Harvest
Time Tracking
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Time Tracker for Manufacturing

Facing the high costs of downtime and inefficiencies, Harvest provides manufacturers with time tracking solutions that optimize labor management and enhance project efficiency.

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How much revenue is your team leaving on the table?

Most agencies run at 55-60% utilization. Even a small improvement means significant revenue. See what closing the gap looks like for your team.

Number of people who track billable time
$
Blended rate across roles (junior, senior, lead)
55%
Percentage of total hours that are billable. Industry average is 55-60%.
75%
A realistic target for service businesses is 70-80%.
Monthly revenue gap $0
Revenue at current utilization $0/mo
Revenue at target utilization $0/mo
Extra billable hours needed per person/day 0h
Annual revenue opportunity $0

Start tracking team utilization

Walk through the entire flow below. Start a timer, check your reports, and create a real invoice — all in three clicks.

Go ahead — start tracking!

One click and you're timing. Try it right here: start a timer, add an entry, edit the details. This is exactly how it feels in Harvest.

  • One-click timer from browser, desktop & mobile
  • Works inside Jira, Asana, Trello, GitHub & 50+ tools
  • Duration or start/end — your call
  • Day, week & calendar views to stay on top of it all
  • Friendly reminders so no hour gets left behind
Acme Corp
Website Redesign
Homepage layout revisions
1:24:09
Content Strategy
Blog calendar planning
1:30:00
SEO Audit
Technical audit report
0:45:00
Brand Guidelines
Color system documentation
2:15:00
Logo Concepts
Initial sketches round 1
1:00:00
Today's total 6:54:09

The Strategic Importance of Time Tracking in Manufacturing

Time tracking in manufacturing is crucial for reducing unplanned downtime and improving operational efficiency. Unplanned downtime alone costs global manufacturers approximately $1.4 trillion annually, representing about 11% of total revenues. In the automotive sector, downtime can cost up to $2.3 million per hour. Effective time tracking helps address these financial impacts by enabling real-time monitoring, which can reduce downtimes by 30-50% and improve Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) towards the world-class benchmark of 85%.

Labor shortages further complicate manufacturing operations, with the National Association of Manufacturers forecasting a potential shortfall of over 2 million positions in the next decade. By maximizing workforce capacity and productivity, detailed time tracking transitions operations from reactive to proactive, helping manufacturers optimize their existing resources and maintain competitive advantage.

Core Features and Integration Capabilities of Manufacturing Time Trackers

Manufacturing time trackers must offer features that cater to the complex needs of the industry, such as real-time monitoring, mobile access, and biometric time clocks. These tools should also provide customizable reporting, automated overtime alerts, and integrated scheduling to ensure smooth operations. For example, 72% of manufacturers find real-time monitoring essential for inventory reconciliation, while 69% use it for accurate production and downtime tracking.

Seamless integration with existing systems is vital. Tools like Harvest offer integrations with payroll, ERP, and MES systems, allowing for streamlined data transfer and reduced manual entry. Harvest's ability to track time by job, machine, or cost center provides granular insights, supporting diverse clock-in methods such as kiosks and mobile apps, which are well-suited for the shop floor environment.

Enhancing Labor Management and Operational Efficiency

Effective labor management in manufacturing requires reducing administrative costs and payroll errors, a task that automated time tracking solutions like Harvest excel at. By eliminating manual timesheets, manufacturers can minimize errors, rework, and employee pay disputes. Harvest's real-time tracking tools also enhance job costing accuracy, allowing for precise labor allocation and margin protection.

In a multi-shift environment, Harvest helps optimize shift schedules and prevent overstaffing, ensuring efficient resource utilization. By providing real-time visibility into workforce activities, manufacturers can identify bottlenecks, balance workloads, and align labor with production goals, which can lead to a 15% improvement in operational efficiency.

Navigating Compliance and Mitigating Risks in Manufacturing

Compliance with labor laws is non-negotiable in manufacturing. Tools like Harvest aid in adhering to federal and state-specific regulations, such as the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Automated overtime calculations and approval workflows reduce payroll risk and support compliance audits. Harvest's detailed reporting capabilities ensure that manufacturers maintain defensible records for audits and R&D tax credits.

Moreover, fatigue management is critical in manufacturing to enhance worker safety. Accurate time tracking helps monitor work hours and prevent excessive overtime, reducing the risk of fatigue-related incidents. Harvest's customizable reporting features allow businesses to track time by production stages, further enhancing compliance with Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs).

Streamline Manufacturing with Harvest

See how Harvest's time tracking optimizes labor management and enhances project efficiency in manufacturing settings.

Screenshot showing Harvest's time tracking interface for manufacturing.

Time Tracker for Manufacturing FAQs

  • Time tracking enhances labor management by reducing administrative costs and payroll errors, optimizing shift schedules, and ensuring efficient resource utilization. Harvest's real-time tracking provides visibility into workforce activities, helping manufacturers align labor with production goals and improve operational efficiency by up to 15%.

  • Key features include real-time monitoring, mobile access, biometric time clocks, and customizable reporting. Integration with payroll, ERP, and MES systems is crucial for streamlined data transfer. Harvest offers these capabilities, ensuring accurate tracking by job, machine, or cost center.

  • Harvest integrates with various systems like payroll, ERP, and MES, facilitating seamless data transfer. This integration reduces manual entry, minimizes errors, and ensures cohesive operations, making it easier to track time accurately across different manufacturing tasks and stages.

  • Yes, compliance with labor laws such as the FLSA is crucial. Harvest supports compliance with automated overtime calculations, approval workflows, and detailed reporting to maintain defensible records. This helps in audits and adhering to federal and state-specific regulations.

  • Real-time labor tracking reduces unplanned downtime by 30-50%, improves job costing accuracy, and enhances resource utilization. Harvest's tools provide real-time insights, enabling manufacturers to proactively manage labor and optimize overall efficiency.

  • In multi-shift environments, Harvest helps optimize schedules and prevent overstaffing. Its real-time tracking ensures efficient resource utilization and balances workloads, crucial for maintaining continuous operations and achieving production targets.

  • Time tracking systems with biometric clocks and geofencing, like those offered by Harvest, reduce the risk of 'buddy punching' and time theft. These features ensure that employees clock in/out accurately, maintaining the integrity of time records and payroll.