Free Offline Manufacturing Software for Mac
Timeline Factory Manager is a free offline desktop app from Timeline Digital for Apple silicon Macs with macOS 12 or newer. It runs orders, work orders, stock and purchasing for a small factory on one computer.
Version 1.0.0 · Free · Works offline · Using Windows? Get the Windows version
Is there free manufacturing software for Mac?
Yes. Timeline Factory Manager 1.0.0 is a free offline desktop app for Mac, made by Timeline Digital for small factories and workshops with about 10 to 200 staff. It runs on Apple silicon Macs (M1 or later) with macOS 12 or newer. There is no account and no sign-up. It runs on one Mac, for one user.
You can read about the app on the Timeline Factory Manager product page, or see all 15 screens with screenshots.
This page is for Mac only. Using Windows? Get the Windows version.
- System
- macOS 12 or newer, Apple silicon (M1 or later)
- File name
- Timeline-Factory-Manager-1.0.0-mac-arm64.dmg
- Size
- About 123 MB
- Version
- 1.0.0
- Price
- Free
- Last updated
- SHA-256
a888e2bd897a1fc2504df7b02c2e6f935ee3d277b87af464d353a18b80f6f35f
Which Macs does it run on?
It runs on Apple silicon Macs, which have an Apple M-series chip (M1 or later), with macOS 12 or newer. The download is one disk image of about 123 MB. An Intel Mac download is not available on this site yet, so check which Mac you have before you download.
| Requirement | Mac |
|---|---|
| Operating system | macOS 12 or newer |
| Chip | Apple silicon (M1 or later) |
| Not available yet | A download for Intel Macs |
| Download | One .dmg disk image, about 123 MB |
| Window size | 1024 x 700 or larger |
| Account or sign-up | None |
| Internet | Needed once, to download. Not needed to use the app |
| Language | English |
| Users | One computer, one user |
How do I check which Mac I have?
- Click the Apple menu in the top-left corner and choose About This Mac.
- Look for the line that starts with Chip. “Chip Apple M...” means Apple silicon, and this download is for your Mac.
- If the line names an Intel processor instead, your Mac is an Intel Mac, and there is no download for it on this site yet.
- Check the macOS line as well. It should show macOS 12 or a higher number.
How do I install it on my Mac?
Download the disk image, open it, and drag Timeline Factory Manager into the Applications folder. Then open the app. The app is not signed or notarized, so the first time macOS may say it could not verify the app. If so, open System Settings, choose Privacy & Security, scroll down and click Open Anyway. You only do this once.
- Download the Mac file. Click "Download for Mac". The file Timeline-Factory-Manager-1.0.0-mac-arm64.dmg (about 123 MB) is saved to your Downloads folder. It is for Apple silicon Macs (M1 or later).
- Open the disk image. Double-click the .dmg file. A small window opens with the app inside.
- Drag the app to Applications. Drag Timeline Factory Manager into the Applications folder and wait for the copy to finish.
- Open the app, and allow it once. Open your Applications folder and double-click Timeline Factory Manager. The app is not signed or notarized, so macOS warns on first open. If macOS says it could not verify the app, follow the Open Anyway steps beside this list. You do it once.
If your Mac says it could not verify the app
macOS shows this message for apps that are not signed or notarized, and ours is not.
- Close the message.
- Open System Settings and choose Privacy & Security.
- Scroll down and click Open Anyway.
- Open the app again. You only need to do this once.
Download the file only from timelinedigi.com. To be sure it is ours before you open it, check its SHA-256 checksum.
What happens when I first open it?
A short setup of three steps appears: your company name, your country, then an empty factory or sample data. Nothing you type is sent anywhere.
Step 1: Your company
Type the company name and, if you like, your own name.
Step 2: Country and formats
Search for your country by typing. The country fills in the usual currency, date format, number format and paper size (A4 or US Letter). There are 233 countries and territories and 152 currencies to choose from, and you can change the formats later in Settings.
Step 3: How to start
Choose to start with an empty factory or to explore with sample data. The sample is a made-up furniture workshop with orders, work orders and stock, so you can try everything. A backup of the empty file is made first, and you can clear the sample later from Settings, Backups.
After setup: four first steps
With an empty factory, the dashboard shows four first steps with a button for each, and ticks them off as you go, until your first sales order or work order exists.
What can a factory do with it on a Mac?
It follows a customer order through the factory, from sales order to delivery note, and keeps stock right along the way. It also handles purchasing: a purchase order to a supplier, then a goods received note that adds the materials to stock. The Mac app has 15 screens, 7 printed documents and 4 reports.
- Sales order. Enter the customer order with products, quantities and a due date.
- Make work orders. One click creates planned work orders for whatever the order still needs.
- Start. Materials from the bill of materials are reserved. If stock is short, the app names each short material.
