future capacity requirements.
Questions before using the template
Is this a master production schedule?
No. It is a short-range resource and job worksheet. It does not calculate demand forecasts, bills of materials, purchasing requirements or optimized sequences.
Can I use it for more than one workstation?
Yes. Copy the resource rows and check each resource independently. When one operator serves both stations, also check that person's schedule; adding machine hours together can hide a labor conflict.
Does the download save my entries?
The download is a blank printable HTML worksheet. Write on the printed pages or annotate a saved PDF using your own application. It has no browser storage or automatic calculations. Keep the completed version with a date and job references.