How Much Does CNC Lathe Processing Cost Per Hour?

How much does CNC lathe processing cost per hour?

In the quotation work of CNC turning processing, the most troublesome thing is not the inaccurate calculation, but the omission of items on the quotation, which leads to losses. The hourly cost here is between 100 yuan and 500 yuan. The difference is not just a simple number. The key reason is that you have not considered the existence of those six specific variables.

Equipment type determines base price

On the market, the approximate processing costs of ordinary three-axis CNC lathes range from 40 yuan to 80 yuan per hour. This situation is the daily situation of most small factories.

However, when the equipment is upgraded to a high-tech machine such as five-axis linkage or turning and milling, the processing cost per hour will immediately rise to more than 300 yuan or even 1,000 yuan, because the depreciation cost of the equipment and subsequent maintenance expenses are completely unavoidable rigid expenses.

Therefore, when customers compare quotation templates, the first thing they do is to confirm what kind of axis equipment the other party uses and what the specific brand is.

For the same part, the accuracy and efficiency of the same part processed using a three-axis machine and a five-axis machine are completely different concepts. Therefore, it is normal for there to be a gap of two to three times between the quotations of the two sides.

Parts are more difficult and more expensive

For parts with very complex geometries, such as those with deep holes, thin walls, irregular curved surfaces, etc., it will take a lot more time and effort than usual to formulate processing plans and plan tool operation routes.

Once the requirements for dimensional accuracy reach the level of plus or minus 0.01 mm or more, you will find that during the actual processing process, measurements must be made anytime and anywhere and parameters must be adjusted frequently. This will significantly increase the number of defective products, ultimately leading to a natural and substantial increase in production costs.

Special processes such as turning and milling composite technology and difficult thread processing cannot be done by just any turning machine. Special personnel are required to program and adjust the CNC turning processing quotation template . One trial and error may take dozens of minutes. How much does CNC lathe processing cost per hour? All of this time is included in the processing fee.

The prices vary several times depending on the materials.

The processing costs of ordinary aluminum alloys and carbon steel are at a moderate level, so the sales volume of these materials on the market is the largest of all similar types. However, the cutting performance of stainless steel is very poor, and serious problems such as tool sticking are prone to occur during processing, resulting in its processing cost being about 20 to 50 percent higher than that of carbon steel.

The problem of titanium alloy is even more troublesome, because titanium alloy not only has high strength, but also has poor thermal conductivity. Most importantly, its price is twice or even three times that of ordinary metals.

Engineering plastic is an exception. It is lighter to cut and has less loss, so the processing cost is generally lower than that of metal. But when customers make inquiries, they do not provide specific material models, so the bidder can only make estimates based on the most expensive standard. This is one of the reasons why many quotations cannot be negotiated.

Batch size directly amortizes costs

The price difference between making one product and making 10,000 products can be several times higher. When the production quantity is a small batch or even a single piece, it takes more than half of the time just to prepare the program, debug the machine equipment, and adjust the cutting tools. This results in all fixed costs having to be allocated to each individual product, so the unit price is naturally high.

However, when large-volume production tasks are run, the initial preparation time is greatly diluted, and the cost of each unit of goods drops significantly.

Therefore, the batch range must be written clearly in the quotation template. If customers use small batches to set large-volume unit prices, or vice versa, it will cause misunderstandings.

Don’t ignore regional price differences

In the Yangtze River Delta or Pearl River Delta, use the same set of drawings to find local processing factories for production and processing. The price of this method is lower than the cost of sending the drawings to other places or finding foreign suppliers for processing.

This can save the cost of logistics and distribution as well as the cost of communication between people. In Europe or the United States, labor costs are relatively high. Therefore, their processing costs are generally twice as high as those in China. This is a structural difference.

However, just because the price is cheap, it doesn’t necessarily mean the quality is bad.

Because the quotations in some remote areas are relatively low, but the equipment they use is relatively old, the accuracy cannot be effectively guaranteed, and the subsequent maintenance costs will be higher. Therefore, when selecting suppliers, we must put the equipment condition, production process level and after-sales service system together for comprehensive evaluation and consideration. We must not only focus on those specific price figures and ignore other more important factors.

The most common items to miss on the quotation

Once an urgent order is received, the processing fee will basically double. This is everyone's default rule. The wear and tear of tools, the time spent programming and debugging the machine, and the start-up fee are all items that are not listed on their quotations because many novices will suddenly realize after finishing the work that they have worked in vain.

The price difference between the two different modes of contracting work and materials, and calculating costs based only on machine running time, is not small.

When making a quotation template, it is recommended that you list all the items in this series. Even if the current situation does not involve them, you should clearly write the word "none".

In this case, customers can know that your considerations are very comprehensive and thoughtful just by looking at it. Because of careful consideration, the probability of troublesome disputes in the later stages will be greatly reduced, and at the same time, the efficiency of final payment will also become faster.

The last time you got the quotation from CNC turning processing, you would have thought in your mind whether you thought there were too many missing items or that the unit price was obviously too high. Come and have a chat in this comment area. If you think this thing is of some use after reading it, you can give it more likes and forward this news to your friends in the same industry to take a look.