- Daily production. Each day, enter what was made and what was rejected.
- Complete. Materials used leave stock and the good units go into finished goods.
- Delivery note. Goods leave finished goods stock and the sales order is marked part delivered or delivered.
It suits small factories and workshops such as furniture and joinery, metal fabrication, garments, plastics, and printing and packaging. For the wider picture, read free manufacturing software. There are separate pages on production management, work orders, manufacturing inventory and bills of materials.
The screenshots show made-up sample companies. The names and amounts in them are not real.
Is it MRP software for Mac?
It does the basic material side only. The app holds a bill of materials for each product and reserves materials when a work order starts. If stock is not enough, it refuses to start and names each short material. It does not plan dates, schedule production or calculate time-phased requirements.
For every raw material you see on hand, reserved, available and on order, and materials at or below their reorder level are listed as low stock. Order low stock makes one purchase order, to the supplier you choose, when you click it. More on the free MRP software page.
How does the app work day to day? Watch it.
These three lessons show the real app: first time setup, one order followed from sales order to delivery note, and backup and restore. Where a lesson says Ctrl, use Cmd on a Mac. There are 27 lessons in all, about 34 minutes together.
Lesson 1: First time setup (1:29)
Company name, country and formats, then an empty factory or sample data.
Lesson 28: From customer order to delivery (1:47)
One order followed from sales order to delivery note.
Lesson 26: Back up and restore your data (0:59)
Automatic daily backups, a copy on a USB drive and restore.
All 27 lessons with written steps · Watch the playlist on YouTube
Every lesson has written steps on the how to use Timeline Factory Manager page.
How do printing and keyboard shortcuts work on a Mac?
Each of the 7 documents opens in a preview window with Print and Save as PDF, on A4 or US Letter paper, with your company name, address, tax number and logo. For keyboard shortcuts, use Cmd in place of Ctrl.
The documents are the job card, material issue slip, purchase order, goods received note, delivery note, production report and stock list. See a sample job card (PDF) made by the app. Every list can also be exported to CSV, which opens in Excel.
| Keys on a Mac | Does |
|---|---|
| Cmd+Enter | Save the form |
| Cmd+N | New record on the current list |
| / or Cmd+K | Search the current list |
| Arrow keys, Enter | Move through rows and open one |
| Cmd+1 to Cmd+9 | Jump between the main screens |
| Enter on the last order line | Add a new line |
| T in a date box | Set it to today |
How do I verify the SHA-256 checksum on a Mac?
A checksum is a long code worked out from a file. If the code for your download is the same as the one printed here, your file is exactly the one Timeline Digital published. Run one command in Terminal, then compare the result with the value below.
- Open Terminal (Applications, then Utilities).
- Paste the command below and press Return.
- Compare the result with the expected SHA-256 below.
shasum -a 256 ~/Downloads/Timeline-Factory-Manager-1.0.0-mac-arm64.dmgExpected SHA-256 for the Mac file
a888e2bd897a1fc2504df7b02c2e6f935ee3d277b87af464d353a18b80f6f35fThe command assumes the file is in your Downloads folder with its original name. If the two values are different, do not open the file. Delete it and download it again from this page.
Where is my factory data kept on the Mac?
Your factory data is kept in one data file on your own computer. The app works fully offline, has no account or sign-up, sends nothing over the internet and collects no usage data. It only opens your browser or email program when you click a Timeline Digital link.
Which folder is it in?
The exact folder of the data file is shown in Settings and on the About screen. The optional app password keeps casual users out of the app, but it does not encrypt the data file.
How do I back up to a USB drive?
The app makes a backup by itself once a day while it is open and keeps the latest 14. Those stay on the same Mac, so save a copy outside it as well:
- Plug a USB drive into the Mac.
- Open Settings, Backups in the app.
- Click Save a copy to... and choose the USB drive.
- Eject the drive and keep it somewhere safe, away from the Mac.
To bring records back, restore from a backup in the list or use Restore from a file. A backup of the current data is made first, so a restore can itself be undone. Lesson 26, "Back up and restore your data" (0:59), shows it.
How do I move to a new Mac?
On the old computer, use Save a copy to... to put a backup on a USB drive. Install the app on the new Mac, then use Restore from a file. Keep the old computer and the backup file as they are until you have checked your orders and stock on the new one.
We have not confirmed here that a backup made on a Windows PC restores on a Mac. If you are moving between the two systems and the restore does not work, Timeline Digital can help through the contact form.
What does the Mac app not do?
It is an offline app for one factory office on one Mac, with one user. It does not plan machines or shifts, cost jobs, trace batches, scan barcodes or print invoices, and it is in English only. There is no download for Intel Macs on this site yet.
- One Mac, one user
- The app runs on a single Mac for one user. Two computers do not share data, and there are no separate logins or permissions.
