Methodology
Transparent formulas. Editable assumptions. No hidden benchmarks.
Cost per sellable garment
Each method is split into fixed order costs (artwork, separations, screen preparation, setup labor, RIP preparation) and variable per-garment costs (ink, film, powder, pretreatment, consumables, energy, labor time, maintenance, equipment allocation). Produced quantity is grossed up for scrap, then rework is added, so the result is always cost per sellable garment, not per attempted print.
Setups instead of order size
The engine counts unique setups as unique designs × colorways × print locations, or a value you enter manually. A 300-piece order with 30 designs is economically different from a 300-piece order with one design, and the effective run length per setup drives the comparison.
Break-even ranges
There is no fixed industry break-even. The cost functions are evaluated across your chosen quantity range, and the cheapest method is recorded at each point. Where two methods land within your equivalence tolerance, they are reported as economically similar rather than as a false winner.
Capacity before and after automation
Scheduled hours are reduced by setup time, unplanned downtime and scheduled maintenance to obtain net runtime hours. Net runtime × rated speed × runtime efficiency gives produced output; scrap is deducted to give sellable output. Rated speed is never treated as sellable output.
Monthly economic benefit
Benefit is the sum of operating savings on comparable volume, contribution margin from additional units you can actually sell, avoided outsourcing, verified overtime and temporary labor reduction, minus any increase in fixed operating costs. Capacity you cannot sell never becomes profit; where demand limits the result, it is flagged.
Payment structures
Cash purchase, equipment financing and leasing are compared on upfront cash, monthly payment, total payments, monthly net cash flow and the month cumulative cash flow turns positive. Financing uses a standard annuity with optional balloon; leasing uses the quotation values you enter, so no lease offer is invented.
All results are non-binding estimates based on the assumptions you entered. They are not financial, tax or legal advice, and not a credit or lease approval.