A retrofit quotation and a dedicated-machine quotation may contain different parts of the manufacturing route. Before comparing their totals, define the same supplied blank and delivered bore for both.
Architecture explains a scope difference
The workpiece seal distinction described in botek’s ejector catalogue, page 33 is relevant to installation layout. It does not establish a fixed retrofit price advantage or a universal percentage saving. Actual charges require actual quotations with the same scope.
Separate equipment already present from equipment included in each offer. Keep fluid supply and return, tooling, support, loading, controls, inspection and installation responsibilities identifiable. An excluded item is not a saving unless the proposed route genuinely does not require its function.
Compare accepted output rather than a headline cutting rate
Use the same batch definition for both routes. For an illustrative calculation, a 1,200-unit batch charge divided by 100 accepted holes is 12 units per accepted hole; the same charge divided by 80 accepted holes is 15. The example demonstrates a denominator, not the economics of either process.
Record cutting, handling, tool service and inspection within the selected cost boundary. If one offer includes finishing and another ends after drilling, their totals describe different products. Align the delivery endpoint before deciding which is more economical.
Keep feasibility distinct from investment approval
A plausible layout is one stage. The intended application still needs its acceptance evidence, and its business comparison still needs charges, capacity assumptions and actual accepted output. A catalogue’s description of conventional-machine use does not settle either question for an identified CNC lathe.
Use the accepted-hole cost calculator below with explicit batch inputs. Continue to installation planning when compatibility is unresolved and BTA machine functions when reviewing the alternative route. The comparison becomes meaningful when both offers end at the same component requirement.
Revision note
October 8, 2026: revised the technical explanation and connected reading after source review. Original publication date and URL retained.
