Understanding the Build Queue

The Build Queue is your visual production dashboard—a kanban-style board that shows all active orders, their current stage, and their health status at a glance.

What Is the Build Queue?

Think of the Build Queue as your digital workshop whiteboard. It displays:

• All orders currently in production
• What stage each order is in
• Material availability for each order
• Order health (on track, at-risk, overdue)
• Estimated completion dates

How It Works

Workflow Stages

Orders move through customizable stages from left to right:

Default stages:

1. To Do - Orders ready to start
2. In Progress - Currently being worked on
3. Quality Check - Review and approval
4. Completed - Finished and ready to ship

You can customize these stages to match your specific process.

Learn about customizing stages →

Order Cards

Each order appears as a card showing:

• Customer name
• Order items and quantities
• Due date
• Health status indicator
• Material availability

Drag and Drop

Move orders between stages by dragging cards:

• Start work on an order: Drag from “To Do” to “In Progress”
• Complete a stage: Drag to the next column
• Reprioritize: Reorder cards within a column

Order Health Indicators

MakeFlow automatically calculates order health based on:

• Estimated build time
• Your studio’s work hours per day
• Time remaining until due date

Health Status

🟢 Healthy

• Plenty of time to complete
• At least 1 day buffer after estimated completion

🟡 At-Risk

• Tight timeline
• Less than 1 day buffer
• Needs attention or may require overtime

🔴 Overdue

• Past the due date
• Requires immediate action

Learn more about order health →

Material Reservations

When you add an order to the build queue:

• Required materials are automatically reserved
• Reserved quantities are subtracted from available stock
• This prevents over-committing materials to multiple orders

Material availability is shown on each order card:

• ✅ All materials available
• ⚠️ Some materials low
• ❌ Insufficient materials

If materials run low, you’ll see warnings before running out completely.

Filtering and Views

Filter by Status

• Show only healthy orders
• Focus on at-risk orders
• View overdue orders

Filter by Stage

• See all orders in a specific stage
• Identify bottlenecks

Search

Find specific orders by customer name or order number.

Using the Build Queue Effectively

Daily Planning

Start each day by reviewing your build queue:

1. Check for overdue or at-risk orders
2. See what’s in your “In Progress” stage
3. Identify what to start next from “To Do”

Managing Capacity

Don’t overload “In Progress”:

• Limit work-in-progress to what you can realistically handle
• Finish orders before starting new ones
• Use the queue to visualize capacity

Prioritizing Work

Reorder cards within stages to prioritize:

• Move urgent orders to the top
• Group similar work together for efficiency
• Consider material availability when sequencing

Tracking Progress

Move cards through stages as work is completed:

• Provides a clear record of where each order is
• Shows team members (if applicable) what’s happening
• Helps identify bottlenecks (stages with too many cards)

Common Workflows

Solo Maker

1. To Do - Orders I’m ready to start
2. Making - Currently on my bench
3. Finishing - Sanding, glazing, painting, etc.
4. Done - Ready to pack and ship

Studio with Multiple Stages

1. Prep - Material cutting, prep work
2. Assembly - Main construction
3. Finishing - Surface treatment, painting
4. Quality Check - Inspection
5. Packing - Ready for shipping

Production Pottery

1. Throwing - Creating forms on the wheel
2. Trimming - Cleanup and detail work
3. Bisque Fire - First kiln firing
4. Glazing - Applying glazes
5. Glaze Fire - Second kiln firing
6. Done - Ready to ship

Tips for Success

Keep It Moving

Don’t let orders sit in one stage too long. If something’s blocked, figure out why and address it.

Review Weekly

Look for patterns:

• Are orders getting stuck in one stage?
• Do you consistently underestimate build times?
• Are material shortages a recurring issue?

Adjust Estimates

If orders regularly show as “at-risk” even when you complete them on time, you might be overestimating build times. Adjust product estimates accordingly.

Use Notes

Add comments to orders about:

• Special requirements
• Issues encountered
• Decisions made

Batch Similar Work

Group similar orders in the queue:

• Fire multiple ceramics pieces together
• Cut wood for multiple projects at once
• Mix batches of soap or candles together

Keyboard Shortcuts

• j / k - Navigate between cards
• Enter - Open card details
• Esc - Close card details
• / - Focus search

Next Steps

• Add your first order to the queue
• Customize workflow stages
• Learn about material reservations

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Need help? Contact support@makeflow.xyz