Quality & Metrology worked example

Unilateral Tolerance with one-sided tolerance allowance of 0.08 mm: a worked example

Suppose one-sided tolerance allowance falls to 0.08 mm. This page works the full calculation at that level so you can see exactly which result moves and by how much. Net a one-sided tolerance allowance against the variation and measurement error that consume it to see the remaining margin.

The inputs for this scenario

  • One-sided tolerance allowance: 0.08 mm (the input this scenario stresses; the baseline uses 0.15)
  • Allowance consumed by process variation: 0.06 mm (held at the documented default)
  • Allowance consumed by measurement error: 0.03 mm (held at the documented default)
  • Allowance consumed by setup or wear: 0.02 mm (held at the documented default)

Working through the calculation

  • The calculation starts from the formula this tool documents: Allowance consumed = process variation + measurement error + setup or wear.
  • Remaining tolerance margin works out to 0 units at these inputs, and this is the headline figure for the scenario.
  • Allowance consumed works out to 0.11 value at these inputs.
  • One-sided tolerance allowance works out to 0.08 value at these inputs.
  • Utilization works out to 0 % at these inputs.

How this compares with the baseline

  • Against the tool's baseline example, where one-sided tolerance allowance sits at 0.15 mm and the headline result is 0.04 units, this scenario comes in 100% below the baseline at 0 units.
  • It sums the one-sided allowance consumed by process variation, measurement error, and setup or wear, then subtracts that from the total one-sided tolerance allowance to report remaining margin and utilization. When the numbers land here, the stressed input is the lever to work; the walkthrough above shows exactly how much each output recovers as it climbs back toward the baseline.

Results at a glance

  • Remaining tolerance margin: 0 units (headline result)
  • Allowance consumed: 0.11 value
  • One-sided tolerance allowance: 0.08 value
  • Utilization: 0 %

Run it with your numbers

  • To rerun this with your own numbers, open the live Unilateral Tolerance calculator, set one-sided tolerance allowance to your actual value, and adjust the remaining inputs to match your operation.

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.