The pour log
Updated
The production record, distinct from the burn record. One line per batch, and it takes two minutes.
One row per batch
Date. Batch code. Test number of the combination being poured, which links this batch to the burn record that approved it.
Wax product number and lot. Fragrance name, supplier, lot, and load as weighed. Dye and amount. Wick series, size and lot. Vessel supplier and part number.
Melt, addition and pour temperatures. Cooling location. Cure start date.
Units poured, units rejected, and where the good ones went.
What each column is for
The lots are the one people skip and the one that answers "why did this batch burn differently". Wax and fragrance both vary between lots.
The temperatures catch process drift, which is what a batch that looks different usually is.
The test number is the link that makes the whole system work: any candle can be traced to the test that approved its combination.
The destination is what turns a recall into a phone call to some customers rather than all.
The batch code
On the base of every candle, or the log cannot be connected to a product in somebody's hand.
A date-based code is readable by you and opaque enough for a shelf. Do not restart it, do not reuse codes, and do not encode anything you might want to change.
Keeping it
A notebook works. A spreadsheet works if it is actually filled in on the day.
The test is retrieval: given a candle with a code, how long to produce the lots, the process figures and the burn record? Under an hour is a working system.