Tooling, Fixtures, Dies & Mold Economics worked example

Fixture Build Cost at 65% billable labor utilization: a worked example

Here is what the math looks like when conditions slip. We hold every other input steady and drop billable labor utilization to 65%, then walk the calculation through step by step. Estimate the cost to design and build a workholding fixture from labor hours, shop rate and material.

The inputs for this scenario

  • Fixture build labor hours: 60 hours (held at the documented default)
  • Toolroom shop rate: 95 $/hr (held at the documented default)
  • Billable labor utilization: 65 % (the input this scenario stresses; the baseline uses 90)
  • Material & hardware flat cost: 1,500 $ (held at the documented default)

Working through the calculation

  • The calculation starts from the formula this tool documents: Total fixture cost = build hours x shop rate x billable utilization% + material flat.
  • Total fixture build cost works out to 5,205 $ at these inputs, and this is the headline figure for the scenario.
  • Fixture build cost per unit works out to 86.75 $ / piece at these inputs.
  • Variable fixture build cost works out to 3,705 $ at these inputs.
  • Fixed fixture build cost adder works out to 1,500 $ at these inputs.

How this compares with the baseline

  • Against the tool's baseline example, where billable labor utilization sits at 90% and the headline result is 6,630 $, this scenario comes in 21.49% below the baseline at 5,205 $.
  • The practical read: the gap between this scenario and the baseline is entirely attributable to billable labor utilization, so recovering it is worth quantifying in dollars before considering equipment or staffing changes. The utilization factor recovers only booked-and-billable time; it does not capture design engineering, first-article proving, or rework loops, so add those separately for a true program cost.

Results at a glance

  • Total fixture build cost: 5,205 $ (headline result)
  • Fixture build cost per unit: 86.75 $ / piece
  • Variable fixture build cost: 3,705 $
  • Fixed fixture build cost adder: 1,500 $

Run it with your numbers

  • To rerun this with your own numbers, open the live Fixture Build Cost calculator, set billable labor utilization to your actual value, and adjust the remaining inputs to match your operation.

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.