Field method
A calculator predicts. A job log tells you which prediction deserves trust.
A slicer can estimate filament and machine time, but it does not know how long you spent cleaning the plate, replacing a failed first layer, inspecting a batch, or packing the order. A useful workshop record joins those events without pretending that every cost is equally precise.
1. Define the job before you collect numbers
A record needs a stable unit of comparison. Name the part, batch, material, and date. If you change nozzle diameter, layer height, orientation, support strategy, or printer, start a separate record. Combining materially different runs produces an average that is easy to calculate but difficult to use.
The tool deliberately asks for total consumed grams rather than model weight. Include support, brim, purge, prime structures, rejected parts, and failed attempts. The goal is not to praise slicer efficiency; it is to identify the material that left inventory during this job.
2. Separate autonomous time from paid attention
Printer time belongs in power and machine-reserve calculations. Human time belongs in labor. Setup, plate preparation, filament loading, support removal, inspection, rework, packing, and customer-specific administration can all consume attention even when the machine itself runs unattended.
Do not multiply your labor rate by the entire print duration unless a person must actually supervise it. Equally, do not set labor to zero because the printer is automated. Time a few ordinary jobs, record the hands-on minutes, and use a representative median when quoting comparable work.
3. Compare slicer time with actual machine time
The percentage shown here is (actual time − slicer estimate) ÷ slicer estimate. A positive result means the job took longer than predicted. One record may reflect warm-up, pauses, firmware behavior, or a one-off interruption. Several records from the same printer and profile can reveal a quoting correction worth keeping.
Save records by product family instead of blending every printer and material together. That makes the history useful when a repeat order arrives and helps you decide whether a conservative time allowance is still justified.
4. Count accepted units, not only successful print files
A run can finish without producing a saleable unit. Dimensional error, cosmetic damage, weak layer bonding, missing inserts, or post-processing damage still consumes material and time. Record attempts and accepted units using the quality threshold you actually promise customers.
The displayed accepted yield is a descriptive result for this job, not a universal failure rate. To estimate future risk, collect several comparable jobs and calculate the combined consumed cost per accepted unit. Avoid making a broad claim from one unusually good or bad batch.
5. Treat the recommended price as a test, not a command
The price result uses unit cost ÷ (1 − selling fee − target margin). It protects the selected margin after percentage-based fees, but it cannot know demand, competitor quality, taxes, shipping responsibility, design ownership, rush risk, or warranty obligations. Use it to expose an impossible price, then apply commercial judgment.
Machine reserve is also not the same as an accounting depreciation schedule. Here it is a practical contribution toward replacement and productive capacity. Document how you chose the hourly amount, keep maintenance separate if appropriate, and revise it when the printer's useful hours or replacement cost changes.
6. Build a small body of first-party evidence
Start with repeatable work rather than dramatic edge cases. Record five to ten jobs from one product family, then compare time error, accepted yield, hands-on minutes, and unit cost. The useful insight is often a range: for example, normal hands-on minutes under a stable process and the higher allowance needed for difficult materials.
The demonstration button contains hypothetical inputs only. It exists so visitors can inspect the calculation before entering their own data. This page never presents generated imagery or modeled values as workshop measurements. Your locally saved records are the first-party evidence; the site cannot inspect or verify them.
Use the record in the rest of the cost model
Questions
Job-log FAQ
Does this upload my production data?
No. The calculator runs in your browser, and saved records use that browser's local storage. Export a CSV if you want a portable copy.
Should total grams include failed attempts and support?
Yes. Record all material consumed by the job: accepted parts, failed attempts, support, brim, purge, and prime structures. That is the mass the order actually consumed.
Why compare actual time with the slicer estimate?
The difference reveals whether your quoting baseline is consistently optimistic or conservative. A few comparable jobs are more useful than one isolated percentage.
Is the loaded example a real print test?
No. It is an explicitly labeled hypothetical demonstration designed only to show how each field changes the result.