Material take-off
Glass, resin, core, catalyst, paint/gelcoat, consumables, inserts, and waste allowance.
Cost & Production Tools
Turn FRP material estimates into costing and production planning inputs.
Composite Desk connects material quantities, labour, machine time, paint/gelcoat, catalyst, electricity, oven cycles, overhead, scrap, and throughput so FRP teams can prepare more consistent cost sheets and production plans.
Workflow
Costing should follow the manufacturing process, not sit in a separate spreadsheet.
A useful FRP estimate connects panel weight, glass/resin quantity, paint/gelcoat, labour, factory overhead, electricity, and cycle time in one visible flow.
Direct cost
Material rates, labour rate, labour hours, machine hours, and machine cost.
Factory load
Space cost, factory overhead, electricity allowance, scrap, tooling, and allocation rules.
Cycle time
Setup, gelcoat, layup, cure, demould, trimming, inspection, and post-processing.
Throughput
Cycle time per part, shifts, working days, efficiency, daily output, and annual capacity.
Oven energy
Rated power, load factor, cycle time, cycles per day, parts per cycle, and tariff.
Quotation inputs
Cost per part, cost per m2, cost per kg, margin, selling price, and BOM inputs.
Review
Make assumptions visible so estimators, engineers, and production teams can challenge them.
Cost Sheet Structure
Break the estimate into clear cost buckets.
Cost bucket
Typical inputs
Why it matters
ReinforcementGlass weight, GSM, layers, fabric cost/kgUsually the first major material driver.
ResinResin kg, resin-to-glass ratio, resin cost/kgStrongly affected by process and fibre volume fraction.
CatalystMEKP or hardener percentage, resin weight, catalyst cost/kgSmall line item, but useful for repeatable costing.
Paint / GelcoatPanel area, wet film thickness, volume solids, thinner %, price/litrePrevents coating assumptions from disappearing inside overhead.
LabourLabour hours, labour rate, process step assumptionsOften the biggest hidden difference between quote and actual cost.
Factory overheadSpace cost, overhead %, electricity allowance, scrap %, tooling allocationConverts direct cost into a more realistic manufacturing cost.
Cycle Time
Use time blocks to convert a laminate into production capacity.
Cycle time should be built from setup, layer-by-layer lamination, cure, and post-processing so the estimate is easier to audit on the shop floor.
Train car body panel
- Panel size
- 2 m x 1.5 m = 3 m2
- Layers
- 3 fibreglass layers
- Lamination rate
- 8 minutes per m2 per layer
- Setup
- 25 minutes for mould preparation and gelcoat setup
- Cure
- 45 minutes in mould
- Post-processing
- 15 minutes for demoulding, trimming, and inspection
157 minutes per part
- Layup per layer
- 3 m2 x 8 min/m2 = 24 minutes
- Total layup
- 24 minutes x 3 layers = 72 minutes
- Cycle time
- 25 + 72 + 45 + 15 = 157 minutes
- Production use
- Convert cycle time into parts/day, parts/month, labour hours, and capacity.
Oven & Electricity
Curing ovens can be a major production-cost driver.
The oven calculator estimates effective power, energy per cycle, cost per cycle, cost per part, monthly energy, and annual electricity cost.
Item
Example
Output
Electricity rate9.50 per kWhUsed for cycle, monthly, and annual cost.
Oven rated power45 kW with 80% load factorEffective power: 36 kW.
Cycle time4.0 hoursEnergy per cycle: 144 kWh.
Production20 parts per cycleElectricity cost per part is calculated from cycle cost / parts per cycle.
Utilization4 cycles/day, 26 working days/monthMonthly energy: 14,976 kWh.
Quotation Outputs
The Pro workflow should move from estimate to quote-ready structure.
Manufacturing cost sheet
Material, labour, machine, electricity, overhead, scrap, tooling, and direct-cost assumptions in one visible structure.
Material take-off
Glass, resin, catalyst, core, coating, consumables, and waste quantities prepared for purchasing and planning.
BOM and quotation inputs
Part-level quantities, cost per part, margin, selling price, and notes that can feed a professional quotation.
Production planning view
Cycle time, labour hours, oven cycles, parts/day, monthly capacity, and bottlenecks for operations review.
Pro Access
Want to connect material estimates to costing and production planning?
Request Pro access or consultation and describe the part, material system, process, production volume, costing issue, or quotation workflow you want to evaluate.