MedTech Manufacturing worked example

Complaint Handling Cost at 58% investigation completion rate: a worked example in medtech manufacturing

Suppose investigation completion rate falls to 58%. This page works the full calculation at that level so you can see exactly which result moves and by how much. Estimate complaint handling cost from complaint volume, per-complaint investigation cost, closure rate, and fixed system infrastructure.

The inputs for this scenario

  • Complaints received per period: 15 complaints (held at the documented default)
  • Average cost per complaint investigation: 1,200 $ / complaint (held at the documented default)
  • Investigation completion rate: 58 % (the input this scenario stresses; the baseline uses 80)
  • Fixed complaint system cost: 3,000 $ (held at the documented default)

Working through the calculation

  • The calculation starts from the formula this tool documents: Variable complaint handling cost = complaints received × cost per investigation × completion rate.
  • Total complaint handling cost works out to 13,440 $ at these inputs, and this is the headline figure for the scenario.
  • Average cost per complaint (all-in) works out to 896 $ / piece at these inputs.
  • Variable investigation cost works out to 10,440 $ at these inputs.
  • Fixed complaint system cost works out to 3,000 $ at these inputs.

How this compares with the baseline

  • Against the tool's baseline example, where investigation completion rate sits at 80% and the headline result is 17,400 $, this scenario comes in 22.76% below the baseline at 13,440 $.
  • It computes the total annual or periodic cost of running your complaint-handling process by combining variable investigation labor with fixed system overhead. 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

  • Total complaint handling cost: 13,440 $ (headline result)
  • Average cost per complaint (all-in): 896 $ / piece
  • Variable investigation cost: 10,440 $
  • Fixed complaint system cost: 3,000 $

Run it with your numbers

  • To rerun this with your own numbers, open the live Complaint Handling Cost calculator, set investigation completion rate to your actual value, and adjust the remaining inputs to match your operation.

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.