Welding & Fabrication worked example

Forming Cycle Time at 29% flip, gauge, and handling allowance: a worked example in welding & fabrication

Push flip, gauge, and handling allowance up to 29% and the picture changes. This example computes every intermediate figure at that operating point. Use it when planning press brake work to estimate the minutes per part for bending, including time to flip, gauge, and handle the workpiece between bends.

The inputs for this scenario

  • Bends to form per part: 8 bends (unchanged)
  • Bends placed per minute: 5 bends / min (unchanged)
  • Flip, gauge, and handling allowance: 29 % (raised for this scenario; the documented default is 25)

Working through the calculation

  • Applying the documented formula (Base forming cycle time = bends to form per part รท bends placed per minute) to the inputs above produces each figure below.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 2.06 min for required forming cycle time per part, the number this scenario is built around.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 1.6 min for base forming cycle time.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 29 % for flip, gauge, and handling allowance.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 5 pieces / min for bends placed per minute.

How this compares with the baseline

  • Against the tool's baseline example, where flip, gauge, and handling allowance sits at 25% and the headline result is 2 min, this scenario comes in 3.2% above the baseline at 2.06 min.
  • It computes the press-brake cycle time per part from bend count and bends-per-minute, padded by a flip, gauge, and handling allowance. The value of this scenario is the size of the gap it exposes: that gap, priced out over a year, is the budget you can justify spending to close it.

Results at a glance

  • Required forming cycle time per part: 2.06 min (headline result)
  • Base forming cycle time: 1.6 min
  • Flip, gauge, and handling allowance: 29 %
  • Bends placed per minute: 5 pieces / min

Run it with your numbers

  • Every input above is editable in the live Forming Cycle Time calculator, which recalculates instantly and can be shared with the inputs intact.

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.