Availability lead time
lead time · time to availability · ready-by time
Availability lead time is the interval between the order and the moment the part is genuinely collectable by the customer, at a pick-up point or through delivery. It combines stock availability, picking time and the next delivery run — three distinct things that the word "available" flattens.
Director of publication : Florian Précigout
It is the figure the workshop actually needs, and rarely the one it gets. A part "in stock" at 17:05 when the last van left at 17:00 is not available today: it is available tomorrow morning. Announcing one for the other creates a false expectation, and the workshop plans on it.
Real lead time is therefore a calculation, not a state: site stock, picking capacity, next run schedule, possible transfer from another branch. It is what workshops rightly call "when can I have it?" — the only question they care about.
A lead time announced and met beats an optimistic one. Reliability of the commitment weighs more on the relationship than advertised speed: a workshop builds its schedule on what it was promised.
The trap
Answering "in stock" to the question "when can I have it?". The answer is true and useless: it describes the warehouse, not the moment the part reaches the lift.
Frequently asked
What is the difference between availability and lead time?
Availability describes stock state at a point in time. Lead time describes when the customer can actually have the part, which includes picking and transport.
Should you quote a wide or a tight lead time?
A defensible one. A wide commitment that is met lets the workshop plan; a tight commitment that is missed costs a bay and sometimes a customer.