Wire Harness, Cable & Electromechanical Assembly worked example
Harness Rework Cost at 17% defect occurrence rate: a worked example
What does the result look like when defect occurrence rate reaches 17%? The full calculation is worked below with real intermediate numbers. A quality engineer sizing the cost of a crimp or continuity failure across a lot uses it to justify a process fix versus living with the rework.
The inputs for this scenario
- Harnesses reworked this run: 120 units (unchanged)
- Rework touch labor per harness: 28 $/unit (unchanged)
- Defect occurrence rate: 17 % (raised for this scenario; the documented default is 15)
- Scrapped wire and connector material: 350 $ (unchanged)
Working through the calculation
- Applying the documented formula (Total = harnesses x rework labor rate x defect occurrence% + scrapped material) to the inputs above produces each figure below.
- At this operating point the engine returns 921 $ for total harness rework cost, the number this scenario is built around.
- At this operating point the engine returns 7.68 $ / piece for harness rework cost per unit.
- At this operating point the engine returns 571 $ for variable harness rework cost.
- At this operating point the engine returns 350 $ for fixed harness rework cost adder.
How this compares with the baseline
- Against the tool's baseline example, where defect occurrence rate sits at 15% and the headline result is 854 $, this scenario comes in 7.87% above the baseline at 921 $.
- A figure at this level is achievable when defect occurrence rate is genuinely sustained, not just peaked for a shift. It treats defect occurrence and labor as flat averages; it understates cost where one defect forces a full re-harness instead of a spot repair, and it excludes retest fixture time and expedite freight.
Results at a glance
- Total harness rework cost: 921 $ (headline result)
- Harness rework cost per unit: 7.68 $ / piece
- Variable harness rework cost: 571 $
- Fixed harness rework cost adder: 350 $
Run it with your numbers
- Every input above is editable in the live Harness Rework Cost calculator, which recalculates instantly and can be shared with the inputs intact.
Last reviewed 2026-05-12.