Powder Metallurgy & Sintered Parts worked example

Furnace Energy Cost at 58% furnace duty-cycle load factor: a worked example in powder metallurgy & sintered parts

Here is what the math looks like when conditions slip. We hold every other input steady and drop furnace duty-cycle load factor to 58%, then walk the calculation through step by step. Furnace Energy Cost is the total electricity or gas spend attributed to running a sintering furnace for a given batch of powder-metal parts, split into a per-part figure.

The inputs for this scenario

  • Parts sintered per furnace run: 100 units (held at the documented default)
  • Energy cost per part: 45 $ / unit (held at the documented default)
  • Furnace duty-cycle load factor: 58 % (the input this scenario stresses; the baseline uses 80)
  • Fixed atmosphere & startup cost: 250 $ (held at the documented default)

Working through the calculation

  • The calculation starts from the formula this tool documents: Furnace Energy Cost cost = quantity × rate × capture factor + fixed cost.
  • Weighted cost works out to 2,860 $ at these inputs, and this is the headline figure for the scenario.
  • Per piece value works out to 28.6 $ / piece at these inputs.
  • Captured value works out to 2,610 $ at these inputs.
  • Fixed adjustment works out to 250 $ at these inputs.

How this compares with the baseline

  • Against the tool's baseline example, where furnace duty-cycle load factor sits at 80% and the headline result is 3,850 $, this scenario comes in 25.71% below the baseline at 2,860 $.
  • The practical read: the gap between this scenario and the baseline is entirely attributable to furnace duty-cycle load factor, so recovering it is worth quantifying in dollars before considering equipment or staffing changes. The single load-factor percentage lumps together zone temperatures, belt speed and heat losses, so it will not capture cost differences between a 1120C iron cycle and a 1280C stainless cycle unless you re-rate the energy figure.

Results at a glance

  • Weighted cost: 2,860 $ (headline result)
  • Per piece value: 28.6 $ / piece
  • Captured value: 2,610 $
  • Fixed adjustment: 250 $

Run it with your numbers

  • To rerun this with your own numbers, open the live Furnace Energy Cost calculator, set furnace duty-cycle load factor to your actual value, and adjust the remaining inputs to match your operation.

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.