How the price is worked out
Machine time per part = cut length ÷ speed + a slowdown for each sharp corner + pierces × (pierce time + 0.5 s to move the head) + 1 s of travel per pierce.Order time = quantity × time per part + 5 minutes per sheet + 15 minutes of setup. The machine cost is the order time × your hourly rate, shared over the parts by their time.Material = the part's bounding box plus the spacing, × thickness × density × price per kg, plus a 25 % markup.Unit price = (machine + material) × 1.10 margin, rounded up to €0.05. The order total adds a €20 setup fee and is at least €50.Per-metre and per-pierce rates are the same machine cost expressed per metre of cut and per pierce, for shops that quote that way.
The markup, margin, setup fee, minimum order and handling times are defaults (estimates). Zorocut Nest lets you set your own.
A worked example
100 plates of 100 × 50 mm with four Ø10 mm holes, cut from 3 mm mild steel with oxygen on a 3 kW fiber laser at €90 an hour. Each plate has 0.426 m of cut and 5 pierces. At the starter speed of 3.5 m/min and 0.4 s per pierce, one plate takes about 16.8 s; the order needs 0.80 machine hours with setup and one sheet. With material at €1.20/kg (an estimate a shop would replace), a 25 % material markup and a 10 % margin, each plate costs about €1.02.