Can I use this for flux-cored wire?

No. A tubular wire does not have a uniform solid cross section. Use its manufacturer’s measured mass per length and process deposition data.

Why does wire diameter have a large effect?

Circular wire area varies with diameter squared. At the same feed speed, density and efficiency, a larger diameter feeds and deposits more mass per arc hour.

What deposition efficiency should I enter?

Use a matched trial or applicable consumable data. Retained mass divided by consumed wire captures clipping, spatter and other losses on the same consumption basis.

Does this predict pounds deposited per shift?

Only after you apply measured arc-on hours for that shift. The displayed rate assumes wire feeds during welding and excludes handling, setup and downtime.

Welding & Fabrication calculator

Weld Deposition Rate Calculator

Estimate solid-wire deposit per arc hour from feed speed and wire geometry. Enter wire diameter, alloy density, retained efficiency and your production target.

What this calculator does

Estimate retained solid-wire deposit per arc hour from feeder settings and measured efficiency.

Formula used

Wire area = π × diameter² ÷ 4
Gross feed (lb/hr) = wire area × feed speed × 60 × wire density
Deposition = gross feed × efficiency ÷ 100
Filler loss = gross feed − deposition
Shortfall = target deposition − calculated deposition

Inputs explained

Wire Feed Speed: Measured solid-wire feed speed or verified feeder setting.
Solid Wire Diameter: Circular solid-wire diameter from the consumable data sheet.
Wire Density: Solid-wire alloy density from material data.
Deposition Efficiency: Retained mass divided by consumed wire from a matched trial.
Target Deposition Rate: Required retained filler per arc hour from the production plan.

How to use the result

Best suited to Solid-Wire feeder Planning, retention efficiency comparison.
Tubular and cored wires require their manufacturer’s lineal mass data. The result is per arc hour; handling and setup reduce shift output.

Current U.S. benchmarks

The producer price index for steel mill products stands at 381.162 (BLS, Aug 2026), up 23.4% from a year earlier. Quotes priced off last quarter's material cost miss this move.
Industrial electricity averages 9.77 cents per kWh across the U.S. (EIA, Jul 2026), up 4.7% from a year earlier. Energy-intensive steps carry this directly into unit cost.
U.S. iron and steel import customs value ran $2.2B in Aug 2026 (Census International Trade). The U.S. ran a trade deficit of $0.6B in the category that month. This dollar total mixes price, quantity, product mix, origin, and timing; it does not measure physical import volume or prove a tariff or reshoring effect.
The U.S. has 53,790 fabricated metal products establishments employing about 1,441,471 workers (Census County Business Patterns, 2023).

Common questions

Can I use this for flux-cored wire? No. A tubular wire does not have a uniform solid cross section. Use its manufacturer’s measured mass per length and process deposition data.
Why does wire diameter have a large effect? Circular wire area varies with diameter squared. At the same feed speed, density and efficiency, a larger diameter feeds and deposits more mass per arc hour.
What deposition efficiency should I enter? Use a matched trial or applicable consumable data. Retained mass divided by consumed wire captures clipping, spatter and other losses on the same consumption basis.
Does this predict pounds deposited per shift? Only after you apply measured arc-on hours for that shift. The displayed rate assumes wire feeds during welding and excludes handling, setup and downtime.

Related guides

Last reviewed 2026-10-06.