Power Electronics, Motors & Drives worked example

Power Electronics Automation Payback with automation cell capital investment of 12,500 $: a worked example

This worked example runs the power electronics automation payback numbers for a tougher week than the baseline: automation cell capital investment of 12,500 $ instead of the typical 25,000 $. Estimate simple payback for automation used in inverter, drive, power module, motor, or converter production from investment, annual savings, and support cost.

The inputs for this scenario

  • Automation cell capital investment: 12,500 $ (the input this scenario stresses; the baseline uses 25,000)
  • Annual labor and scrap savings from automation: 18,000 $ / yr (held at the documented default)
  • Annual robot maintenance and programming cost: 2,500 $ / yr (held at the documented default)

Working through the calculation

  • The calculation starts from the formula this tool documents: Net annual automation savings = annual automation savings - annual automation support cost.
  • Power electronics automation payback period works out to 0.81 yr at these inputs, and this is the headline figure for the scenario.
  • Net annual automation savings works out to 15,500 $ / yr at these inputs.
  • Automation investment works out to 12,500 $ at these inputs.
  • Five-year automation net value works out to 65,000 $ at these inputs.

How this compares with the baseline

  • Against the tool's baseline example, where automation cell capital investment sits at 25,000 $ and the headline result is 1.61 yr, this scenario comes in 50% below the baseline at 0.81 yr.
  • Use it during capex screening when comparing automation proposals for placement, soldering, winding, or test handling, or to sanity-check a vendor's ROI claim. A result at this level usually justifies acting on the stressed input before touching anything else, because every other figure in the table is downstream of it.

Results at a glance

  • Power electronics automation payback period: 0.81 yr (headline result)
  • Net annual automation savings: 15,500 $ / yr
  • Automation investment: 12,500 $
  • Five-year automation net value: 65,000 $

Run it with your numbers

  • To rerun this with your own numbers, open the live Power Electronics Automation Payback calculator, set automation cell capital investment to your actual value, and adjust the remaining inputs to match your operation.

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.