CNC milling services: how much do you pay?

If you have ever ordered parts from CNC milling services, you must know that custom manufacturing costs a significant amount of money. When looking at the entire offer, some customers are astounded and have many doubts about the prices of milling workshops. The purpose of this article is to explain what the price of a CNC milling job consists of.

What is CNC milling?

Computer numerical control (CNC) milling is a machining process that uses computer-controlled, rotating multi-point cutting tools to quickly remove material from the workpiece and create custom parts or products.

The CNC milling process allows us to machine diverse materials such as metal, plastic, glass and wood and produce a variety of individually designed parts and products.

The advantages of CNC milling

The importance of cost calculation for milling services

Firstly, it is important to talk about the importance of an accurate estimate of processing costs. Finally, there are many different elements that contribute to the overall cost of a CNC machined part. The importance of consistent quoting for CNC milling services guarantees trust between the customer and the manufacturer, allows you to understand where the minimum price is (if you don't have a profit margin but can work and pay salaries to your employees), makes it possible manufacturers control profits and estimate the resources needed for each order.

Storage material

The basic cost factor is the raw material. You need something to grind, right? When it comes to CNC milling, choosing the right raw material is usually easy. They look at the geometry of the final part (most often the shape and maximum dimensions), choose a standard raw material type (most often a block or plate for milling operations), and add a few centimeters of thickness to the dimensions maximums of the piece. final part. Some milling services allow you to upload your model of the final part, and a milling cost estimator program will find the right raw material for you.

Tool making

Tools consist of all accessories, loading mechanisms, tool holders and similar elements necessary to secure the basic elements of the milling manufacturing system. These costs are very individual and cannot be estimated automatically. The good news is that most of the tools on CNC mills are flexible and will fit 80% of the parts that pass through that shop, but it's always 20%. As the cost of tools is high, it is recommended to slightly change the design of the part so that it can be manufactured without additional purchases.

cutting tools

Cutting tools, like coolants, are consumables. The coolant is recycled by modern milling centers, so its cost is negligible. However, the share of cutting tools in the total milling price can be quite high. Why is that? The answer is simple. It depends on the material. For example, CNC milling tools made of acrylic or other soft plastics can be used for many operations because these materials are soft and will not damage the tool insert. However, harder materials, especially titanium alloys, lead to faster tool wear.

Additionally, some CNC operations require special tools. For example, diamond inserts are much more expensive than carbide inserts. CNC milling services usually have a set of recommended bits for each material and include them in the total.

Machinist salary

This part of the processing costs is the most understandable. The work is performed by an employee who is paid an hourly rate for CNC services. If your piece is large, additional loading and unloading fees may be added to the quote. It should be noted that the machinist is also paid for preparation time while assembling fixtures, adjusting cutting tools, etc.

Machinery expenses

Machine tools, especially 5-axis CNC milling centers, consume a lot of energy and some are also equipped with pneumatic systems, which further increases energy consumption. Additionally, companies must consider depreciation costs. All this is made up of the hourly rate of a machine tool. Obviously, if the part needs to be machined on multiple machine tools (e.g. milling and turning), all sets will be added together and multiplied by the machining time.

Quality costs

Different quality requirements apply to different parts. The better the precision and surface finish of the part, the more complex the features will be and the more expensive it will be. Therefore, some CNC shops add a tolerance coefficient when quoting jobs online. As a result, customers choose the quality of their parts more carefully, saving time and increasing overall business efficiency. Additionally, when ordering a batch of parts, you can specify a percentage of defective parts. The lower the percentage, the more frequently the machinist must inspect each corresponding part and the more expensive the entire job becomes.

shipping

We live in a global world and it often happens that a customer from Europe orders CNC milling services in China. Even though there are many different carriers, shipping still costs money. Typically, auto repair shop managers allow you to choose from several shipping methods with different price ranges. Of course, you need to consider the weight and dimensions of the final part, as shipping a small 0.5kg shaft is different from shipping a full set of injection molds. If shipping is free, the price will simply be hidden in the profit margin of the total, but most CNC routers will indicate how much you pay for shipping. Some companies may even offer to ship your order to a reputable carrier.

profit margin

The profit margin is never shown to the customer, but its coefficients are included in each part of the total price. If the profit margin is zero (for stores where business is doing well), it means that all the factory's money is used to cover costs and pay salaries. Basically, the business has been functioning, paying its staff and earning just enough to survive, but it is not growing or developing. On the other hand, with a high profit margin, the factory receives a lot of extra money for each job, but demand is definitely lower because fewer people are willing to pay more money.

How WayKen can help you

CNC milling is a type of flexible machining process that can produce parts of various shapes from soft metals such as aluminum, harder metals such as steel, and plastics such as acetal.

At Wayken we can offer fast, cost-effective milling solutions whether you need a single part, a small number of prototypes or a full production order. If you are interested in our CNC milling services, please do not hesitate to contact us: (email protected) .