ROI and part-cost calculator

What does a finished part really cost?

Compare the cost per part of PostPro vapor smoothing by AMT with hand finishing, outsourced smoothing, or selling smoothing as a service. It uses each system’s starting-from price, the published chamber sizes and cycle times, and your own volumes, rates, parts and costs.

  • Estimate based on your inputs
  • No email needed
  • The link keeps your numbers

Results update as you type. Every money and time value is an editable example, your own figure or AMT’s starting-from price.

Compare PostPro against
Your part

Bounding box, mm

Your volume
Manual finishing today

Sanding, priming or sealing, painting or coating by a technician. Example values: replace them with your own.

Your PostPro

Investment per system Starting-from price

  • System —
  • —
  • —
  • Investment per system—
Care pack, per year

Care packs are priced in your quotation, so the estimate does not count them. Plan details come with the quotation.

Smoothing agent

Your cost per canister—

Cycles per canister Needed for full results

There is no published figure: it depends on your parts, load and recipe. Ask AMT for your parts, or enter a range and the results show both ends.

Fine-tune the assumptions

Packing, % of the grid estimate

Assumption. The grid estimate stacks your bounding box side by side through the whole chamber; racks and spacing hold fewer. An AMT application engineer confirms real loads.

Cycle time, hours

Your estimate

PostPro

Turn on JavaScript to run the calculator. The method, the starting-from prices it uses and the published cycle times are below, under How we calculate.

Manual finishing

—per part

PostPro

—per part

Annual savings
—
Payback
—
5-year net savings
—
Labor hours freed
—

Estimate based on your inputs, not a quote or a promise of savings. The system is costed at its starting-from price; your quotation prices the full setup, tax and shipping.

How we calculate
  • PostPro cost per part = (operator labor + agent + energy + other consumables + care pack + capital) ÷ parts per year.
  • Parts per batch = grid fit of your part in the chamber × packing. Systems = cycles needed per week ÷ cycles one system runs in your machine hours.
  • Capital = investment ÷ depreciation years. Payback = investment ÷ monthly running saving.
  • The low end of a range takes the favorable end of every input range; the high end, the other.
Full method, prices and sources
Request a quote for this setup

Where the money goes

Per part, from your inputs. Hover or focus a chart for values; every chart has a table.

Cost per part, by cost typeMidpoint of your ranges
    Show as a table
    PostPro cost per part by cycles per canisterMore cycles per canister, lower agent cost
      Show as a table
      Cumulative cash against manual finishingMonth by month over five years
      Show as a table

      Throughput

      Parts per batch
      —
      Estimate
      Most parts per week, one system
      —
      Systems needed
      —
      Cycles per week
      —

      Not in these numbers

        Method

        How we calculate

        Every result comes from three things: your inputs, each system’s starting-from price and the chamber sizes and cycle times published on the PostPro product pages. Where an input is uncertain, you enter a range and the results show both ends.

        1. Parts per batch

          grid = ⌊chamber ÷ part⌋ on each axis, best orientationparts per batch = grid × packing %

          The grid stacks your part’s bounding box side by side through the whole chamber. Racks and spacing hold fewer parts, so the packing factor scales it down; you can also enter your own parts per batch. The configurator and Ask AMT size machines with the same grid fit.

        2. Cycles and systems

          cycles per week = ⌈parts per week ÷ parts per batch⌉cycles one system runs = ⌊machine hours per week ÷ cycle time⌋systems = ⌈cycles per week ÷ cycles one system runs⌉

          A partly filled batch still takes a full cycle, so small weekly volumes cost more per part. The recommended system is the smallest chamber that fits your part and covers your volume at your machine hours.

        3. PostPro cost per part

          (operator labor + agent + energy + other consumables + care pack + capital) ÷ parts per year ÷ (1 − scrap rate)

          • Operator labor = cycles × operator minutes ÷ 60 × labor rate
          • Agent = cycles ÷ cycles per canister × your cost per canister
          • Energy = cycles × kWh per cycle × electricity price, when you set both
          • Capital = investment ÷ depreciation years, or the yearly loan payment when financed
          • Investment = the system’s starting-from price, or your own system price, for each system needed. Everything else you tick, the Ancillaries Pack, bundles, PostPro Portal Access, installation and training, DMS and the care packs, is priced in your quotation, so the calculator leaves it out and says so; it carries it to "Request a quote for this setup". A setup from the configurator brings its own items. When the first canister is ticked it counts as investment at your cost per canister and the agent cost still runs from the first cycle, so the estimate errs high

        4. What you compare against

          • Manual finishing = (labor minutes ÷ 60 × labor rate + consumables) ÷ (1 − scrap rate)
          • Outsourced smoothing = (price per part + shipping per part) ÷ (1 − scrap rate)
          • Selling smoothing as a service = your price per part, so the result is your margin

        5. Savings and payback

          yearly running saving = (compared cost − PostPro running cost per part) × parts per yearannual savings = yearly running saving − capital per yearpayback = investment ÷ monthly running saving5-year net = 5 × yearly running saving − investment − interest

          Running cost is everything except capital. If the running saving is zero or less, there is no payback, and the calculator says so.