- Apple silicon only, for now
- The published download is for Macs with an Apple M-series chip. An Intel Mac download is not available on this site yet.
- No iPad or iPhone app
- It is a desktop app for a MacBook, iMac or Mac mini. There is no iPad, iPhone or Android app and no browser access.
- Not signed or notarized
- The Mac app is not signed or notarized, so macOS warns the first time you open it. You allow it once in System Settings, under Privacy & Security.
The full list of what the free edition leaves out
- Several users, logins or permissions
- Use on more than one computer, or shared data over a network or the internet
- Online or browser access, a mobile app, or cloud backup
- Machine and shift planning, scheduling or capacity planning
- Job costing, labour costing or profit margins (material cost from the bill of materials is shown)
- Quality checks, batch or lot numbers, serial numbers or traceability
- Barcode or QR code scanning, label printing
- Several sites or warehouses, or stock locations
- Links to accounting software, invoicing, quotations, statements or payments
- Sending email from inside the app
- Multi-level bills of materials (sub-assemblies), routings and operations
- Languages other than English
Other limits: one unit cost per material (no average or FIFO costing), and CSV import covers products, raw materials and customers only. Sales orders carry prices, but the app prints no invoice. In food processing, the missing batch and lot traceability means the app is not enough on its own where food-safety traceability is required.
These are available as custom work from Timeline Digital, starting with a free pilot. The pilot is always free. The scope and terms are agreed after the pilot. Tell us what your factory needs through the contact form, or read about manufacturing ERP software, custom ERP software and custom software development.
Questions from factories that use a Mac
Is there free manufacturing software for Mac?
Yes. Timeline Factory Manager 1.0.0 is free and runs on Apple silicon Macs (M1 or later) with macOS 12 or newer. It is an offline desktop app with 15 screens for sales orders, work orders, daily production, stock, purchasing, delivery notes and reports. There is no account and no sign-up, and it is made by Timeline Digital.
Does Timeline Factory Manager run on an Intel Mac?
Not from this site yet. The published Timeline Factory Manager download is for Apple silicon Macs, which have an Apple M-series chip. An Intel Mac download is not available on the site yet. To check your Mac, open the Apple menu and choose About This Mac. A line that reads "Chip Apple M..." means Apple silicon.
How do I install Timeline Factory Manager on a MacBook?
Download the disk image, open it, and drag Timeline Factory Manager into the Applications folder. Then open the app. The app is not signed or notarized, so macOS warns on first open. If macOS says it could not verify the app, open System Settings, choose Privacy & Security, scroll down and click Open Anyway. You only do this once.
Why does macOS warn me when I first open the app?
Timeline Factory Manager for Mac is not signed or notarized, so macOS asks before it opens the app for the first time. Download the file only from timelinedigi.com. You can check it against the SHA-256 checksum on this page, then allow it once with Open Anyway in System Settings, under Privacy & Security.
Is Timeline Factory Manager MRP software for Mac?
It covers the basic material side of MRP only. Timeline Factory Manager holds bills of materials, reserves materials when a work order starts, names each short material when stock is not enough, and lists low stock against a reorder level. It does not plan dates, schedule production or calculate time-phased requirements.
Does it work offline on a Mac?
Yes. Timeline Factory Manager is offline desktop software. You need the internet once, to download the file. After that the app works fully offline. It sends nothing over the internet and collects no usage data, and it only opens your browser or email program when you click a Timeline Digital link.
Are the keyboard shortcuts different on a Mac?
Only the modifier key. On a Mac, Timeline Factory Manager uses Cmd in place of Ctrl. Cmd+Enter saves the form, Cmd+N starts a new record on the current list, Cmd+K or / jumps to the search box, and Cmd+1 to Cmd+9 jump between the main screens.
Where is my factory data kept on the Mac?
Timeline Factory Manager keeps it on the Mac itself. Your factory data is kept in one data file on your own computer. The app works fully offline, has no account or sign-up, sends nothing over the internet and collects no usage data. It only opens your browser or email program when you click a Timeline Digital link.
Is there a Windows version?
Yes. Timeline Factory Manager 1.0.0 also runs on Windows 10 or 11 (64-bit), with the same 15 screens and the same printed documents. The Windows version has its own download and install steps. This page covers only the Mac. Free offline manufacturing software for Windows 10 and 11.
Custom version
Need Timeline Factory Manager across several sites, or built around how you work?
The free edition is an offline desktop app for a single site. When you need it across several sites, in the cloud, connected to your other systems or shaped around your own workflow, we build a custom version for you. The pilot is always free. We start with your most important modules, so you can judge the work before you commit.
Download the free offline manufacturing software for Mac
All 15 screens, with no account and no sign-up. For Apple silicon Macs with macOS 12 or newer.
Version 1.0.0 · Free · Works offline · Using Windows? Get the Windows version