Tooling ROI · cost per part
Cost Justification Calculator
Prove out a tooling change: enter existing and proposed cycle times, tool costs and tool lives with your machine hourly rate and annual volume to get cost per part, savings per part and total annual savings.
Existing vs proposed process
C = t·rate/60/eff + tool cost/lifeFormulas used
Cost per part: C = (cycle time × hourly rate ÷ 60 ÷ efficiency) + (tool cost ÷ tool life in parts)
Annual savings: (C_existing − C_proposed) × annual volume
Frequently asked questions
A more expensive tool can still save money — how?
Machine time usually dominates cost per part. A tool costing 50% more that cuts cycle time 20% or doubles tool life almost always lowers total cost per part — this calculator quantifies it.
What should I include in the machine hourly rate?
Depreciation, operator, overhead, energy and maintenance allocated per spindle hour. Shop rates typically run $50–150/h for CNC equipment.