100-Shirt Embroidery Order: Capacity Example

The workload being modeled

This scenario asks whether the equipment clears one 100-shirt order inside two seven-hour production days. That is a different question from monthly capacity.

Target	100 good pieces in the modeled window
Design	8,000 stitches per piece
Order mix	flat garments
Average same-design batch	24 pieces
Production window	2 days × 7 hours/day
Model allowance	3% rejects/rework; one operator

Key result: one modeled single-head produces only about 70 good shirts in the two-day window. Two independent single-heads or a two-head synchronized setup model about 140, creating enough modeled room for the 100-piece order before additional safety margin.

What the same workload looks like on different architectures

The numbers below use the same assumptions as the main planner: 1.45 minutes per 1,000 stitches for flat goods, 2.10 for caps, 1.4 minutes handling for flats, 2.8 for caps and one operator. They are planning examples—not manufacturer ratings.

Setup	Modeled rate	Good pieces/window	Head utilization	First bottleneck
1 single-head	5.2/hr	70	100%	Machine
2 independent single-heads	10.3/hr	140	100%	Machine
2-head synchronized	10.3/hr	140	100%	Machine
4-head synchronized	20.7/hr	281	100%	Machine
6-head synchronized	31.0/hr	421	100%	Machine

The decision this scenario is actually testing

This is why deadline calculators are often more useful than monthly capacity calculators. If most orders are small but one recurring customer sends 100-piece rush jobs, the rush job—not the monthly average—may define the required equipment.

Before using this to buy equipment

Time several real jobs and replace the minutes-per-1,000-stitches assumption.
Measure hooping/loading time separately from sewing time.
Use the actual same-design batch size, not invoice quantity.
Add downtime, maintenance and staffing constraints that matter in your shop.
Run the shortest real customer deadline, not only the average week.

Run your own capacity model Test a deadline

Questions this example should answer

Can I simply run longer hours instead of buying another head?

Sometimes. Compare overtime, operator availability and how often the deadline occurs. A rare rush may be cheaper to absorb with scheduling than with permanent equipment.

Why does batch size matter on a 100-piece order?

A synchronized machine needs enough identical pieces to keep its heads occupied. The last partial cycle creates some unavoidable unused head positions.

Planning estimate only. The examples on this page are transparent assumptions, not a claim about the sustained output of any specific embroidery machine.