Where does work stack up?
Compare demand with the capacity of picking, packing, and shipping. Make the limiting stage visible.
For warehouse, distribution & 3PL operations teams
Plan warehouse capacity
before peak hits.
Use the free calculator to compare forecast orders with staffing and process capacity. See the daily backlog, test absence or higher demand, and bring a clearer question to your peak planning meeting.
A service from DC Health Check. Start free. No card required.
THE PLANNING QUESTION●
Can the plan absorb
a 20% volume jump?
UNFINISHED AT DAY END1,184 orders
Action neededIllustrative one-process example, capacity rounded down. 12 trained staff × 6.5 productive hours × 65 orders/hour × 95% attendance. This is synthetic data.
01 / Find the constraint02 / Test the assumptions03 / Set the trigger
A decision you can use
A forecast is only half a plan.
For warehouse managers, distribution center leaders and independent 3PL operators deciding whether the peak forecast needs more people, more hours or a different process plan.
What changes the answer?
Test higher volume, lower attendance, and new-hire ramp. Keep assumptions beside the numbers.
When do we act?
Translate the gap into a staffing discussion and a dated owner/action list before the busy week.
Free · No signup needed
Free warehouse capacity and staffing calculator.
Start with the process most likely to constrain outbound orders. Change the example assumptions to your own. Your calculator inputs stay in this browser.
YOUR SCENARIO SNAPSHOT01 PROCESS
Daily planning estimate, not an hourly cutoff or service guarantee. Other stages may constrain throughput. Unknown physical capacity remains an open check.
How the calculation works
Effective labor capacity = scheduled trained staff × productive hours × process rate × (1 − absence). Modeled capacity is the lower of labor capacity and the physical limit, if supplied, rounded down to whole orders. Increased demand rounds up to whole orders. Unfinished orders = max(0, new demand + starting backlog − capacity). Staff needed rounds up total workload ÷ expected capacity per scheduled trained person. It does not solve a physical limit.
Volume-up changes new demand only; the disruption case changes attendance only. Productive hours exclude breaks and nonproductive time; the rate must use the same denominator. No overtime, new-hire ramp, labor sharing, or intraday queues are modeled here.
Want another set of eyes? Request a free Peak Snapshot review → One process, one peak week, one page of findings.
Choose inputs you can explain
What to collect for a useful capacity estimate.
Start with a single process and a consistent order mix. These checks make the calculator result easier to use.
Work arriving and waiting
Enter new orders for the day and unfinished orders already waiting. Keep units, order lines and cartons out of an orders-based forecast unless you first reconcile the units.
People and productive time
Count trained staff allocated to this process. Use hours after breaks and other nonproductive time, with an observed rate measured on that same basis.
The physical constraint
Check the stage’s equipment, staging space or carrier limit. Adding people cannot resolve a lower physical ceiling. Leave an unknown limit blank and record it as a next check.
For reporting definitions, including the difference between paid and productive hours, see the warehouse KPI formulas guide.
Choose the next decision
One building. Clear scope.
Useful work at every step.
Start here
Peak Snapshot
Free
See whether your busiest process can support the week you have planned.
- Instant calculator and downloadable results
- Optional review of one process and one peak week
- One-page gap, assumptions and next checks
One human-reviewed Snapshot per business. Data fit and a slot agreed first.
Make the decision
Peak Review
$500 one time
A focused capacity and staffing review of one upcoming peak week.
- One building; 3 sequential outbound process stages
- Base, volume-up and disruption scenarios
- Gap analysis and prioritized action triggers
- One 20-minute readout
Target: 5 business days after accepted data and the agreed start. Date confirmed before payment.
Build the seasonal plan
Seasonal Model
$2,500 one time
A reusable Excel planning model for the season ahead, built with your inputs.
- One building, up to 12 weeks and 3 sequential stages
- Daily demand, staffing, new-hire ramp and overtime
- 3 scenarios, bottleneck capacity and backlog
- Action plan, one readout and one revision
Delivered across an agreed 2–3 week slot. A $500 Peak Review is credited once for the same building if accepted within 30 days; total $2,500.
Already have the planning question? Request a written seasonal scope.
Prices in USD. Scope, usable inputs and delivery capacity are agreed before payment. Separate projects are not bundled into the review credit. No automatic subscription.
From the forecast to the floor
A short path to a working plan.
Send the planning question.
Tell us the building, peak dates, and the decision you need to make. Start with a short description.
Agree the data and scope.
We confirm the input template, assumptions, safe file-transfer method, and a delivery slot. Aggregate operations data is enough.
Review the gap and next move.
Get the calculations, missing-data notes, and an action list. Decide what to change and who owns it.
See what the working model looks like.
The demo uses fictional warehouse inputs. It shows the format, not customer results.
Start a conversation
What needs to be ready
before your peak?
Michael at DC Health Check will review the request and confirm fit, data needs, and timing by email.
Prefer email? michael@dchealthcheck.com
Submit business contact details and a brief operational question only. Do not include employee names, customer records, credentials, or files.
Before we start
Warehouse capacity planning questions.
Do I need a WMS integration?
No. The work starts with agreed exports or completed input templates. The seasonal model uses daily demand, process-specific staffing, observed rates, calendar, absence, overtime and new-hire ramp assumptions. Rates based on different units must be reconciled first.
Is this an audit or a live operating system?
Peak Readiness is a forward-looking planning service under DC Health Check. It provides an Excel model and decisions supported by your assumptions. Continuous monitoring, WMS configuration, labor scheduling execution and onsite engineering are separately scoped work.
Can the model prove we will hit every cutoff?
No. Daily modeled capacity does not prove hourly service performance. Arrival patterns, inventory availability, labor sharing, process queues and carrier cutoffs require additional checks. Uncertain rates and physical limits are recorded as open assumptions.
What if our data is not ready?
We identify the missing inputs before accepting paid work. A free Snapshot can show the information to collect. We do not replace missing observations with claimed industry benchmarks.
How are requests and files handled?
The form stores your business name, first name, email, selected offer, timing and question in DC Health Check’s request system for up to 60 days so we can respond. Calculator values are not submitted with the form. Do not upload sensitive data here. We agree a secure transfer method and data-retention terms before a project. Contact michael@dchealthcheck.com for an access or deletion request. No marketing subscription is created by this form.