A yard bottleneck is the lowest-capacity step in the whole flow: it sets how many units per day you can process, no matter how fast everything else is. Find it by observing where units pile up, measuring real capacity of each step, protecting the limiting step, and remeasuring after every change.
- steps
- 4
- before the constraint
- Queue
- at bottleneck = 1 h yard
- 1 h
- every change
- Remeasure
Investing in any step that is not the limiter improves that area’s report and does not move yard results.
Cluster: check-in · detention · tower.
Step 1: where the queue forms
Gate, hold with free docks, in front of busy docks, or loaded without exit: each pile-up points to a different constraint.
Where the queue forms
The pile-up is the yard’s most honest symptom.
| Pile-up | Likely constraint |
|---|---|
| Outside the gate | Slow check-in or bad appointment mix |
| Hold with free docks | Assignment: nobody calls to dock |
| In front of busy docks | Handling or forklifts / labor |
| Loaded not exiting | Documentation or release |
Step 2: measure capacity
Units per hour and idle time by stage, with real interruptions. The lowest effective capacity is your constraint.
Four-step method
Observe, measure, protect, remeasure. The constraint moves.
Select a step to see detail
Step detail · 01
Observe
Where it piles
Step 3: protect the constraint
Work buffer, subordinate to bottleneck pace, and keep foreign work off the limiting step.
How to protect the constraint
Investing in any other step improves the area report, not the yard.
01
Buffer
Always a unit ready before the prior one finishes.
02
Subordinate
Gate does not release more than the constraint digests.
03
No foreign work
The limiting dock does not wait on paperwork: paperwork arrives early.
Step 4: did it move?
If you sped unload and units now wait on paperwork, the constraint moved. Related: check-in, release.
What OCL runs
OCL Cargo is an autonomous TMS with agents and computer use (operating screens and portals like an analyst). It builds the trip file per shipment, cross-checks evidence, and leaves exceptions to humans. It coexists without a day-one TMS migration. OCL can stamp invoice and Carta Porte. On the Mexico–US corridor, the value is closing the trip file before paying.
Trip file
Flow control
Observe
Queue
Measure
Capacity
Protect
Bottleneck
Remeasure
Moved
6–8 week pilot (yard)
One peak week: pile-up map, capacity by stage, and a bottleneck-protection experiment. Goal: more units/day without new construction.
Elige un paso para ver el detalle
Detalle del paso · 01
Peak-hour walk with queue map
Key takeaways5 points
- The bottleneck is the lowest-capacity step in the flow.
- The queue forms before the constraint.
- Measure observed capacity, not theoretical.
- An hour lost at the bottleneck is an hour lost for the whole yard.
- Every improvement moves the constraint: measure again.
Does your yard “need another dock,” or does it need a stage-by-stage measurement?
Related reading
Frequently asked questions
It tells you it exists and what it costs, not where it is. You need time by stage.
It is external: appointment policy, controlled overbooking, and compliance by provider.
After every material change and at least quarterly.
Only if the dock is the constraint. If it waits on forklifts or paperwork, no.
Timeline per unit (check-in to release) and exceptions visible to traffic and Finance.