Mq-c1

MQ-C1-I
(11-2005)

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
Economics and Statistics Administration

U.S. CENSUS BUREAU

INSTRUCTIONS FOR
THE SURVEY OF PLANT CAPACITY UTILIZATION
DURING THE FOURTH QUARTER 2005

Page
General Instructions

2

Item by Item Instructions

2

Item 1 – Operational Status

2

Item 2 – Value of Production

3

Item 3 – Work Patterns of Fourth Quarter Operations

4

Item 4 – Fourth Quarter Actual Operations vs. Full Production Capability

5

Item 5 – National Emergency Production

5

Examples

USCENSUSBUREAU

6

If 2004 data are NOT printed on the form, you do not
need to enter data for that period.

AUTHORITY AND CONFIDENTIALITY – Your
response is required by law (Title 13, United States
Code). By section 9 of the same law, your report is
confidential. It may be seen only by persons sworn
to uphold the confidentiality of Census Bureau
information, and may be used only for statistical
purposes. The law also provides that copies of your
report retained in your files are immune from legal
process. Response is not required to any information
collection form unless it displays a valid approval
number from the Office of Management and Budget.
This 8-digit number appears in the upper right
corner of the form.

WHEN TO REPORT
Complete the survey form and return it in the
enclosed return envelope by the date printed on the
top of the form. If you have misplaced the return
envelope, mail the completed form to:
U.S. Census Bureau
1201 East 10th Street
Jeffersonville, IN 47132-0001

PUBLIC REPORTING
Public reporting burden for this collection of
information is estimated to average 2.25 hours per
response, including time for reviewing instructions,
searching existing data sources, gathering and
maintaining the data needed, and completing and
reviewing the collection of information. Send
comments regarding this burden estimate or any
other aspect of this collection of information,
including suggestions for reducing this burden, to:
Paperwork Project 0607-0175, U.S. Census Bureau,
4700 Silver Hill Road, Stop 1500, Washington, DC
20233-1500. You may e-mail comments to
[email protected]; use "Paperwork Project
0607-0175" as the subject.

HOW TO REPORT
Answer all questions on the report form. Follow the
instructions for each item given on this sheet.
Report market value of production figures in
thousands of dollars. For example, if value of
production is 1,125,788 dollars, enter the figure as
follows:
Mil.

Thou.

1

126

NAME AND ADDRESS
WHO SHOULD REPORT?

Review the name and address of this plant printed in
the top right corner of the report form. Line out any
errors and make any necessary corrections or
additions in the address box.

This report covers the manufacturing plant or
printing facility named in the address box of the
form. If your company operates more than one
location, REPORT ONLY FOR THOSE PLANTS
SELECTED FOR THIS SAMPLE SURVEY. A report
form and instruction sheet are enclosed for each
plant selected.

Item 1 – OPERATIONAL STATUS

Since some of the information necessary to
complete this form may not be in your records,
CONSULT THE PLANT MANAGER on questions
regarding full production capability and emergency
production.

Report the status of operations at this plant at the
end of 2005 by marking the appropriate box. If:
In Operation – Complete items 2 through 6.
Idle Plants – Complete items 2 through 6.
a. If this plant was temporarily idle during the entire
fourth quarter report actual operations as zero
where appropriate.

WHAT TO REPORT?
This survey form primarily asks for 3 levels of
operating capability of this plant in the fourth quarter
of 2005:

b. If this plant was temporarily idle during only part
of the fourth quarter report the actual
operations for the time the plant was in operation.

(1) the market value of actual goods produced;
(2) the value of products that could have been
produced if the plant was operating at full
capacity in the fourth quarter; and

(3) the value of products that could have been
produced if required in a national emergency.

MQ-C1-I (11-2005)

Page 2

Item 1 – OPERATIONAL STATUS – Continued

(3) Use fourth quarter value of shipments f.o.b.
(freight on board) from the plant (including the
value of interplant transfers within a company, in
addition to direct costs of production, but
excluding resales and miscellaneous receipts)
plus any additions or subtractions to the finished
stock of inventories present before the fourth
quarter (excluding materials and supplies). [Value
of production = value of shipments + value of
ending inventory – value of beginning inventory].

For both cases, report full production and
emergency production capabilities based on the
plant’s peak quarterly production during 2005.
Sold or Leased Plant – If this plant was sold or
leased to another company, indicate the month and
year this action took place.
a. If you still maintain records for this plant, complete
items 2 through 6.

SPECIAL NOTE:

b. If you do not have 4th quarter information about
this plant, complete item 6 only and return the form.
Permanently Ceased Operations – Indicate the
month and year when operations ceased at this
plant. If the plant was in operation at ANY time
during the fourth quarter of 2005, complete items 2
through 6. Report full production and emergency
production capabilities, as if the plant operated the
entire quarter.

