Batch and consumable planning
Plan reel quantities and replenishment using the supplier’s label count and your actual production assumptions. Evaluate each label head separately before combining the line plan.
Multiply the batch quantity by the number of labels each bottle consumes from the reel being assessed. Deduct any usable labels already loaded, then divide the remaining demand by the usable count on a new reel and round up. Keep front and rear reels separate when independent heads use different labels or reel capacities.
The calculator deliberately uses a supplied label count rather than estimating capacity from outside diameter. Liner, face stock, adhesive, winding and construction change how many labels a reel holds. Booklet labels can make a diameter-only estimate especially unhelpful.
The prefilled values are a worked example, not machine specifications. Enter your own batch, converter reel count and waste allowance. No calculation data is submitted or stored by the website.
These results model only the inputs shown. They do not guarantee good-pack output, waste, machine compatibility or total shift duration.
For one label supply, let N be bottles, K labels from this reel per bottle, R labels on a new reel, W unavailable labels per new reel, and S usable labels already loaded.
Example: 10,000 bottles, one label each, 2,000 supplied labels per reel and 40 unavailable labels per reel leave 1,960 usable labels per reel. Starting without a loaded reel requires six new reels and five changes during the batch, leaving 1,760 usable labels after the batch.
At the example operating rate of 30 bottles/minute, a full usable reel represents about 65.3 minutes of bottle production. Five four-minute changes add 20 minutes to approximately 333.3 minutes of running, giving about 353.3 minutes for running plus those changes only.
Initial setup, breaks, cleaning, inspection holds, material faults, upstream interruptions and other losses are not included. Use the throughput calculator to assess the broader time allowance; avoid counting the same planned stop twice.
| Supply arrangement | How to calculate it | Scheduling consequence |
|---|---|---|
| One wrap label per bottle | Use one label per bottle from the wraparound reel. | Plan its usable capacity and each change. |
| Independent front and rear heads | Run the calculation once for the front supply and once for the rear supply, normally at one label each per bottle. | The smaller effective supply can run out first. Do not add both heads’ stop times unless the stops really occur separately. |
| Two alternating labels from one reel | Use two labels per bottle, and confirm that the supplied reel count counts individual labels rather than complete front/back sets. | Both artwork sequence and restart position must remain correct; equal total label counts do not prove complete usable pairs. |
| Booklet or other special construction | Use the converter-confirmed count and a representative waste allowance. | Reel diameter, mass and unwind suitability still require separate machine approval. |
For independent heads, align the expected depletion points with the agreed line-stop strategy. Where a change interrupts the entire conveyor, plan the bottle already in each application and inspection stage before restarting. See the changeover checklist.
A larger usable count can lengthen the interval between changes, but only if the approved unwind, core, reel diameter, mass and liner take-up can accommodate it. Replenishment access, safe handling, job changes and part-used stock also matter. Do not fit a larger roll merely because a planning calculation shows fewer stops.
Use a measured allowance for your actual label construction, threading route, start-up checks and production conditions. Separate labels unavailable on each reel from whole-batch setup rejects and other process losses. The example allowance is editable and is not an expected rejection rate for a Lancing machine.
Yes. Enter the usable count on the mounted reel separately, after deducting damaged or unavailable material. Confirm the artwork revision, batch suitability, storage condition and correct winding before treating the remainder as usable stock. The calculator does not verify inventory or identify labels.
No. It models label demand and the reel-change assumptions entered. Good-pack output also depends on the pack, machine configuration, operator work, inspection, rejected bottles and interruptions elsewhere on the line. Use representative trials and your operating records to set the final production requirement.
Continue with reel specification, label material selection and booklet-label application checks.
Provide the bottle and label formats, labels per reel for each head, current batch schedule, target good-pack output and available changeover time. The plan helps define the application; Lancing must still confirm the proposed machine and consumables together.
Illustration from the Lancing website. The actual bottle, finished label construction and approved machine configuration determine suitability.
Application guidance from Lancing. This page distinguishes planning checks from a verified machine specification; results must be confirmed against representative samples.