Print Farm & Production

Printer-hours vs calendar days

Printer-hours are machine time. Calendar days are how long that work takes on the clock, given how many printers you run and how many hours a day they print.

A 100-hour job on one printer that runs 10 hours a day is many calendar days. The same 100 printer-hours on four machines can finish in a handful of days. Adding printers often shortens the calendar. It does not always shrink total printer-hours for the same plates.

Bulk Order Planning shows both: total printer-hours, estimated production days, and calendar days rounded up. That calendar is based on combined available hours, not a Tuesday-through-Friday schedule with names on every job.

PrintProfit3D still plans whole plates. For extras and last plates, see Units per plate and extra parts.

Use this tool

Quick tip

If a customer hears “100 hours,” they picture four days without sleep. Translate it into calendar days before you promise.

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