Converting Line Roll Waste Reconciliation Worksheet
Waste is the largest controllable cost in converting, but most plants only see it as a single yield number. This worksheet reconciles each job's input footage against good output and the known waste buckets, and shows what is left unaccounted.
| Job number | Line | Input footage (ft) | Good output footage (ft) | Makeready waste (ft) | Trim and matrix equivalent (ft) | Rejected in-process (ft) | Material cost per foot ($/ft) | Unaccounted loss (ft) | Yield | Waste cost | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
55 | 91.8% | $465 | |||||||||
60 | 91.6% | $624 | |||||||||
30 | 95.4% | $220 | |||||||||
40 | 91.1% | $578 | |||||||||
50 | 96.8% | $221 |
Count footage consistently, either full-width footage or area equivalents, across all lines. A growing unaccounted figure usually means unrecorded rejects, rewind losses or counter errors, not magic. Review it weekly by line and by job type.
See waste by job without spreadsheets
Optional: a review of how job and inventory transactions could produce this reconciliation automatically.
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How to use it
Log one row per job per line. Enter the footage issued to the job, the good footage produced, and the footage lost to makeready, trim or matrix, and in-process rejects. Add the material cost per foot, using full-width material cost. The unaccounted loss, yield percent and waste cost compute per row, and the totals and overall yield summarize the period. Use the same unit across lines so rows can be compared.
The reconciliation logic
Input footage must equal good output plus every named loss. Whatever remains is unaccounted loss, and it is the number to chase: it points to unrecorded reject, counter error, rewind scrap, sampling or inventory transfer. Yield equals good over input. Waste cost multiplies total waste footage by material cost per foot, so a wide expensive web shows more cost for the same footage as a narrow cheap one.
Reading the example
In the sample data, makeready dominates the waste on presses, trim dominates on the die cutter and slitter, and the laminator shows the least. The overall yield is the weighted average, not the average of row yields. A job with a good yield but a high unaccounted number is a data-quality problem, not a success. Sort by waste cost to find the jobs worth a root-cause review.
Common mistakes
Plants often log waste in different units across presses, hide rejects in good output until final inspection, or reconcile only at month end when nobody remembers what happened. Count at the end of each job, record rejects when they are found, and do not subtract unaccounted loss into makeready.
- Use one unit across all lines
- Record rejects at the time of discovery
- Review unaccounted loss weekly, not monthly
Frequently Asked Questions
What counts as makeready waste?
Material consumed from the start of setup until the first sellable output: web threading, color matching, registration and die-cut adjustment. Some plants also include wash-up and plate change. Pick a definition and keep it consistent.
What is a healthy unaccounted loss?
Close to zero. Small positive values are normal from counter and measurement differences. A large or growing value means that waste is not being recorded or that counters are off, and it deserves investigation.
Should yield be measured in area or footage?
Area is best when widths differ. Footage works when you compare jobs on the same line and web width. If you mix widths, convert everything to area equivalents before logging.
How do I treat matrix waste?
Convert it to an equivalent full-width footage, or log it as a separate trim number in feet. The matrix percent from a layout calculator times the good footage gives a quick estimate.
If this reconciliation lives in spreadsheets because job transactions in your ERP or MES do not carry footage, we can help design a read-only extract and an on-prem assistant to answer waste questions.
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