Industrial Sensors & Instrumentation worked example

Sensor Test Fixture Payback with total fixture investment of 22,500 $: a worked example

Suppose total fixture investment falls to 22,500 $. This page works the full calculation at that level so you can see exactly which result moves and by how much. Calculate simple payback period for a new automated sensor test fixture by comparing the capital investment against annual savings from reduced test labor, faster throughput, and fewer escapes.

The inputs for this scenario

  • Total fixture investment: 22,500 $ (the input this scenario stresses; the baseline uses 45,000)
  • Annual savings from test automation: 28,000 $ / yr (held at the documented default)
  • Annual fixture support cost: 4,500 $ / yr (held at the documented default)

Working through the calculation

  • The calculation starts from the formula this tool documents: Net annual savings = annual savings from automation - annual fixture support cost.
  • Simple payback period (years) works out to 0.96 yr at these inputs, and this is the headline figure for the scenario.
  • Net annual savings works out to 23,500 $ / yr at these inputs.
  • Total fixture investment works out to 22,500 $ at these inputs.
  • Five-year net value works out to 95,000 $ at these inputs.

How this compares with the baseline

  • Against the tool's baseline example, where total fixture investment sits at 45,000 $ and the headline result is 1.91 yr, this scenario comes in 50% below the baseline at 0.96 yr.
  • It subtracts annual fixture support cost from annual automation savings to get net savings, then divides the investment by that net to give the payback period in years. When the numbers land here, the stressed input is the lever to work; the walkthrough above shows exactly how much each output recovers as it climbs back toward the baseline.

Results at a glance

  • Simple payback period (years): 0.96 yr (headline result)
  • Net annual savings: 23,500 $ / yr
  • Total fixture investment: 22,500 $
  • Five-year net value: 95,000 $

Run it with your numbers

  • To rerun this with your own numbers, open the live Sensor Test Fixture Payback calculator, set total fixture investment to your actual value, and adjust the remaining inputs to match your operation.

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.