# Paper Plane Production Line

> Teams run a small factory that folds paper planes to a quality standard. After each round they redesign the process and try to deliver more with less waste. Duration: 1 hour. Group size: 12–80 people. Setting: Indoor. Below you will find a step-by-step guide, the materials and facilitator tips.

URL: https://www.bravodays.com/en/team-building-library/paper-plane-production-line
Last updated: 2026-10-21
Publisher: BravoDays (https://www.bravodays.com)

## Key facts

- **Duration:** 1 hour
- **Group size:** 12–80 people
- **Setting:** Indoor
- **Energy level:** High energy
- **Materials:** A stack of A4 paper per team, A sample plane and a simple quality standard (folds, markings, a test flight), A timer, a whiteboard for results and a tape line for test flights
- **Price:** Free, no sign-up

## Objective

Experience how handovers, batch sizes and bottlenecks affect a whole process, and practise improving it together.

## Materials

- A stack of A4 paper per team
- A sample plane and a simple quality standard (folds, markings, a test flight)
- A timer, a whiteboard for results and a tape line for test flights

## Step by step

1. Each team of six to eight sets up a production line with stations: folding steps, quality check and test flight.
2. Round 1 (five minutes): produce as many planes as possible that pass the quality check. Count good planes and waste.
3. Give teams five minutes to discuss what slowed them down and redesign the line.
4. Round 2: produce again and compare results.
5. Optional round 3: introduce a twist, such as a design change halfway through or a rule that each station may only pass one plane at a time.
6. Debrief: where were the bottlenecks, what happened at handovers, and what does this tell us about our own processes?

## Facilitator tips

- Keep the quality standard strict but simple, so that rejects are visible.
- Notice who takes the lead in redesign discussions and whether the people doing the work are heard.

## Related pages

- [Team building library](https://www.bravodays.com/en/team-building-library)
- [Get a quote](https://www.bravodays.com/en/get-a-quote)