Printing, Labels & Industrial Converting worked example

Print Energy Cost at 65% press production uptime share: a worked example

This worked example runs the print energy cost numbers for a tougher week than the baseline: 65% press production uptime share instead of the typical 90%. Estimate the electricity cost of a print run from kWh drawn, utility rate, and uptime share.

The inputs for this scenario

  • Press energy consumed for the run: 640 kWh (held at the documented default)
  • Utility electricity rate: 0.14 $ / kWh (held at the documented default)
  • Press production uptime share: 65 % (the input this scenario stresses; the baseline uses 90)
  • Dryer and warm-up energy charge: 55 $ (held at the documented default)

Working through the calculation

  • The calculation starts from the formula this tool documents: Print energy cost = press energy used × electricity rate × production uptime share + dryer and warm-up charge.
  • Total print energy cost works out to 113 $ at these inputs, and this is the headline figure for the scenario.
  • Print energy cost per unit works out to 0.18 $ / piece at these inputs.
  • Variable print energy cost works out to 58.24 $ at these inputs.
  • Fixed print energy cost adder works out to 55 $ at these inputs.

How this compares with the baseline

  • Against the tool's baseline example, where press production uptime share sits at 90% and the headline result is 136 $, this scenario comes in 16.51% below the baseline at 113 $.
  • Use it when costing jobs, comparing curing technologies, or building an energy surcharge into quotes. 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

  • Total print energy cost: 113 $ (headline result)
  • Print energy cost per unit: 0.18 $ / piece
  • Variable print energy cost: 58.24 $
  • Fixed print energy cost adder: 55 $

Run it with your numbers

  • To rerun this with your own numbers, open the live Print Energy Cost calculator, set press production uptime share to your actual value, and adjust the remaining inputs to match your operation.

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.