Did that job actually make money?
Put in what you quoted and what one job actually took. See where the margin went, line by line. One job at a time, no account needed.
Do not know your labour rate? Use the fab shop hourly rate calculator.
| Line | Unit | Cost per unit | Quoted | Actual | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Material | kg | +A$144.00 | |||
| Cutting | hours | A$95.00 | +A$47.50 | ||
| Folding | hours | A$95.00 | +A$47.50 | ||
| Welding and fabrication | hours | A$95.00 | +A$380.00 | ||
| Finishing and assembly | hours | A$95.00 | +A$95.00 | ||
| Consumables (gas, wire, discs) | A$ | n/a | +A$60.00 | ||
| Subcontract (galv, powder coat) | A$ | n/a | +A$70.00 |
Quoted cost
Margin planned: 40.2%
Actual cost
Margin made: 27.3%
Margin lost on this job
The biggest overrun was welding and fabrication.
Where the spreadsheet version breaks
Checking one job like this is useful. Doing it for every job in a spreadsheet is where most shops give up.
Hours get typed twice
Once on a timesheet, then again into the job sheet, usually days later from memory.
Actuals arrive too late
By the time the numbers are in, the job is invoiced and the next quote has already gone out at the same price.
One file per job
Copies drift apart. Rates change in one file and not the others, and nobody can see all jobs side by side.
Material prices go stale
Steel prices move. A cost per kg typed in months ago quietly eats the margin on every job that uses it.
MirrorWorks Start tracks quoted and actual time on every job as the work happens, so you see the overrun while you can still do something about it. Free for one person, opening December 2026. See Start