Do not include manufacturing contracted to others.
If you contract out all of your manufacturing, please
state this in the "Remarks" section, complete item 6,
and return the form.
Job shops and custom orders: For actual
production, report value of work done in the fourth
quarter of 2005.
Publishing/printing plants: For actual production,
report your printing sales only (NOT advertising
sales) for the location named in the address box of
the form. Do not include any printing that is
contracted out. If you do not perform any printing
activities, please indicate so in the remarks
section on the back of the form.

SPECIAL NOTE:
Seasonal Operations
a. If this plant is usually temporarily idle during the
fourth quarter due to seasonal factors, report as
instructed for idle plants.

Item 2b – FULL PRODUCTION CAPABILITY
Read the definition and assumptions regarding full
production capability. Estimate your market value of
products that would have been produced if the plant
was operating at full capacity in the fourth quarter.
Use one of the two methods suggested below or
your own computations.

b. If this plant was not temporarily idle during the
fourth quarter, but its operations vary substantially
from quarter to quarter, due to seasonal factors,
complete items 2 through 6, and report full
production and national emergency production
capabilities based on the plant’s peak quarterly
production during the year.
For both types of seasonal operations, check
"Seasonal Operations" in item 4a if actual operations
are less than full production capability.

Full Production Capability – The maximum level
of production that this establishment could
reasonably expect to attain under normal and
realistic operating conditions fully utilizing the
machinery and equipment in place. In estimating
market value at full production capability, consider
the following:
• Assume only the machinery and equipment in place
and ready to operate will be utilized. Do not include
facilities or equipment that would require extensive
reconditioning before they can be made operable.

Item 2 – VALUE OF PRODUCTION
Item 2a – MARKET VALUE OF PRODUCTION
Report the value of production based on estimated
sales price(s) of what was produced during the
fourth quarter, not fourth quarter sales. If production
at this plant consists of only interplant transfers, use
method (2) below to calculate market value of
production.

• Assume normal downtime, maintenance, repair,
and cleanup. If full production requires additional
shifts or hours of operation, then appropriate
downtime should be considered in the estimate.

Three methods – to estimate market value of goods
produced during the fourth quarter:

• Assume number of shifts, hours of plant operations,
and overtime pay that can be sustained under
normal conditions and a realistic work schedule.
•
Assume labor, materials, utilities, etc. are fully
available.

(1) Estimate the sales price(s) of item(s) produced,
then multiply the sales price(s) by the total
number of items produced during the fourth
quarter.

• Assume a product mix that was typical or
representative of your production during the fourth
quarter. If your plant is subject to short-run variation
assume the product mix of the current period.

(2) Use book figures of actual production costs plus
an estimate of markup to cover overhead and
profit.

Page 3

MQ-C1-I (11-2005)

Item 2b – FULL PRODUCTION CAPABILITY –
Continued
• Do not assume increased use of productive facilities
outside the plant for services (such as contracting
out subassembly work) in excess of the proportion
that would be normal during the fourth quarter.
SPECIAL NOTE:
Job shops and custom orders: For full production,
estimate the market value of work that you could
have accomplished under sustainable operating
conditions and if you had sufficient orders.
Publishing/printing plants: For full production,
report printing sales for this location as if it were
running at peak circulation.
Two Methods to estimate market value of
production when operating at full production
capability:
(1) If you have a reliable or accurate estimate of your
plant’s sustainable capacity utilization rate:
Divide your market value of production at actual
operations (item 2c) by your current rate of
capacity utilization (in decimal form). For
example, if your value of actual operations for the
fourth quarter is $1,200,000 and your plant is
currently at 80% capacity, divide $1,200,000 by
0.80 for a full production capability of $1,500,000.
Capacity
Market value of
Actual Value of
/ Utilization = production at
Production
Rate
Full Capacity
Your plant’s capacity utilization rate should be based
on a capacity output measure that your plant could
have sustained under normal, not emergency,
conditions.
(2) For each product, estimate the number of items
that could have been produced if operating at full
production, as defined by the assumptions given.
Multiply the number of items produced by its
sales price (or market value). For example, if you
can produce 25,000 items in the fourth quarter,
under full production criteria, and the sales price
(market value) for each item is $4.50, then
multiply 25,000 times $4.50 for a full production
capability of $112,500.
Number of
Sales price
Market value of
x (Market
= production at
items
produced
Value)
Full Capacity
If producing more than one product, sum the
market values of production at full production
estimated for each product (assuming the same
product mix) for a total value of full production for
the plant.
Enter your estimate for value of full production in
item 2b.

