Trailers, Truck Bodies & Specialty Vehicles worked example

Cost Per Body at 92% direct-cost capture factor: a worked example

What does the result look like when direct-cost capture factor reaches 92%? The full calculation is worked below with real intermediate numbers. Use it when cost per body in trailers, truck bodies and specialty vehicles is being put through a trailers, truck bodies and specialty vehicles weighted-cost review.

The inputs for this scenario

  • Bodies produced in the run: 100 units (unchanged)
  • Variable build cost per body: 45 $ / unit (unchanged)
  • Direct-cost capture factor: 92 % (raised for this scenario; the documented default is 80)
  • Fixed tooling and setup cost: 250 $ (unchanged)

Working through the calculation

  • Applying the documented formula (Cost Per Body cost = quantity × rate × capture factor + fixed cost) to the inputs above produces each figure below.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 4,390 $ for weighted cost, the number this scenario is built around.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 43.9 $ / piece for per piece value.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 4,140 $ for captured value.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 250 $ for fixed adjustment.

How this compares with the baseline

  • Against the tool's baseline example, where direct-cost capture factor sits at 80% and the headline result is 3,850 $, this scenario comes in 14.03% above the baseline at 4,390 $.
  • A figure at this level is achievable when direct-cost capture factor is genuinely sustained, not just peaked for a shift. The capture factor is a single blended percentage — it won't reflect a job where material and labor absorption differ sharply from each other.

Results at a glance

  • Weighted cost: 4,390 $ (headline result)
  • Per piece value: 43.9 $ / piece
  • Captured value: 4,140 $
  • Fixed adjustment: 250 $

Run it with your numbers

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

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.