How do you calculate the cost of a jig or fixture?

Multiply the build hours by the loaded build rate, then add the hardware and plate stock and any separate design and tryout cost. 60 hours at 95 is 5,700; with 1,400 of hardware and 1,200 of design and tryout, 8,300, 700 under a 9,000 budget, the Jig and Fixture Cost calculator's own example.

What is the tooling cost per part?

The fixture's total cost divided by the production quantity it serves: the amount each part has to recover. 8,300 over 1,000 parts is 8.30 a part; over 40,000 parts it would be 0.21. It is a recovery allowance, not the cost of making the part.

What should the loaded build rate include?

Toolroom labour with the machine costs and overhead your costing applies, per build hour. Keep design and tryout out of it if you enter them separately, or they are counted twice.

How is the budget status decided?

On target when the cost is within budget, Near target when it is over by no more than the band on Setup (5% in the example), and Above target when it is further over.

Does it include maintenance and replacement?

No. It costs the build. Maintenance, replacement details and financing are not included, and a fixture shared across programmes needs its own allocation.

Does the workbook use macros?

No. It is a plain .xlsx with ordinary formulas, tables and native charts. The Verify sheet re-checks the formulas against fixed test fixtures and shows Self-check: PASS.

Manufacturing Cost and Quoting

Jig and Fixture Cost Excel Template

Fixture cost = build hours × loaded build rate + hardware and stock + design and tryout, and tooling cost per part = fixture cost ÷ production quantity. Give every jig and fixture on a programme a row and see its cost against budget, the programme headroom, and where the money goes.

Free, and a plain .xlsx with no macros to enable. A CSV with live formulas and a printed how-to guide come with it.

Overview

This jig and fixture cost template is a working Excel workbook for tooling and manufacturing engineers, programme managers and estimators. Each jig or fixture is one row with its build hours, hardware and plate stock, any design and tryout not already in the toolroom rate, the production quantity it serves and its approved budget. The loaded build rate on Setup turns the hours into labour cost. The workbook gives each fixture's total cost, the tooling each production part has to recover, and the headroom against its budget. It ships with ten fixtures for a fictional automotive bracket and hub programme, so every tile and chart is filled in when you open it.

In the example the crossmember weld fixture needed extra clamps after tryout: 110 build hours at 95 is 10,450, with 3,200 of hardware and 2,400 of design and tryout it costs 16,050 against a 14,000 budget, 14.6% over. The hub CMM fixture is 10% over after added datum checks, and two more are within 5% over their budgets. Across the ten fixtures the programme is 810 over budget. The low-volume service bracket fixture costs 8.30 a part over 1,000 parts; the same kind of fixture spread over 40,000 brackets is 0.25 a part.

Maintenance, replacement and financing are not included. The download is a plain .xlsx with no macros. A CSV with live formulas is also included for other tools; the dashboard, charts, dropdowns and self-check are in the .xlsx.

What this template includes

Setup sheet with your company, programme, currency, loaded build rate and near-budget band, and the fixture types
Fixtures table, one row per jig or fixture: type, build hours, hardware and stock, design and tryout, production quantity and budget, with a Check column
Per fixture: build labour, total cost, tooling cost per production part, budget headroom, how far over budget it is and a status in words
Dashboard with four tiles (fixtures, fixture cost, programme headroom, fixtures over budget), what each fixture costs split into labour, hardware and design, how far each is over or under budget, and the fixture table
Method sheet with every formula, and a Verify sheet that re-checks the formulas against an independent reference and the Jig and Fixture Cost calculator (Self-check: PASS)
CSV with live formulas for the Fixtures table; the dashboard, charts, dropdowns and self-check are in the .xlsx

Suggested use case

Use it to budget the jigs and fixtures for a new part or programme, to track toolroom estimates against approved budgets, or to put a tooling allowance per part into a quote.

How to use it

On Setup, type your company, programme, currency and loaded build rate, and the fixture types you use.
On Fixtures, give each jig or fixture a row: type, build hours, hardware and stock, design and tryout, production quantity and budget.
Fix anything the Check column names.
Open the Dashboard: what each fixture costs, against its budget, and the programme headroom.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you calculate the cost of a jig or fixture?: Multiply the build hours by the loaded build rate, then add the hardware and plate stock and any separate design and tryout cost. 60 hours at 95 is 5,700; with 1,400 of hardware and 1,200 of design and tryout, 8,300, 700 under a 9,000 budget, the Jig and Fixture Cost calculator's own example.
What is the tooling cost per part?: The fixture's total cost divided by the production quantity it serves: the amount each part has to recover. 8,300 over 1,000 parts is 8.30 a part; over 40,000 parts it would be 0.21. It is a recovery allowance, not the cost of making the part.
What should the loaded build rate include?: Toolroom labour with the machine costs and overhead your costing applies, per build hour. Keep design and tryout out of it if you enter them separately, or they are counted twice.
How is the budget status decided?: On target when the cost is within budget, Near target when it is over by no more than the band on Setup (5% in the example), and Above target when it is further over.
Does it include maintenance and replacement?: No. It costs the build. Maintenance, replacement details and financing are not included, and a fixture shared across programmes needs its own allocation.
Does the workbook use macros?: No. It is a plain .xlsx with ordinary formulas, tables and native charts. The Verify sheet re-checks the formulas against fixed test fixtures and shows Self-check: PASS.