        6. Break-even cycles per canister

          cycles per canister ≥ your cost per canister × cycles per year ÷ parts per year ÷ (compared cost − PostPro cost before agent)

          There is no published figure for how many cycles one canister of agent runs: it depends on the parts, the load and the recipe. Until you enter one, the calculator shows the cost per part before the agent and, once you enter your cost per canister, the fewest cycles per canister at which PostPro still costs less per part.

        7. Ranges

          Cycle time, packing and cycles per canister are ranges. The low end of every result takes the favorable end of each range (shorter cycle, denser packing, more cycles per canister); the high end takes the other. Charts show the midpoint, with the range as a band.

        8. Labor hours freed

          parts per year × labor minutes ÷ 60 ÷ (1 − scrap rate) − cycles per year × operator minutes ÷ 60

          Shown as full-time equivalents at 40 hours a week for your weeks per year.

        Prices the calculator uses

        What the calculator uses for each system. The investment is the system's starting price in your currency; everything else is priced in your quotation.
        ItemPostPro SFXPostPro SF2XPostPro SF50PostPro SF100
        System, starting fromThe system's starting price in your currency, as in the investment field above and on the pricing page
        Bundles, Ancillaries Pack, Portal Access, DMSPrice on quotation: listed in your request, not in the calculator
        Installation, training and onboardingPrice on quotation: not in the calculator
        Care packsPrice on quotation: not in the calculator
        FA5802 (Pure), FA326, FA9202Price on quotation: enter your own cost per canister or cartridge

        You can replace the starting-from price with your own system price, for example the total of your quotation.

        Published chamber and cycle

        From the PostPro product pages and brochure.
        SystemChamberCycle
        PostPro SFX190 × 320 × 190 mmup to 2 h
        PostPro SF2X260 × 390 × 260 mmup to 2 h
        PostPro SF50400 × 300 × 400 mmup to 2 h
        PostPro SF100400 × 600 × 400 mmup to 2 h

        Not in these numbers

        • Tax and duties.
        • Shipping.
        • Site work: power supply, exhaust ducting, floor space.
        • Energy and filters, unless you enter them.
        • The setup above the starting-from price: options, installation, care and DMS, priced in your quotation.
        • The agent, until you enter your cost per canister or cartridge.
        • Finance costs, unless you choose financing.

        Questions

        About the calculator

        How the estimate works, and what it leaves out. Anything else, ask an engineer.

        How accurate is this ROI estimate?

        It is an estimate based on your inputs. The system is costed at its starting-from price, and the cycle times and chamber sizes are the published ones; your volume, labor rate, parts per batch, agent cost and agent use decide the rest. Your quotation and a benchmark of your own parts replace the assumptions with confirmed numbers.

        Why do I have to enter cycles per canister?

        How many cycles one canister of agent runs depends on the parts, the load and the recipe, and there is no single published figure. Rather than guess, the calculator shows the cost per part before the agent and the break-even: the fewest cycles per canister at which PostPro still costs less per part than your current method. Enter your cost per canister from your quotation, and a range once AMT has given you a figure for your parts.

        How long is a PostPro cycle?

        A full automated cycle takes up to 2 hours on every PostPro system. The calculator counts 2 hours a cycle unless you change it.

        How does the calculator choose a system?

        It picks the smallest chamber that fits your part’s bounding box and covers your weekly volume within your machine hours, using the same sizing logic as the configurator and Ask AMT. You can choose any system yourself; if one is not enough, the calculator shows how many you would need.

        What is not included?

        Tax, duties and shipping, site work such as power and exhaust ducting, and energy and filters unless you enter them. The setup above the system’s starting-from price, such as the Ancillaries Pack, installation, care packs and DMS automated loading, is priced in your quotation, so it is left out unless you enter your own system price.

        Can I share or save my calculation?

        Yes. The page address holds every input, so copying the link shares the same calculation. You can also save it as a PDF or take it straight into a quotation request with Request a quote for this setup. No email is needed to see any result.

        Can I test my own parts first?

        Yes. Send parts to AMT’s free benchmark and they come back vapor smoothed with a report. No cost to evaluate · Parts returned · Typical turnaround 2–3 weeks.

        Next step

        Turn the estimate into a number you can sign off.

        Take this setup into a quotation request, let the configurator check the system against your parts, or send AMT a part and hold the finish in your hand.

        1. 01Quote

          Request a quote

          The system, options and care pack from this calculation, listed for AMT to price in your quotation. Share it or save it as a PDF.

          Request a quote

        2. 02Configure

          Configure your system

          A few questions about your parts, volume and site, and the configurator returns the system, its starting-from price and a complete setup for your quotation.

          Configure your system

        3. 03Benchmark

          Test your parts, free

          Ship parts with a prepaid label. AMT vapor smooths them and sends them back with before-and-after photos and a benchmark report.

          Test your parts, free

          No cost to evaluate · Parts returned · Typical turnaround 2–3 weeks

        Prices: each system’s starting-from price; everything else is priced in your quotation.

        Talk to an engineer