Musical Instruments & Acoustic Products worked example

String Setup Labor at 7.2% bench allowance: a worked example

Here is what the math looks like when conditions slip. We hold every other input steady and drop bench allowance to 7.2%, then walk the calculation through step by step. Estimate the labor hours to string, intonate, and complete final setup on a batch of guitars, basses, or other stringed instruments before they ship.

The inputs for this scenario

  • Instruments in setup queue: 120 instruments (held at the documented default)
  • Instruments setup per minute: 12 instruments / min (held at the documented default)
  • Bench allowance: 7.2 % (the input this scenario stresses; the baseline uses 10)

Working through the calculation

  • The calculation starts from the formula this tool documents: Base string setup labor = instruments in setup queue รท instruments setup per minute.
  • Required string setup labor works out to 10.72 hr at these inputs, and this is the headline figure for the scenario.
  • Base string setup labor works out to 10 hr at these inputs.
  • Bench allowance applied works out to 7.2 % at these inputs.
  • Instruments setup per minute works out to 12 pieces / min at these inputs.

How this compares with the baseline

  • Against the tool's baseline example, where bench allowance sits at 10% and the headline result is 11 hr, this scenario comes in 2.55% below the baseline at 10.72 hr.
  • The practical read: the gap between this scenario and the baseline is entirely attributable to bench allowance, so recovering it is worth quantifying in dollars before considering equipment or staffing changes. A single instruments-per-minute rate flattens the difference between a quick restring and a full fret-level-and-setup; segment by setup type when the mix varies.

Results at a glance

  • Required string setup labor: 10.72 hr (headline result)
  • Base string setup labor: 10 hr
  • Bench allowance applied: 7.2 %
  • Instruments setup per minute: 12 pieces / min

Run it with your numbers

  • To rerun this with your own numbers, open the live String Setup Labor calculator, set bench allowance to your actual value, and adjust the remaining inputs to match your operation.

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.