Quality & Metrology worked example

Quality Escape Cost with defective units that escaped to the customer of 130 units: a worked example

This scenario runs the quality escape cost calculation on the strong side: defective units that escaped to the customer of 130 units, with every other input held at its documented default. Use it to size the cost of poor quality from an escape and to justify containment, sorting, or corrective action spend.

The inputs for this scenario

  • Defective units that escaped to the customer: 130 units (raised for this scenario; the documented default is 50)
  • Rework or replacement cost per escaped unit: 85 $ / unit (unchanged)
  • Fixed containment and sorting cost: 1,200 $ (unchanged)
  • Labor and overhead adder: 600 $ (unchanged)

Working through the calculation

  • Applying the documented formula (Total quality escape cost = escaped units × cost per escaped unit + fixed containment cost + labor and overhead adder) to the inputs above produces each figure below.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 12,850 $ for total quality escape cost, the number this scenario is built around.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 98.85 $ / piece for cost per escaped unit.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 11,050 $ for variable escape cost.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 1,800 $ for fixed containment and overhead cost.

How this compares with the baseline

  • Against the tool's baseline example, where defective units that escaped to the customer sits at 50 units and the headline result is 6,050 $, this scenario comes in 112% above the baseline at 12,850 $.
  • Use it after an escape or return event to quantify the total financial impact for a COPQ report, corrective-action business case, or supplier chargeback. Treat this as a target state: the delta against the baseline quantifies what the improvement is worth before you commit to chasing it.

Results at a glance

  • Total quality escape cost: 12,850 $ (headline result)
  • Cost per escaped unit: 98.85 $ / piece
  • Variable escape cost: 11,050 $
  • Fixed containment and overhead cost: 1,800 $

Run it with your numbers

  • Every input above is editable in the live Quality Escape Cost calculator, which recalculates instantly and can be shared with the inputs intact.

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.