Reorder point
Know when to reorder, with a buffer for uncertainty.
InventoryINVENTORY
Kanban Card & Container Sizing Calculator
Estimate Kanban cards from daily demand, replenishment lead time, an entered safety allowance, and units per container.
Kanban sizing calculator
Estimate Kanban cards from daily demand, replenishment lead time, an entered safety allowance, and units per container.
YOUR RESULT LIVE CALCULATION
Kanban cards for this loop
11cards / containers
WHOLE-CONTAINER ROUNDING- Expected lead-time demand
- 360 units
- Entered safety allowance
- 72 units
- Buffered requirement
- 432 units
- Authorized inventory
- 440 units
- Extra units from rounding
- 8
One card per container. An entered buffer is not a statistical service-level guarantee.
BEHIND THE NUMBER
How the calculation works
One card authorizes one container in this simplified pull loop. The safety allowance is a percentage of expected demand during replenishment, not a statistical service level. After rounding up, the tool shows authorized inventory and the extra units introduced by whole-container sizing. Use demand and replenishment lead time on the same day basis.
Cards = ceil(daily demand × lead time × (1 + safety allowance / 100) / quantity per container)
When this calculation helps
Kanban sizing relates consumption over the replenishment loop to a container quantity and an entered buffer. Use the complete loop, including waiting and movement, not just the production step.
Check the interpretation
A rounded number of cards does not guarantee material availability under unstable demand or an interrupted process. Confirm usable container quantity and replenishment discipline. Duplicated cards or stock outside the loop can obscure whether the intended policy is operating.
This sizes one assumed loop, not a full production Kanban design. Validate replenishment reliability, minimum card requirements, handling, container quantities, and actual production constraints before use.
Oracle overview of Kanban planningGood to know
Is the safety percentage a cycle service target?
No. It is an entered buffer on lead-time demand. Statistical safety stock and a validated service probability require a separate model.
Why round up?
A partial card or container would authorize less than the calculated requirement. Whole-container rounding can therefore add inventory beyond the entered buffer.