Steps
- Head the quote with your company, the customer, a reference, the date and how long it is valid
- Write one line per part: name or drawing, size, material and thickness, quantity, unit price and line total
- Add the setup fee, apply your minimum order, and state delivery and tax
- State the lead time and the assumptions: files and units, tolerance, finish and extras
The fields
| Field | What to write | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Reference and date | Your quote number and the day it was made | The customer's order can point to it |
| Customer | Company and contact | Who the price was made for |
| Validity | A date or a number of days | Metal prices move; the price holds for a limited time |
| Part | Name or drawing number, revision, size in mm | Ties the price to one version of the file |
| Material and thickness | Grade and thickness, e.g. S235, 3 mm | Sets the material cost and the cutting speed |
| Quantity | Per part | Setup is shared over it, so the unit price depends on it |
| Unit price and line total | Price each, and each × quantity | What the customer compares |
| Setup fee | Per job or per sheet | Programming and loading, priced once |
| Minimum order | The lowest total you accept | Covers a job of one small part |
| Lead time | Working days from order and files | Often why the customer chooses you |
| Files and units | The files you priced from, and that they are in mm | A drawing in inches or with extra lines is a different job |
| Tolerance and finish | What you hold; deburring, foil, bending, coating | Extras are paid only if they are written down |
| Delivery and tax | Collected or delivered; ex VAT or incl. VAT | No surprise in the total |
Online services already write several of these down. Fractory asks that a DXF show only the cutting contours, takes tolerances on a PDF drawing beside it, deburrs only on request, notes that brass, stainless steel and copper can come with plastic foil on one side, and wants a material certificate requested in the order notes. SendCutSend publishes a laser tolerance of ±0.005″ (0.13 mm) on parts under 12″ and ±0.010″ (0.25 mm) over 12″ — its own figure for its own machines, not a standard for yours: write what you hold after measuring. Check the units before you price: see DXF units and the DXF checker.
An example quote (example figures)
| # | Part | Material, thickness | Qty | Each | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Plate 100 × 50 mm, 4 × Ø10, rev. B | Mild steel, 3 mm | 100 | €1.02 | €102.00 |
| 2 | Bracket 120 × 80 mm, rev. A | Mild steel, 3 mm | 20 | €2.35 | €47.00 |
| Setup fee | €20.00 | ||||
| Total ex VAT · valid 14 days · 5 working days from order and files | €169.00 |
Fees, minimums and lead times others publish
| Who | Setup | Minimum | Lead time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aston Precision (public estimator) | $20 setup / programming fee per job | $150 minimum job charge, ex GST | Not stated |
| Fractory (online service, UK) | About £10 per sheet loaded, shared by the parts on it | No minimum quantity; orders over £2,000 quoted by hand | About 7 working days for flat laser profiling |
| SendCutSend (online service, US) | Not listed on the pricing page | No minimum quantity; volume discounts up to 80 %; free US shipping from $39 | “A matter of days” |
| Zorocut defaults | €20 per job (estimate) | €50 per order (estimate) | Not on the quote |
What Zorocut's quote PDF contains
- The header: your company name (on the Shop plan; otherwise a “Made with Zorocut Nest” footer), the word Quote, the date, the customer, your reference, and the material with its thickness.
- One row per part: a small drawing of it, its name, its size W × H in mm and the customer it belongs to, then the quantity, the price each and the line total.
- Below the parts: the setup fee, a minimum-order line when the minimum applied, and the total. Internal figures — hourly rate, machine time, material cost and margin — stay off the customer's PDF.
- Not on it: lead time, validity, tolerance, finish, delivery and tax. Put them in the email or in your terms, and keep them the same on every quote.
- The prices come from the nest: cut length, pierces and the material billed by part rectangle, net area or whole sheets — see how to price laser cutting. Zorocut warns when the material price you entered is more than 30 days old, a good reason not to promise a price for longer than you keep it up to date.
Sources
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