Tooling, Fixtures, Dies & Mold Economics worked example

Tooling Repair Cost at 86% share of repairs done in-house: a worked example

What does the result look like when share of repairs done in-house reaches 86%? The full calculation is worked below with real intermediate numbers. A stamping shop tallies expected repair spend on an aging die set to justify a replacement decision.

The inputs for this scenario

  • Tooling repair incidents per period: 12 repairs (unchanged)
  • Average cost per repair incident: 650 $/repair (unchanged)
  • Share of repairs done in-house: 86 % (raised for this scenario; the documented default is 75)
  • Outside vendor flat charge: 800 $ (unchanged)

Working through the calculation

  • Applying the documented formula (Total repair cost = repair incidents x cost per repair x in-house share% + vendor flat) to the inputs above produces each figure below.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 7,508 $ for total tooling repair cost, the number this scenario is built around.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 626 $ / piece for tooling repair cost per unit.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 6,708 $ for variable tooling repair cost.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 800 $ for fixed tooling repair cost adder.

How this compares with the baseline

  • Against the tool's baseline example, where share of repairs done in-house sits at 75% and the headline result is 6,650 $, this scenario comes in 12.9% above the baseline at 7,508 $.
  • A figure at this level is achievable when share of repairs done in-house is genuinely sustained, not just peaked for a shift. The in-house share is applied as a single blended weight, so it assumes your in-house and vendor repairs cost roughly the same per incident; if vendor jobs are far pricier per repair, model them separately.

Results at a glance

  • Total tooling repair cost: 7,508 $ (headline result)
  • Tooling repair cost per unit: 626 $ / piece
  • Variable tooling repair cost: 6,708 $
  • Fixed tooling repair cost adder: 800 $

Run it with your numbers

  • Every input above is editable in the live Tooling Repair Cost calculator, which recalculates instantly and can be shared with the inputs intact.

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.