What belongs in bench adjustment hours?

Include toolmaker work performed outside the charged press session, such as fitting inserts or correcting shutoffs. Exclude technician time already in the blended press rate.

Where do trial materials go?

Use the sample and setup charge for materials excluded from the hourly rate. Include discarded samples and purging material in that quote.

Should I include a second tryout?

Yes, when it is part of the planned scope. Add its press and adjustment hours, or budget it as a separate scenario.

Does a completed tryout mean the tool is approved?

No. This estimate only totals the resources you plan to use. Acceptance requires the agreed inspection and production criteria.

Tooling, Fixtures, Dies & Mold Economics calculator

Tool Tryout Cost Calculator

Estimate a tool tryout including press time and off-press adjustments. Use the press booking, loaded rates, sample charge and approved tryout budget.

What this calculator does

Budget tool tryout from press time, separate bench adjustments and sample charges.

Formula used

Press cost = press hours × blended press and technician rate
Adjustment cost = separate bench hours × bench adjustment rate
Total tryout cost = press cost + adjustment cost + sample and setup charge
Budget headroom = tryout budget − total tryout cost

Inputs explained

Tryout Press Hours: Reserved press hours including setup and attended sampling.
Press and Technician Rate: Blended loaded rate for the press and its attending technician.
Sample and Setup Charge: Material and setup charges excluded from the hourly press rate.
Separate Bench Adjustment Hours: Off-press toolmaker hours excluded from the blended press rate.
Bench Adjustment Rate: Loaded toolmaker rate for the separately estimated adjustment hours.
Tryout Budget: Approved press, sample and adjustment budget for this tryout scope.

How to use the result

Best suited to first tool tryout Booking, repeat sampling budget.
The estimate does not establish tool acceptance or production capability. Repeat tryouts must be included in the hours or budgeted separately.

Current U.S. benchmarks

The producer price index for plastic resins and materials stands at 280.569 (BLS, Aug 2026), up 6.6% from a year earlier. Quotes priced off last quarter's material cost miss this move.
The U.S. has 14,378 furniture and related products establishments employing about 355,594 workers (Census County Business Patterns, 2023).

Common questions

What belongs in bench adjustment hours? Include toolmaker work performed outside the charged press session, such as fitting inserts or correcting shutoffs. Exclude technician time already in the blended press rate.
Where do trial materials go? Use the sample and setup charge for materials excluded from the hourly rate. Include discarded samples and purging material in that quote.
Should I include a second tryout? Yes, when it is part of the planned scope. Add its press and adjustment hours, or budget it as a separate scenario.
Does a completed tryout mean the tool is approved? No. This estimate only totals the resources you plan to use. Acceptance requires the agreed inspection and production criteria.

Last reviewed 2026-10-06.