What does one charge Laser time to do an engraving

Laser time charges for engraving

There are many formulas …, is it profession, with employees and taxation, or is it semiPro or pure hobby …
At least it is the hourly wage you will give yourself plus manufacturing costs such as material, power ect. and depreciation, plus your desired profit
If it is a single item/product it is proportional more expensive as if you can make 100 or 1000 pieces and more.
If you also need to design/construct, this time must be qualitative upgraded in the price.

People quickly find out that the boys from YouTub who earn xxxx dollars a day with a small diodelases or expensive fiber lasers do not serve for today’s dinner in reality. … otherwise they probably won’t need to make money with YouTube :wink:

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Total production time and desirability are key factors.

Most jobs I expect at least $1.00 per minute of laser time - some jobs are small enough to go below that level, and others involve much more time to design, setup and tune-in.

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I don’t like the model of $x/minute per se. The pricing needs to be laser specific. I see a lot of people use the $1/minute of laser time model.

I have a 10 watt diode and a 100 watt C02. Should I charge less for the job on my $3,000 C02 because it can complete the job in 20 minutes where my $200 diode takes 60 minutes? In that scenario I should do every job on my diode because I can charge more.

I think laser time does need to be figured into the job, but things have a specific value. A full wrap Stanley takes 40-45 minutes on my C02, if I did that same file on my Diode, the estimated time is 3 hours. Is the tumbler worth 4 times as much? I don’t think so. I would imagine the same job on a galvo would be even quicker.

I spent most of my working career as an auto technician. I was good and fast. Any particular job pays x# of hours. Because I have years of experience and thousands of dollars of specialty tools I can do the job in 1/3 the time of a newer technician. Should I be penalized for being fast? Should the newer tech be rewarded for being slower? Should the customer be charged different prices based on how long the job actully takes?

My point being, you need to determine your cost of doing busines and look at the products you wish to produce, then look at the market for that product and decide if it’s something you can produce and make a profit at or if you should look for a different product. Just going by laser time is only part of the equation and the laser you have makes a difference.

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The rates for laser engraving can vary widely depending on factors like material, complexity, and machine time. A common range is anywhere from $0.50 to $5.00 per minute of laser time. It’s always good to check local competitors for a better idea of pricing.

I don’t really recognize it. If I have to make 100 signs I have the same set -up time as when I make a single item. That is, the time the machine is reserved for a single item is proportional very higher as at the 100 piece job. During the line, it is more expensive to produce small quantities compared to large quantities, this must also reflect the price.

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All good, nobody said we have to all use the same price model. I only have 2 lasers, both a diodes. One is set up for flat and the other is a permanent rotary fixture. If I had a fiber laser that was 15x faster, the price would likely go up 15x per minute. I do this for fun and amusement, not to pay my mortgage.

My laser price does not include media price, as the customer has the option to provide their own media.

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I’ve been pondering this question all day and for the last few decade’s. I think, more importantly the question is “What & how much can you sell” and can you sell it.
The avg European income for a machine op is 12.00 - 18.00 euro p/h + overheads + profit & the piece/pieces of work must be an avg price.

Desirability, location, footfall/passing trade, play a large part in turnover.

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Simple formula for laser time cost to include in the pricing model:
Cost of Laser / Expected Lifetime Before Replacement = Hourly Charge
$500 / 1000 = 0.50/hr

  1. Laser burn time, only. I charge $1.00/hr for lasering other people’s work. Labor not included.
  2. I expect my laser to last more than 1000 hours, but maintenance costs are absorbed here.
  3. Labor is computed separately. Retired and working from home. It is hard to undercut me here.
  4. Don’t use a Cost Plus model. Charge what you think they are willing to pay. It is better to overprice and cut your asking rather than underprice and work for free. I am constantly stunned by what people are willing to pay other makers for their work.
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You willing to share customers that can afford $300/hr laser time? This price has to be for 300 parts per hour, right?

I price my work so that my Maker customers can make a profit. And so I can make a little money to buy more materials and toys. Us little guys have to work together.

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Yeah, when you divide out the overheads and equipment costs it’s not so scary afterall. Costs are to be recovered, not profited upon.
If your scaled properly you’ll be making for the market that suits your skills and abilities…Pay your bills, Better your skills, stack your “reasonable” profits & build relationships to shave a percentile off as many costs as possible…because it always comes down to ‘small change’ making a big difference…bottom line.

Example. I took a journey today, traveling to try get some perspex or somthing fitted on to my enclosure lid…no luck!


Stopped off at retail park to see about a bolt together work bench…no luck, but did get directed to an industrial park where some guy’s are doing odd jobs n suff with metal and wood but ended up at an engineering workshop tuked away on the same site. I explained my needs and got about twenty minutes of why this is so difficult and how much it costs to even turn these machines on, and programming time etc etc “I’m not knocking these guy’s, just puzzled by their aproach” So I got really confused and just said how much material cost?..30-40euro!
Will that material you have in your hand be ok?..Yes, its ok!
Good!, I’ll buy that from you. You engineer it yourself?
Yes I’ll do the work myself…here’s 30euro.

