The Math of Making Money (Without Guessing)
Pricing a 3D print is like pricing a sandwich. You pay for ingredients (Material), the chef's time (Labor), and the rent (Machine Depreciation). If you miss one, you lose money.
The Production Cost Stack
Concept 1: The Blended Hourly Rate
Your machine's cost isn't just the purchase price. We calculate the machineCost by blending several hourly factors:
- Depreciation: Spreading the machine cost over its useful life (e.g., ₹20/hr).
- Energy: Real-time consumption based on wattage and your local tariff (e.g., ₹5/hr).
- Maintenance: A buffer for nozzles, belts, and consumables (e.g., ₹3/hr).
- Operator: The cost of human oversight during the build.
Concept 2: Material Buffering (Efficiency)
3D printing involves hidden material use. Purge lines, support structures, and failed starts all consume filament that the customer doesn't see.
We use an efficiencyFactor (e.g., 1.2 for a 20% buffer) to ensure your materialCost covers the actual raw material leaving your spool, not just the final part weight.
Concept 3: The Landed Cost Formula
Our advanced formula engine calculates the landedCost— the total internal cost to produce the part before any profit is added.
Finally, we apply a marginMultiplier (e.g., 1.5 for 50% profit) to arrive at the final bid price shown to the customer.
The Vendor's Dictionary
- Depreciation
- The cost of "wear and tear" on your machine.
- Scrap
- Material that is used but doesn't end up in the final product (supports, waste).
- Margin
- The profit you make on top of your costs. This pays for your growth.
- Pricing Basics
- The profit/loss calculation for a single unit of what you sell.