# Scheduling Autoclave and Oven Capacity in a Composites Shop

> Source: https://netray.co/resources/autoclave-and-oven-capacity-scheduling-composites
> Publisher: Netray (netray.co), AI and integration engineering for ERP and manufacturing systems.
> Section: Knowledge Base

## Short answer

How to schedule autoclave and oven capacity for composite parts: load planning, cure recipes, tool availability, out-time limits and why generic scheduling fails.

## Category

ai-automation

## Content

**Intro:** Autoclave and oven scheduling in a composites shop is a load-building problem: group compatible parts that share a cure recipe into one cycle, finish layup before out-time runs out, and make sure tools return in time for the next kit. The autoclave is almost always the constraint, and an underfilled cycle wastes hours of expensive capacity. Generic finite scheduling treats each work order as separate, so it cannot see that eight orders share one cure. This guide covers how to plan loads, where schedules break and what data a planner needs.

**Sections:**

#### The Cure Load Is the Unit of Capacity

**Body:** An autoclave cycle may last 5 to 12 hours including heat-up, hold and cool-down, and the chamber might fit one large structure or dozens of small parts on a cart. What matters is the grouping: parts can share a load only if their cure recipes, pressure and vacuum needs and temperature tolerances are compatible. Plan around load slots rather than work orders. A day-by-day plan shows each autoclave as a sequence of loads, with the recipe, the planned parts, the expected fill percent and the earliest start and latest start based on part readiness. Fill percent is the single metric that most improves throughput when watched weekly.

**Bullets:**

- Recipe compatibility: temperature, pressure, vacuum and ramp rate
- Fit: tool and cart dimensions inside the chamber and thermocouple ports
- Customer or spec rules that prohibit mixing certain programs
- Cool-down and unload time before the next load can start

#### Constraints Beyond the Autoclave

**Body:** Several other resources decide whether a load can be built. Tools are finite and often single copies: if a mold is still in a previous load or waiting for repair, the part cannot be laid up. Cleanroom space, layup technicians with the right certifications, freezer capacity, cutting table time and bagging stations all queue. Prepreg out-time limits turn each kit into a deadline: the layup must be done and cured before the clock expires. Post-cure ovens, trim cells and NDI are downstream bottlenecks that can back up cured parts. A plan that fills the autoclave but ignores tool availability will slip within a day.

#### Why ERP Scheduling Alone Falls Short

**Body:** Most ERP finite schedulers, including those in SyteLine, Epicor and Global Shop, handle machine capacity per operation with setup and run times. They are not built for batch operations where the run time is the cycle length regardless of how many parts are loaded. Teams usually work around this by creating a dummy cure work order, or by running the schedule in a spreadsheet and posting results back. Both work with discipline. The risk is divergence: sales sees the ERP due date, the planner works from a different board, and nobody can answer when a given order will be cured without asking someone.

#### A Practical Weekly Planning Routine

**Body:** A routine that works for many mid-size shops starts with a look-ahead of released work orders by cure recipe, sorted by promised date. Group those into candidate loads, then check tool availability and out-time for each kit. Fix the next two or three days' loads firmly, hold the rest as flexible, and review fill percent at the end of each week. Set a rule for when a short load is acceptable, such as a hot job with a penalty clause, and when it should wait for more parts. Share the plan with sales, so quoted lead times are based on open load slots rather than on a generic number.

#### When to Use Software and When a Whiteboard Works

**Body:** A shop with one autoclave and under about twenty active jobs can manage with a board or spreadsheet that planners update daily. Dedicated scheduling software starts to pay off with multiple cure resources, many tools and hundreds of orders a month. Look for support for batch operations, tool constraints and out-time limits, and for a two-way connection to the ERP. Treat AI-based optimization with caution unless it respects these constraints, and test it on a month of real history before trusting it to propose loads.

**Cta:** Netray can read your open work orders, tool list and kit out-time data on-prem and propose candidate cure loads for a planner to review, with every assumption visible.

**Faq:**

#### How do you schedule an autoclave?

**Answer:** Plan by load, not by work order. Group parts with compatible cure recipes into a cycle, check that tools and kits are ready and within out-time, and sequence loads around cool-down and unload time. Watch fill percent weekly, because underfilled cycles waste the most constrained resource in the shop.

#### Can ERP schedule batch cure operations?

**Answer:** Many ERPs do not handle batch operations natively, since run time depends on the cycle and not on quantity. Shops typically use a shared cure work order or a separate planning board, and then post results back to the ERP. Check how your system treats a many-to-one operation before relying on its due dates.

#### What is a good autoclave utilization target?

**Answer:** There is no universal figure. Track both hours in use and fill percent per cycle, and compare against your own history. A busy autoclave at low fill can look efficient while wasting capacity, so improving load building often adds more throughput than adding shifts.

## Related Slugs

- ai-production-scheduling-optimization
- syteline-capacity-requirements-planning
- how-to-configure-syteline-finite-scheduling
- rubber-cure-time-tracking-and-press-scheduling

## Search terms

autoclave scheduling composites, composite shop capacity planning, cure load planning, oven scheduling composites, finite scheduling batch cure operations, composite production scheduling software

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