Rail Signaling & Wayside Equipment worked example

Wayside Enclosure Cost at 68% first-pass yield: a worked example

Here is what the math looks like when conditions slip. We hold every other input steady and drop first-pass yield to 68%, then walk the calculation through step by step. Estimate the cost to fabricate and fit out trackside signaling enclosures from unit count, per-cabinet material, and yield.

The inputs for this scenario

  • Wayside enclosures built: 40 units (held at the documented default)
  • Material and fit-out cost per enclosure: 5,200 $ / unit (held at the documented default)
  • First-pass yield: 68 % (the input this scenario stresses; the baseline uses 94)
  • Tooling and type-test setup: 8,500 $ (held at the documented default)

Working through the calculation

  • The calculation starts from the formula this tool documents: Wayside enclosure cost = wayside enclosures built x material and fit-out cost per enclosure x first-pass yield + tooling and type-test setup.
  • Total wayside enclosure cost works out to 149,940 $ at these inputs, and this is the headline figure for the scenario.
  • Wayside enclosure cost per unit works out to 3,749 $ / piece at these inputs.
  • Variable wayside enclosure cost works out to 141,440 $ at these inputs.
  • Fixed wayside enclosure cost adder works out to 8,500 $ at these inputs.

How this compares with the baseline

  • Against the tool's baseline example, where first-pass yield sits at 94% and the headline result is 204,020 $, this scenario comes in 26.51% below the baseline at 149,940 $.
  • The practical read: the gap between this scenario and the baseline is entirely attributable to first-pass yield, so recovering it is worth quantifying in dollars before considering equipment or staffing changes. The first-pass yield term scales cost as a capture factor, so it does not model scrapped-unit rework separately; enclosures that fail and are reworked rather than discarded may cost more than the yield-adjusted figure suggests.

Results at a glance

  • Total wayside enclosure cost: 149,940 $ (headline result)
  • Wayside enclosure cost per unit: 3,749 $ / piece
  • Variable wayside enclosure cost: 141,440 $
  • Fixed wayside enclosure cost adder: 8,500 $

Run it with your numbers

  • To rerun this with your own numbers, open the live Wayside Enclosure Cost calculator, set first-pass yield to your actual value, and adjust the remaining inputs to match your operation.

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.