Where book time comes from
The term comes from printed labor time guides, the "book", that list standard times for common repairs on specific vehicles and components. Today these guides are mostly electronic. Some shops also build their own standard times from their history on repeat jobs, such as a PM service or a brake job on a common axle. See labor guide.
How book time is used
- Pricing. On a flat rate job, the customer pays book time times the labor rate, whether the technician finishes faster or slower.
- Estimates. Book time gives the customer a labor number before work starts. See estimate approval.
- Measuring efficiency. Ratchet+Wrench describes technician efficiency as flat-rate hours produced divided by actual hours worked. Book time is the flat-rate hours side of that equation. See technician efficiency.
- Pay. Some shops pay technicians by the hours produced rather than the hours on the clock. The Bureau of Labor Statistics notes that some repair shops pay technicians hourly while others pay based on the amount of work completed.
Limits of book time
Book times assume normal conditions. Rust, seized fasteners, aftermarket modifications, roadside conditions and diagnostic work can all make a job take longer. Many shops bill diagnosis on actual time for that reason and use book time for well-defined repairs. Whatever the method, say on the estimate how labor will be billed.
Example only
As an illustration: if book time for a job is 3.0 hours and the technician finishes in 2.5 hours, the customer is billed 3.0 hours and the technician's efficiency on that job is 3.0 divided by 2.5, or 120 percent.
MetaFleet note
MetaFleet's AI suggests labor hours on repair lines it writes from technician notes. Labor guides are not built in, and MetaFleet does not connect to MOTOR or Mitchell 1 today.
See flat rate vs actual hours in diesel repair.
MetaFleet supports AI invoicing and the technician time clock. Get a walkthrough.