Circular Economy, Recycling & Remanufacturing worked example

Repair vs Replace Cost at 46% units expected to be repairable: a worked example

Here is what the math looks like when conditions slip. We hold every other input steady and drop units expected to be repairable to 46%, then walk the calculation through step by step. Estimate expected repair-program cost for returned products so teams can compare it against replacement or scrap decisions.

The inputs for this scenario

  • Returned products reviewed for repair: 420 units (held at the documented default)
  • Repair cost per repairable unit: 115 $ / unit (held at the documented default)
  • Units expected to be repairable: 46 % (the input this scenario stresses; the baseline uses 64)
  • Fixed diagnostics, authorization, or replacement-admin cost: 2,100 $ (held at the documented default)

Working through the calculation

  • The calculation starts from the formula this tool documents: Variable repair cost for repairable units = returned products reviewed for repair × repair cost per repairable unit × units expected to be repairable.
  • Expected repair path cost works out to 24,318 expected repair path cost at these inputs, and this is the headline figure for the scenario.
  • Repair path cost per return works out to 57.9 $ / piece at these inputs.
  • Variable repair cost for repairable units works out to 22,218 $ at these inputs.
  • Fixed diagnostics, authorization, or replacement-admin cost works out to 2,100 $ at these inputs.

How this compares with the baseline

  • Against the tool's baseline example, where units expected to be repairable sits at 64% and the headline result is 33,012 expected repair path cost, this scenario comes in 26.34% below the baseline at 24,318 expected repair path cost.
  • The practical read: the gap between this scenario and the baseline is entirely attributable to units expected to be repairable, so recovering it is worth quantifying in dollars before considering equipment or staffing changes. It assumes a single average repair cost per unit, so a batch with a wide spread of fault severities will be poorly represented by one figure.

Results at a glance

  • Expected repair path cost: 24,318 expected repair path cost (headline result)
  • Repair path cost per return: 57.9 $ / piece
  • Variable repair cost for repairable units: 22,218 $
  • Fixed diagnostics, authorization, or replacement-admin cost: 2,100 $

Run it with your numbers

  • To rerun this with your own numbers, open the live Repair vs Replace Cost calculator, set units expected to be repairable to your actual value, and adjust the remaining inputs to match your operation.

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.