How Corefacture Revealed the Truth Behind a "95% OEE" Lie

"We're at 95% efficiency," they said.

And for years, they believed it.

The dashboards said green. The reports looked clean. The factory floor appeared busy.

But deep down, the plant director had a suspicion: "We're hitting the numbers — but why does it still feel like we're behind?"

Turns out, they weren't wrong. They were just blind.

The Symptoms: Something Didn't Add Up

The manufacturer in question produced automotive seating components for major OEMs. Each day, hundreds of robotic cycles delivered molded cushions and stamped brackets. And every shift was"on target."

On paper.

But customer complaints were creeping in. Orders were consistently late by 1–2 days. Operators whispered about bottlenecks that didn't show up in reports. The maintenance lead had no answers.

So the leadership team brought in Corefacture — just to "check if anything's off."

What we found shocked them.

The Real OEE? Not Even Close

We installed StepCollector™ modules across 6 key machines and began collecting real, signal-level data — not operator inputs, not Excel estimates.

Within 48 hours, the picture changed completely:

• Machines were frequently pausing without logging stops
• Operators were slowing cycle times when supervisors weren't watching
• "No material" delays were tagged — despite material being already delivered
• Maintenance response times were much slower than reported

The total effect?

Actual OEE was 45%. Not 95%. A 50-point gap. And a major wake-up call.

Why This Happens Everywhere

The plant wasn't dishonest. They just didn't have real data.

• Manual stop reasons are subjective.
• Planned cycle times are overly generous.
• Speed loss (slow work, false tagging) goes totally undetected in most SCADA systems.
• Time studies are gamed — operators work differently when being observed.

Most systems track if a machine is running. Corefacture shows you how well it's running — and where the truth is hiding.

What Changed After Corefacture

Armed with the real data, the team took action:

• Adjusted shift targets to match actual performance
• Created a dashboard showing true OEE by shift and by operator
• Implemented alerts for speed loss and untagged downtime
• Reassigned floor leaders based on real engagement — not perceived presence

Within 90 days:

• OEE climbed from 45% to 63%
• Lead times shortened by 1.8 days
• Plant confidence in the data increased dramatically

"Now we know who's actually working — and who's working the system."

The Real Lesson

Your factory doesn't need another spreadsheet. It needs visibility without illusion.

If your OEE is always 90% — but your line feels like it's struggling — it probably is.

Corefacture gives you the real number. Then it gives you the tools to fix it.