Tracking 7 Core KPIs for Your Mineral Water Plant

Price vs. Volume Tradeoff

• The Bulk 5 Gallon offering, priced at $700 per unit, offers superior unit economics but can’t move enough volume to cover overhead alone.
• If you sell 100 of these, that’s $70,000 in revenue; selling 100,000 of the 500ml bottles at $1.00 each generates $100,000, showing volume’s power.
• High unit price means the margin is high, but the total contribution from low-volume items remains small.
• Focus your operational efficiency efforts on the 500ml line; that’s where you’ll defintely see the biggest impact on EBITDA.

Attack Variable Spend

• Logistics is the biggest lever at 50% variable cost.
• Sales Commissions take up 15% of variable spend.
• Negotiate carrier rates based on projected 2025 volume.
• Shift sales focus to high-margin, low-commission channels.

Yield Rate: Waste Control

• Yield Rate is saleable product divided by total input volume.
• Target a yield rate above 98% for premium water.
• High scrap rates mean you are paying for raw materials that never sell.
• Track changeover time; long changeovers kill daily output volume.

Payback Timeline Check

• The target is achieving payback in 17 months.
• This timeline depends on hitting volume targets early.
• Delaying sales means delaying recovery of the initial CapEx.
• Focus on securing initial distribution contracts now.

Disadvantages

• It completely ignores fixed operating expenses like rent or administrative salaries.
• A high margin on a low-volume item can distract from a low margin on a high-volume item.
• It relies heavily on accurate COGS tracking; miscalculating material waste inflates this number.

Industry Benchmarks

For premium, small-format beverages like your Still 500ml water, the target margin must be high, aiming for over 85%. This high benchmark is necessary because the logistics cost percentage of revenue is expected to be significant initially, perhaps 50% in 2026. You need maximum per-unit profit to absorb those distribution costs as you grow.

Disadvantages

• It can hide underlying maintenance issues if availability is high but performance is low due to minor stops.
• Focusing only on OEE might lead to rushing, potentially lowering the Quality score.
• Requires accurate, real-time data collection, which can be hard to implement on older bottling equipment.

Industry Benchmarks

For world-class manufacturing, the benchmark OEE target is often set above 85%. However, for most discrete manufacturing operations, achieving a consistent score above 80% is considered excellent performance. If your mineral water plant is scoring significantly lower than 80%, you are leaving substantial potential revenue on the table every shift.

Disadvantages

• Focusing only on yield might ignore machine downtime or slow performance (Availability).
• Operators might rush processes, risking future quality issues just to hit the 98% target today.
• It doesn't capture the hidden cost associated with sorting or minor rework needed on borderline units.

Industry Benchmarks

For high-volume beverage manufacturing, a yield rate above 98% is the standard expectation for mature operations. If you are just starting up, anything consistently above 95% shows you're controlling the process well enough to maintain that high Gross Margin Per Unit goal of >85%. Falling below 90% signals serious equipment calibration or contamination issues that need immediate operational review.

Disadvantages

• Highly sensitive to fuel price volatility outside your control.
• Can mask underlying production cost issues if revenue spikes temporarily.
• A low percentage might mean you are under-investing in necessary service levels.

Industry Benchmarks

For physical goods, logistics costs often range between 8% and 15% of revenue once scaled efficiently. Premium CPG (Consumer Packaged Goods) aiming for high-end retail might see initial costs higher, perhaps 20%, due to specialized handling requirements. Falling below 10% is world-class efficiency for most established players.

Disadvantages

• A ratio that is too high suggests frequent stockouts, losing sales opportunities.
• It doesn't distinguish between raw material inventory and finished goods.
• It can be skewed by large, infrequent bulk orders from corporate clients.

Industry Benchmarks

For premium, perishable goods like bottled water, holding inventory too long is expensive. The target you must aim for is >12x annually. Anything lower means you are holding too much capital in bottles instead of using it for growth or operations.

Disadvantages

• Ignores cash sales, focusing only on credit accounts.
• Can be skewed by one very large, slow-paying client.
• Doesn't measure the risk of customers defaulting entirely.

Industry Benchmarks

For B2B sales, like selling premium water to high-end retailers, a target under 45 days is smart for managing working capital. If your sales are mostly to large grocery chains, their standard terms might push you toward 60 days, so you need to monitor that closely. If you hit 60 days consistently, you're tying up too much cash.

Disadvantages

• Ignores necessary capital expenditures (CapEx) for bottling equipment maintenance.
• Can mask poor working capital management, like slow collections (DSO).
• Doesn't account for debt servicing costs, which are real cash obligations.

Industry Benchmarks

For premium packaged goods, EBITDA margins often range from 15% to 25%, depending heavily on scale and distribution costs. Since this operation targets premium hydration, achieving the projected 63% Year 1 margin suggests strong initial pricing power or very low initial overhead allocation. Benchmarks help confirm if your cost structure is competitive.