Additive Manufacturing Service Bureau Quoting worked example

Support Removal Labor Time at 29% difficult-support allowance: a worked example

What does the result look like when difficult-support allowance reaches 29%? The full calculation is worked below with real intermediate numbers. a post-processing lead or estimator needs support-removal hours before finalizing a quote

The inputs for this scenario

  • Supported parts: 36 parts (unchanged)
  • Support removal throughput: 0.18 parts / min (unchanged)
  • Difficult-support allowance: 29 % (raised for this scenario; the documented default is 25)

Working through the calculation

  • Applying the documented formula (Base support removal time = supported parts รท support removal throughput) to the inputs above produces each figure below.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 258 hr for quoted support removal time, the number this scenario is built around.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 200 hr for base removal time.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 29 % for difficult-support allowance.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 0.18 parts / min for support removal throughput.

How this compares with the baseline

  • Against the tool's baseline example, where difficult-support allowance sits at 25% and the headline result is 250 hr, this scenario comes in 3.2% above the baseline at 258 hr.
  • A figure at this level is achievable when difficult-support allowance is genuinely sustained, not just peaked for a shift. Throughput is an average; a single part with a buried lattice support can blow past the allowance, so treat the result as a planning estimate, not a guarantee.

Results at a glance

  • Quoted support removal time: 258 hr (headline result)
  • Base removal time: 200 hr
  • Difficult-support allowance: 29 %
  • Support removal throughput: 0.18 parts / min

Run it with your numbers

  • Every input above is editable in the live Support Removal Labor Time calculator, which recalculates instantly and can be shared with the inputs intact.

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.