Originally Posted by latheguy1  I am a apps. Eng. I do this on the side as well and I quote the whole process programing and tooling needed to do the job I charge the rate I make at my job. |
If you only charge the rate at your job then you are undercutting anyone that is in business, your employer not only pays your hourly wage but also for your benefits package which can easily add up to several dollars per hour. As a general rule it would not make since to quote any less than 1-1/2 times your hourly rate as you would have software to pay for, hardware to pay for, and your time. If you are using the software from your employer and he doesn't mind, then it's a different story. I'm not sure what Mastercam gets for a copy of 3-axis software but I am sure its more than 10k with probably 1500 to 2k yearly to stay up to date. I don't see how anyone would be willing to work for the same as their day job. Don't forget who pays for a dead $20,000 spindle in a high speed machine if you happen to wipe one out, not at all questioning your abilities as I have seen one of the best 20yr programmers in die mold make a mistake. Don't forget to quote in time for communication, cnc programming requires a decent amount of this as well.
Dan