Item 2d – Comparing full production capability
between fourth quarters of 2004 and 2005
If the value of full production for the fourth quarter
of 2005 differs from 2004, mark (X) the primary
reasons for the change.

Item 3 – WORK PATTERNS OF FOURTH
QUARTER OPERATIONS
Actual Operations – In columns 1 through 3,
report work patterns for the following characteristics
covering each production shift of actual operations
in the 4th quarter of 2004. Report based on the
average number of shifts per day in the fourth
quarter. Do not consider maintenance,
administrative, or support operations as additional
shifts. Do not consider overtime hours as additional
shifts. If the plant did not operate a second or third
shift, do not complete the corresponding columns.
a. Days per week in operation – For each shift,
report the typical number of days per week in
operation for the fourth quarter. If your plant has
departments or assembly lines that operate varied
number of days within a shift, report days per
week in operation for the department operating
the greatest number of days per week for that
shift. For example, if one production line operates
7 days per week during the first shift and a
second production line operates 5 days per week
during the first shift, report that the first shift
operates 7 days per week.
b. Plant hours per week – For each shift, report
the typical number of hours the plant was in
production during a single week. If your plant
has departments or assembly lines that operate at
varied periods of time within a shift, report hours
per week in operation for the production
department operating the greatest number of
hours per week for that shift. Do not report the
number of person hours worked (see below).
c. Weeks in operation in the quarter – For each
shift, report the total number of weeks the plant
operated during the fourth quarter. NOTE: The
fourth quarter of the year covers 13 weeks.
d. Total number of production workers – For
each shift, report the total number of production
workers at this establishment, including both
permanent (payroll) and temporary employees
who were paid during the pay period which
included November 12. Include all persons on
paid sick leave, paid holidays, paid vacation
during this pay period.

Item 2c – CAPACITY UTILIZATION
(1) Divide your estimate for actual production (Item
2a) by full production (Item 2b) capability. Multiply
this number by 100. Enter this percentage in the
box.
(2) Is this a reasonable percentage of your
sustainable capacity use in the 4th quarter of
2005? Mark (X) yes or no. If no, please review
your full production capability estimate. If yes,
continue with the next item.
MQ-C1-I (11-2005)

NOTE: Include workers (up through the
line-supervisor level) engaged in fabricating,
processing, assembling, inspecting, receiving,
packing, warehousing, shipping (but not delivering),
maintenance, repair, janitorial, guard services,
product development, auxiliary production for
plant’s own use (e.g., power plant), record keeping,
and other closely associated services. Include truck
drivers delivering ready-mixed concrete.
Page 4

SPECIAL NOTE: Your value of production at national
emergency levels should be greater than or equal
to your value of full production capability. If it is less
than your full production capability, please review
your computations.

Item 3 – WORK PATTERNS OF FOURTH
QUARTER OPERATIONS – Continued
Exclude nonproduction personnel, including those
engaged in supervision above line-supervisor level,
sales, sales delivery (truck drivers and helpers),
advertising, credit, collection, installation and
servicing of own product, clerical and routine office
functions, executive, purchasing, finance, legal,
personnel (including cafeteria, etc.), professional
and technical.

National Emergency Production – The maximum
level of production that this plant could expect to
attain and sustain for one year or more under
national emergency conditions.
National emergency conditions are situations, such
as a military mobilization or natural disaster, which
are likely to create widespread excess demand
requiring additional work shifts.
For example, military mobilization may require
increased production of food, clothing, building
supplies, and conversion of plants to produce
alternative products in addition to traditional defense
hardware. Devastation from natural disasters, such
as hurricanes, floods, earthquakes, or fire, may
require increased production of similar goods as
well as increased production to compensate for
plants damaged or destroyed.

e. Number of temporary production workers –
For each shift, report the number of temporary
production workers not on the payroll (hired
through temporary help agencies or as their own
agent) and working during the pay period
including November 12. Include temporary
production workers who perform the same tasks
as listed above. Do not include part-time
workers.
f. Total hours worked by production workers –
For each shift, report number of hours worked by
all production workers in the fourth quarters (both
those on the payroll and temporary production
workers). Include overtime hours, but excluded
paid vacations, holidays, and sick leave.

