Time to volume is the time taken to achieve target production volume. An estimate of time to volume, based on prior experience, is used to plan the launch of new products and the changeover to introduce a new manufacturing process for an existing product.
Time to volume is particularly important for mass production environments (for example, cars, electronics and food; and also the parts and materials used to make them). The transition from small quantity to high volume production (often called ‘volume ramp-up’) can involve new production facilities, new supplier and distribution arrangements, and new service organizations.