Equipment Shift Index

a quality index that expresses on a relative basis the number of shifts each equipment unit is operated daily, on the average, regardless of the length of a shift in hours.

This index is the ratio of the number of machine shifts used to the number of possible machine-days of operation, that is, to the number of installed equipment units multiplied by the number of working days for the period. For example, if 60 machines are installed in a shop, there are 20 working days in the month, and during the month 2, 640 machine shifts are used, then the machine shift index is 2, 640 divided by 1, 200 (60 machines multiplied by 20 working days), or 2.2. That is, on an average day each machine operated 2.2 shifts. An increase in the machine shift index leads to a more complete use of the fixed production assets in operating enterprises and consequently to increased output without additional investment in expansion.