How is 3D print cost calculated?

1. Grams: volume × density × infill

Without a slicer you have solid volume (cm³). FDM parts are hollow: walls plus infill. Resin (SLA/MSLA) prints solid; supports go to waste.

Grams ≈ cm³ × g/cm³ × solid fraction. PLA is often 1.24 g/cm³. A ~40 cm³ figure at ~20% infill often lands in the 20–30 g range. PETG is denser and usually dearer; TPU raises both grams and spool price.

2. Time and electricity

Time is roughly grams divided by hourly flow. A larger nozzle shortens time. Electricity = hours × kW × your rate. Small versus filament, visible on a farm at month-end.

3. Depreciation and maintenance

Purchase, upkeep, and consumables spread over lifetime hours. Turning this off for a one-off gift can make sense; turning it off in production erases the money to replace the printer.

4. Labor

Slicing, loading filament, watching the first layer, stripping supports, and packing do not scale 1:1 with print time. ARMAĞAN 3D therefore asks for a fixed labor amount per part.

5. Waste, margin, VAT

Waste is often a percent on material + electricity + machine. Margin sits on net cost; VAT should be its own quote line. All three have toggles in the calculator.

How to write the quote sentence

Telling the customer only the filament cost is not enough. Qty, material, estimated hours, total with waste and VAT, and lead time protect the shop. The summary card turns that into numbers.

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