Thermoforming & Vacuum Formed Products worked example

Tooling Amortization at 65% tool utilization efficiency: a worked example in thermoforming & vacuum formed products

This worked example runs the tooling amortization numbers for a tougher week than the baseline: 65% tool utilization efficiency instead of the typical 90%. Tooling amortization tracks how quickly a thermoform mold — often a five- or six-figure aluminum matched-metal or cast tool — is earning back its cost through the parts it runs.

The inputs for this scenario

  • Parts produced against the tool: 1,200 units (held at the documented default)
  • Amortization period runtime: 8 hr (held at the documented default)
  • Tool utilization efficiency: 65 % (the input this scenario stresses; the baseline uses 90)

Working through the calculation

  • The calculation starts from the formula this tool documents: Raw tooling amortization = completed output ÷ runtime.
  • Effective throughput works out to 97.5 units at these inputs, and this is the headline figure for the scenario.
  • Raw throughput works out to 150 units at these inputs.
  • Efficiency works out to 65 % at these inputs.
  • Runtime works out to 8 hr at these inputs.

How this compares with the baseline

  • Against the tool's baseline example, where tool utilization efficiency sits at 90% and the headline result is 135 units, this scenario comes in 27.78% below the baseline at 97.5 units.
  • Use it when deciding whether a program volume recovers tooling cost, setting per-part tooling recovery in a quote, or comparing utilization across tools. 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

  • Effective throughput: 97.5 units (headline result)
  • Raw throughput: 150 units
  • Efficiency: 65 %
  • Runtime: 8 hr

Run it with your numbers

  • To rerun this with your own numbers, open the live Tooling Amortization calculator, set tool utilization efficiency to your actual value, and adjust the remaining inputs to match your operation.

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.