Example: An 80% learning curve The first unit of output of a new product requires 100 hours. An 80% learning curve applies. The production times would be as follows. Cumulative number of units Cumulative avg time per unit (hours) Cumulative total time (hours) incremental number of units Incremental total time (hours) Incremental average time (hours) 1 100 100 - - - 2* 80 160 1 60 60 4* 64 256 2 96 48 8* 51.2 409.6 4 48 38.4 * Output is being doubled each time. Method - The algebraic approach The formula for the learning curve is Y = ax b , Where : Y is the cumulative average time per unit to produce x units x is the cumulative number of units a is the time taken for the first unit of output b is the index of learning (log LR/log2) LR is the learning rate as a decimal Logarithms and the value of b When y = ax b in learning curve theory, the value of b = log of the learning rate/log of 2. The learning rate is expressed as a proportion, so that for an 80% learning curve, the learning rate is 0.8, and for