Sheet and 2D · Planned
Sheet metal fabrication quote software: cut and bend pricing
How sheet metal parts should be priced: flat pattern, cutting, bends and set-ups. Quotometry plans to price it, not yet live.
- Process
- Sheet metal
- Family
- Sheet and 2D
- Input
- CAD, DXF with bends
- Status
- Planned
The price follows the physics.
A sheet metal price starts with the flat pattern. Unfold the part, price the cutting from the flat outline as for any laser job, then price the forming: a set-up for each tooling group on the press brake and a time for every bend, longer for a big part that is awkward to handle. Hardware inserts, welding and finishes follow. The bends are where quotes go wrong: a flange too short for the die or a hole too close to a bend turns a simple part into a problem, and should be caught before it is priced.
- 01
Flat pattern and material
The unfolded blank decides the sheet used and the length to cut.
- 02
Cutting
Cut length and pierces on the laser or punch, as for any flat part.
- 03
Bend count
Each bend is press-brake time, longer for large parts that are awkward to handle.
- 04
Tooling set-ups
Each change of punch and die is a set-up, paid once per batch.
- 05
Hardware and welding
Inserted nuts and studs and welded seams are labour per part.
- 06
Finishes
Powder coating, plating and painting, often outsourced with minimum lot charges.
Measured from the file. Priced on your machines. Soon.
Will be measured from the geometry
- The flat pattern. Will be unfolded from a STEP of the bent part, or read from a DXF with a bend layer.
- Bend count, angles and lengths. Will price press-brake time and check tonnage.
- Cut length and pierces. Will price cutting through the same 2D cutting core as laser.
- Flange lengths and hole-to-bend distances. Will feed DFM checks against your dies.
- Bend radius against thickness. Will be checked against your tooling and K-factor table.
Will be configured by you
- Press brakes and tooling. Tonnage, and V-dies with their minimum flange and inside radius.
- A K-factor table. By material and thickness, so the flat pattern is the size you will really cut.
- Bend time by size class. Per bend, slower for larger parts.
- Set-up per tooling group. Paid once per batch.
- Inserts, welding and finishes. Hardware per part, welding to review, and finishes with their lead days.
What your buyer will see
- Their bent part in the viewer, and the flat pattern it is cut from.
- Material, thickness and finish options you offer.
- Warnings for short flanges, holes too near a bend and missing bend relief.
Tooling set-ups and programming are paid once per batch, while bending time stays per part. Cutting shares the sheet across the batch, so the price per part falls fast for small batches and then levels out at bends plus material.
Typical materials
- Cold-rolled mild steel
- Galvanised steel
- Stainless steel 304 and 316
- Aluminium 5052 and 5754
- Copper
- Brass
Typical parts
- Enclosures and chassis
- Brackets and mounting plates
- Panels and covers
- Electrical cabinets
- Machine guards
Worked example
A worked price appears here when sheet metal ships, computed by the engine like every other price on this site. We do not publish a number we cannot reproduce.
See a live worked examplePricing sheet metal, in depth
Design for sheet metal: bend radii, reliefs, hole distances and flanges
Sheet metal design rules that stop parts cracking or distorting: bend radii, reliefs, hole-to-edge and hole-to-bend distances, flanges, and a worked flat pattern.
Knowledge baseHow to price laser cutting: cut length, pierces, material and sheet use
Laser cutting is priced from cut length, pierce count, material and how much of the sheet a part uses. The method, with a worked example for a steel flange.
Knowledge baseNesting and material utilisation: how much of the sheet you really sell
Nesting decides how many parts fit on a sheet, and the skeleton left over is material you paid for. Three ways to charge for it, compared with a worked example.
Sheet metal quoting, answered
Can I quote sheet metal with Quotometry today?
Not as an instant price yet. Sheet metal fabrication is planned: a flat blank can already be priced as a laser, waterjet or plasma part from its DXF or SVG, but bends, hardware and welding are not. The widget does not offer bent parts yet, so they reach you the way they do today: by e-mail or your own contact form.
Will buyers need to send a flat pattern?
Either will work. A STEP of the bent part will be unfolded automatically, and a DXF flat pattern with a bend layer will be read directly. The STEP route is better for the buyer, because the part is shown as it will be delivered and the bend checks use the real geometry.
What is a K-factor and why does it matter?
It describes where the neutral axis sits in a bend, and so how much material each bend uses. Get it wrong and the flat pattern is the wrong size and the part comes out of tolerance. The K-factor table you configure by material and thickness will set the flat pattern the price is based on.
Will welding be priced instantly?
Not blind. Welding varies too much with access, distortion and finish to price from geometry alone, so a part that needs welding will go to review with the rest of the estimate already computed. You confirm the price before the buyer is committed.
Other sheet and 2d processes
Your next quote can take a second.
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