The World's Best 3D Printing and CNC Manufacturing Services... at a discount.
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Let's face it, low-quantity custom manufacturing isn't cheap, but it is not hard to understand why...
In its simplest form, the cost to manufacture a custom part can be broken down into two main components:
Setup cost is the base cost charge for a company to take on a job. Think of it as a cover charge in bar. You might be through the door, but you still can't drink for free. All CNC and 3DP companies calculate prices differently, but whether or not they disclose it to you, they use setup cost as part of their pricing calculations.
Per-part cost is exactly what it sounds like. The cost to make each additional part.
Unlike mass produced products where setup costs are distributed among thousands or even millions of parts, when fabricating small amounts of parts, setup cost per part can be more than cost per-part.
Let's look at a hypothetical example:
Say you have a STEP file of a widget that you are looking to have CNC milled. If the setup cost is $100 and the cost per-part is $10, if you only want one part, it is going to cost you a whopping $110.
Seems expensive, but things change completely as quantity increases...
Want 100 parts? Well, just multiply 100 by the per part cost and add the $100 setup cost for a total of $1100. That brings the the total cost to make each part only $11.
Using this math, the theoretical minimum price per part would be $10.01. Not bad considering just one would set you back $110.
There are other costs to consider too. Shipping and tax might be an after thought, but if your not careful what you think is the cheapest supplier might in the end cost you a bit more. Try to find a supplier that offers free shipping, and keep in mind that some suppliers still don't charge tax for out-of-state customers.
Don't forget, there are other ways to save on custom manufacturing. Obviously there are promo codes, which we provide many, but most people don't realize that often times all you have to do is ask. Just try it. Especially if your total order value exceeds $5000. Most companies will be happy to offer you at least a token discount to close the deal.
In its simplest form, the cost to manufacture a custom part can be broken down into two main components:
- setup cost
- cost per-part
Setup cost is the base cost charge for a company to take on a job. Think of it as a cover charge in bar. You might be through the door, but you still can't drink for free. All CNC and 3DP companies calculate prices differently, but whether or not they disclose it to you, they use setup cost as part of their pricing calculations.
Per-part cost is exactly what it sounds like. The cost to make each additional part.
Unlike mass produced products where setup costs are distributed among thousands or even millions of parts, when fabricating small amounts of parts, setup cost per part can be more than cost per-part.
Let's look at a hypothetical example:
Say you have a STEP file of a widget that you are looking to have CNC milled. If the setup cost is $100 and the cost per-part is $10, if you only want one part, it is going to cost you a whopping $110.
Seems expensive, but things change completely as quantity increases...
Want 100 parts? Well, just multiply 100 by the per part cost and add the $100 setup cost for a total of $1100. That brings the the total cost to make each part only $11.
Using this math, the theoretical minimum price per part would be $10.01. Not bad considering just one would set you back $110.
There are other costs to consider too. Shipping and tax might be an after thought, but if your not careful what you think is the cheapest supplier might in the end cost you a bit more. Try to find a supplier that offers free shipping, and keep in mind that some suppliers still don't charge tax for out-of-state customers.
Don't forget, there are other ways to save on custom manufacturing. Obviously there are promo codes, which we provide many, but most people don't realize that often times all you have to do is ask. Just try it. Especially if your total order value exceeds $5000. Most companies will be happy to offer you at least a token discount to close the deal.