In estimating national emergency production,
consider the following:
• Assume full use of all machinery and equipment in
place (including machinery and equipment that
would require extensive reconditioning before they
could be made operable).
• Assume minimal downtime and multi-work shift
operations.
• Assume plant production as close to 168 hours per
week as possible, including extra shifts (e.g.,
operating 7 days per week, 24 hours per day less
minimal downtime).
• Assume overtime pay, availability of labor,
materials, utilities, etc., are fully available to
you and your suppliers.
• Assume you can sell all your output.
• Assume your product mix can change.
• Assume increased use of productive facilities outside
the plant for services (such as contracting out
subassembly work) in excess of the proportion that
would be normal during the fourth quarter.

g. Hours worked by temporary production
workers – For each shift, report number of hours
worked by temporary production workers
included in the total hours worked by production
workers (line f). Include overtime hours worked by
temporary production workers.
h. Overtime hours worked by production
workers – For each shift, report number of
overtime hours included in the total hours worked
by production workers (line f).
Full production capability – In column 4, report
work patterns for each characteristic as if the plant
operated at full production capability in the 4th
quarter of 2005. Use the criteria defined for Full
Production Capability in item 2b.
Enter the number of shifts per day at full capacity in
the box provided in the upper right hand corner. See
examples of responses to item 3 on page 6.

SPECIAL NOTE

Item 4 – FOURTH QUARTER ACTUAL OPERATIONS
VS. FULL PRODUCTION CAPABILITY
Compare the actual value of production in the fourth
quarter of 2005 to the estimated value of full
production.

Jobs shops and custom orders: For national
emergency production, estimate the market value of
work that could have been done if you received
additional orders assuming maximum number of
employees working multiple shifts that the facility
can accommodate.

Item 4a – Mark (X) reasons why your actual
operations were less than the estimated value of full
production capability, if appropriate.

Publishing/printing plants: For national
emergency production, report value of printing if
operating machinery as close to 168 hours/week as
possible.

Item 4b – Select a time period that would have been
reasonable to increase output to full production level.

Item 5b – Select a time period that would have been
reasonable to increase output to emergency
production level, if required.

Item 5 – NATIONAL EMERGENCY PRODUCTION
Read the definition and assumptions regarding
national emergency production. Estimate your value
of production under national emergency conditions
for the fourth quarter of 2005. Use your own
computations or methods similar to those described
for estimating full production capability.

If you have any questions concerning the
definitions or instructions, please contact the
Special Studies Branch of the Manufacturing
and Construction Division on (301) 763–4667.
Page 5

MQ-C1-I (11-2005)

Example 1. A plant with one 8-hour shift operating
5 days/week

Actual Operations
Shift one

Shift two

Shift three

(1)

(2)

(3)

b. Plant hours per week in operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
c. Weeks in operation in the quarter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
d. Total number of production workers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
e. Temporary production workers included in line d (not on the payroll
and hired through temporary agencies or as their own agent;
see instructions). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

4
Mil. Thou. Hrs.

Mil. Thou. Hrs.

Mil. Thou. Hrs.

15 880
240
0

f. Total hours worked by production workers . . . . . . . . . . . .
g. Hours worked by temporary production workers (included in line f). .
h. Overtime hours worked by production workers (included in line f) . .

17 680
600
0

Actual Operations
Shift one

Shift two

Shift three

(1)

(2)

(3)

7
56
13
110

5
40
13
50

a. Days per week in operation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
b. Plant hours per week in operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
c. Weeks in operation in the quarter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
d. Total number of production workers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
e. Temporary production workers included in line d (not on the payroll
and hired through temporary agencies or as their own agent;
see instructions). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

10

0

Mil. Thou. Hrs.

Mil. Thou. Hrs.

53 200
1 200
0

24 800
0
0

f. Total hours worked by production workers . . . . . . . . . . . .
g. Hours worked by temporary production workers (included in line f). .
h. Overtime hours worked by production workers (included in line f) . .

Example 3. A plant in Continuous Operation

Shift two

Shift three

(2)

(3)

7
56
13
360

7
56
13
360

7
56
13
200

d. Total number of production workers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
e. Temporary production workers included in line d (not on the payroll
and hired through temporary agencies or as their own agent;
see instructions). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

0

0

Mil. Thou. Hrs.

117 000
0
0

(1)

c. Weeks in operation in the quarter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

2

(4)

0
Mil. Thou. Hrs.

Shift one

b. Plant hours per week in operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Full Production
Capability
Number of shifts

7
112
13
210

Actual Operations

a. Days per week in operation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

0

Full Production
Capability
Number of shifts

3

(4)

7
168
13
1080
0

Mil. Thou. Hrs.

Mil. Thou. Hrs.

Mil. Thou. Hrs.

Mil. Thou. Hrs.

168 480
0
200

168 480
0
200

104 000
0
0

505 440
0
0

f. Total hours worked by production workers . . . . . . . . . . . .
g. Hours worked by temporary production workers (included in line f). .
h. Overtime hours worked by production workers (included in line f) . .
FORM MQ-C1-I (11-2005)

7
56
13
44

2
Mil. Thou. Hrs.

1

(4)

5
40
13
32

a. Days per week in operation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Example 2. A plant with Two Production Shifts
and One Maintenance Shift

Full Production
Capability
Number of shifts

Page 6