Event programme duration checker
The programme fits on paper, and nobody has counted the minutes between the sessions or against the time the venue closes.
…
The short answer
The checker reads your programme in running order, resolves each item's start, end and duration, and reports the buffer at every boundary. Two sessions with no time between them are called out as zero buffer, and an item that starts before the previous one ends is reported as an overlap.
Against the venue window you enter, it shows the slack at each end or the overrun. An end earlier than its start, or a negative duration, is rejected, and the tool does not say how long any changeover or break should be.
What to enter
- The time the venue is available from and until, if you know it.
- Each session, break or speaker transition in running order, with a start and end, or a start and duration, or an end and duration.
- With only a duration, an item starts when the one above it ends. Times use one day on the 24-hour clock.
What is reported
- The buffer before each item: the minutes between the previous item ending and this one starting.
- Zero buffer between two sessions, overlaps in minutes, and unallocated gaps.
- Programme span, and the minutes spent in sessions, breaks, transitions and gaps.
- Slack unused at the start and end of the venue window, or the overrun in minutes if the programme runs outside it.
Reading the schedule
Edit any time or duration and the whole schedule recalculates. Items that cannot be placed, such as a start with no end or duration, are listed as unplaced and left out of the totals.
A zero buffer is not always a mistake, for example when a moderator introduces the next speaker from the stage. It is shown so the committee chooses it rather than finds it on the day.
Limits
The checker works on the times you enter. It does not know how long speakers need to move, how long a room takes to reset or when a venue enforces its closing time. Confirm those with the venue and the people involved. For the day itself, continue with the run-of-show builder, and for rehearsal time see the rehearsal schedule builder.
Worked example · Fictional example
A fictional one-day seminar
Fictional times, to show what the checker reports.
A fictional seminar has the venue from 08:30 to 17:30 and eight items from 09:00 to 17:45. The keynote and panel run back to back with zero buffer. Workshop A leaves 5 unallocated minutes before it, and Workshop B starts at 12:00, 5 minutes before the changeover ends.
The closing plenary ends at 17:45, 15 minutes after the venue closes, while 30 minutes at the start of the window go unused. The programme spans 525 minutes.
| Item | Time | Flag |
|---|---|---|
| Panel discussion | 09:45 to 10:30 | Zero buffer after a session |
| Workshop A | 10:55 to 11:55 | 5 min unallocated before it |
| Workshop B | 12:00 to 13:00 | Overlaps the previous item by 5 min |
| Closing plenary | 14:00 to 17:45 | Outside the venue window by 15 min |
Use this yourself
Programme timing sheet
List every item in running order and work out each end time and the minutes before the next item.
| Item | Type (session, break, transition) | Start | End | Minutes | Buffer before (minutes) | Flag |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Programme span (first start to last end) | ||||||
| Venue window, and slack or overrun at each end |
Handle it in-house, or bring in help?
Your team can usually handle this when
- The programme is a single room on one day, the venue times are known and the team can check each boundary.
- Changes are small and one person owns the schedule.
Outside planning help earns its fee when
- Several rooms and tracks run in parallel, and changes in one affect the others.
- Speakers, the venue and suppliers each hold part of the timing and nobody holds the whole schedule.
- The programme keeps growing and the committee must decide what to cut.
Need the programme timings held together?
A project lead can hold the programme schedule with your committee, test it against the venue window and chase the people whose timings it depends on. Content and the choice of what to cut stay with you.
Questions organisers ask
What counts as zero buffer?
Two sessions where the second starts at the exact minute the first ends. A break or transition between sessions with no gap is not called a zero-buffer pair.
Can the checker handle a session that crosses midnight?
No. Times are on one day, and an end earlier than its start is rejected.
What if I leave the venue window blank?
The programme is still checked for overlaps and buffers, but slack and overrun are not worked out.
Related resources
Content record: Draft. Written from the cited sources and checked by automated rules; not yet independently reviewed.