Tank, Vessel & Pressure Equipment Fabrication worked example

Quote Margin with quoted vessel price to the customer of 63 units: a worked example in tank, vessel & pressure equipment fabrication

This worked example runs the quote margin numbers for a tougher week than the baseline: quoted vessel price to the customer of 63 units instead of the typical 125 units. Quote Margin tells a fabrication shop how much cushion sits between the price quoted for a tank or pressure vessel and the fully loaded cost to build it.

The inputs for this scenario

  • Quoted vessel price to the customer: 63 units (the input this scenario stresses; the baseline uses 125)
  • Fully loaded fabrication cost: 100 units (held at the documented default)
  • Cost basis used for margin: 100 units (held at the documented default)

Working through the calculation

  • The calculation starts from the formula this tool documents: Quote Margin margin = available value - required value.
  • Margin works out to -37 % at these inputs, and this is the headline figure for the scenario.
  • Absolute margin works out to -37 value at these inputs.
  • Available amount works out to 63 value at these inputs.
  • Required amount works out to 100 value at these inputs.

How this compares with the baseline

  • Against the tool's baseline example, where quoted vessel price to the customer sits at 125 units and the headline result is 25 %, this scenario comes in 248% below the baseline at -37 %.
  • Use it at bid time to validate a quote, and again after job costing to compare realized margin against what you quoted. 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

  • Margin: -37 % (headline result)
  • Absolute margin: -37 value
  • Available amount: 63 value
  • Required amount: 100 value

Run it with your numbers

  • To rerun this with your own numbers, open the live Quote Margin calculator, set quoted vessel price to the customer to your actual value, and adjust the remaining inputs to match your operation.

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.