What puzzled me was, when I handed him the money, he said, Great…First money this year.
He stood to make much more than that by just giving me a price…He knew it would be expensive, but he didnt take my need to get it done (desirability) into account.

Anyway Some tips on cutting, heat bending and drilling perspex type material would be helpful!

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Everything is worth nothing unless somebody is willing to pay you for it.

In this example I show a TIMEX and a Rolex watch. They both tell time. The TIMEX actually has better reviews and additional features like a day of week vs. the Rolex. It’s obvious that one wants to look like the other however it’s just a cheap imitation.

However that being said the perceived value of one is far greater then another. I think all reading this will identify the Rolex as the winner for getting top money once sold.

Too many business people that are working on their pricing model overlook this very important factor when deciding if their product passes as a Rolex watch or TIMEX .

They all want to get the investment cost of a Rolex while selling a TIMEX .

The closing point of this post… Make sure your offerings are directly proportionate to your asking price . You will lose of lot of time and money if your product sucks.

Cheers :clinking_glasses:
Sas

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Great comment! Like BTC, Tulip mania, and ‘The madness of crowds’. I guess the other 98% of value depends on the inclusion of ‘officially certified’.

It would be a fun experiment to burn that on a piece with a serial number.

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Here is some additional thinking on pricing:

When your competition flatters you by plagerizing your work do not compete on price…EVER. Market differently so that they are outed as plagerizers like the TIMEX watch vs the ROLEX

How about super limited edition release of 10 pieces 1 of 10 through 10 of 10 numbering and you hold on to #1 and #10. Give # one ten to auction off towarda a great charity you support. Ask to be able to use their logo to drive interest for theem on social media platforms so that they can generate a largwr investment at their live auction.
Always insist on a live auction and NOT a silent auction.

For live auctions they do all the marketing for you for the cost of one item you donated.

This auctuin will create a buz for your business and the other items and services you have for sale Make sure you give them contact information and your social.media info. You further will get an implied endorsement from a large charity which adds credibility to you and your “artwork”

Once again make sure you product is a Rolex.

My business model/motto in my days as a multi award-winning professional portrait artist was then and still is now:

Create a huge demmand for your limited product and control you volume through price.

So as you can see price is just one component to the buy sell proposition.

THE BITTERNESS OF POOR QUALITY REMAINS LONG AFTER THE SWEETNESS OF LOW PRICES ARE FORGOTTEN.
Benjamin Franklin

Be a Rolex!

Cheers :beers:

Sas

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I looked at live online auction with shopify and got radically different prices fro 1000 - 3000 (from AI search) depending on add-ons, App costing 89.00, and 25 dollars option (from their website) for advanced add-ons, month trial…25 dollar one seems more real.

Not online auctions. Physical auctions after a dinner fundraising function. Online auctions are also considered silent auctions. What I am referring to are actual charity auctions that are dine in person with patrons raising their hands or number cards.

Cheers

Sas

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One more tip…

Came across a quick video from a laser business veteran that I learned a lot from when it comes to implementing solutions to your laser problems.

Those of you thinking about pricing the work by the minute? Not so fast because that business model does not always work in you favor unless you take a few things into consideration. He uses tumblers as an example however that is not important just think of them as widgets.

Watch “The Truth About Pricing Laser Engraved Tumblers” on YouTube

Cheers :clinking_glasses:

Sas

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Ah! I see your model now. Very good, as no shipping fees.
I did some quick estimates yesterday while pondering and waiting for glue to set on these strechers I added to my lid to support the 5mm polycarbonate sheet, as I form it with a heat gun.

Anyway, for the artwork auction I allowed for 2hrs high detail work inc prep & finish, on a 12"x12"x3/8" Cherry wood square x 50 units, using Co2 laser.

(the 50 units was because of viability of overheads cost & broader coverage online. At the venue you describe, 10 units is much better).

Wood - 10.00 per unit.
labour 25.00 per
Sale price 100.00 min per

All profit after overheads donated to charity.

The Rolex model is very interesting as it simply means more attention to detail and skill level, but the subject matter of the art and targeted buyers is probably of importance to sales total.

Thanks for the video link…I look forward to watching it.

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I liked to see that you included getting paid for your time. Most artists forget to draw a paycheck. Make sure that is just wages for you aside from what you did

Don’t forget to include the costs of:

Depreciation on your machine(s) computer, software
Shipping and handling of your raw materials prior to creating the pieces
Set up time of your raw materials including: graphic design, testing
Packaging costs of your final finished product
Gas for your car to deliver to post office and or auction venue.

Here is a funny analysis of communication between different entities during a design build creative project.

Be a Rolex!

Cheers :clinking_glasses:

Sas

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