How do you calculate quality loss cost for a dosing line?

Multiply off-spec quantity by cost per unit by the capture factor, then add the fixed cost. With 100 units at $45, 80% capture, and $250 fixed, total cost is $3,850 and per-unit cost is $38.50.

What does the capture factor represent?

It is the share of each unit's nominal cost you actually incur — accounting for reclaimed material or partial rework. At 80% on a $45 unit, you count $36 of variable loss per unit, giving $3,600 captured value before the fixed charge.

Why is per-unit cost higher than the unit rate?

Because the fixed cost spreads across every off-spec unit. Here the $250 investigation charge adds $2.50 to each of the 100 units, so per-unit cost is $38.50 even though captured variable cost is only $36 per unit.

What is a good quality loss cost target?

There's no universal number — judge it against revenue per good unit. If per-unit loss ($38.50 here) approaches the sale price of a good dose, the excursion is destroying margin and the feeder likely needs attention.

Quality loss cost vs. scrap cost?

Scrap cost is usually just material times quantity. Quality loss cost adds the capture factor (recovery you actually get) and the fixed investigation cost, so it reflects the full financial hit of an out-of-tolerance run.

How do I lower quality loss cost per unit?

Cut the off-spec quantity (fewer bad doses spreads fixed cost thinner but also shrinks total), recover more material to lower the capture factor, or reduce fixed investigation cost through faster disposition.

Weighing, Dosing & Loss-in-Weight Feeding calculator

Quality Loss Cost Calculator

Quality Loss Cost puts a dollar figure on out-of-tolerance doses from a weighing or loss-in-weight feeding operation, combining the variable cost of each bad unit — scaled by how much of that cost you actually recover or absorb — with a fixed charge for investigation, rework, and disposition. On dosing lines, a drifting feeder doesn't just waste material; it triggers holds, re-tests, and scrap that carry both per-unit and per-event costs. Quality engineers and cost accountants use this to size the business case for a feeder upgrade or tighter tolerance. It matters because per-unit scrap alone understates the true bite of a quality excursion once fixed investigation costs are folded in.

What this calculator does

Quality Loss Cost puts a dollar figure on out-of-tolerance doses from a weighing or loss-in-weight feeding operation, combining the variable cost of each bad unit — scaled by how much of that cost you actually recover or absorb — with a fixed charge for investigation, rework, and disposition.
Use it when quality loss cost in weighing, dosing and loss-in-weight feeding is being put through a weighing, dosing and loss-in-weight feeding weighted-cost review.
It computes total quality loss cost as quantity times per-unit rate times a capture factor plus a fixed cost, and returns the per-unit cost.

Formula used

Quality Loss Cost cost = quantity × rate × capture factor + fixed cost
Per-unit quality loss cost = total cost ÷ quantity

Inputs explained

Off-spec doses produced:
Cost per off-spec dose:
Cost-capture factor:
Fixed investigation and rework cost:

How to use the result

Use it to price a batch of off-spec doses or to justify a feeder or tolerance improvement against a known scrap rate.
The capture factor is a single blended percentage; it won't distinguish material cost you fully lose from labor you only partly absorb, so refine it per cost category for high-stakes decisions.

Common questions

How do you calculate quality loss cost for a dosing line? Multiply off-spec quantity by cost per unit by the capture factor, then add the fixed cost. With 100 units at $45, 80% capture, and $250 fixed, total cost is $3,850 and per-unit cost is $38.50.
What does the capture factor represent? It is the share of each unit's nominal cost you actually incur — accounting for reclaimed material or partial rework. At 80% on a $45 unit, you count $36 of variable loss per unit, giving $3,600 captured value before the fixed charge.
Why is per-unit cost higher than the unit rate? Because the fixed cost spreads across every off-spec unit. Here the $250 investigation charge adds $2.50 to each of the 100 units, so per-unit cost is $38.50 even though captured variable cost is only $36 per unit.
What is a good quality loss cost target? There's no universal number — judge it against revenue per good unit. If per-unit loss ($38.50 here) approaches the sale price of a good dose, the excursion is destroying margin and the feeder likely needs attention.
Quality loss cost vs. scrap cost? Scrap cost is usually just material times quantity. Quality loss cost adds the capture factor (recovery you actually get) and the fixed investigation cost, so it reflects the full financial hit of an out-of-tolerance run.

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.