Quoted from memory
Names, dates, logos. When every order is different, it's tempting to quote what you charged last time instead of what this job costs.
For laser engraving businesses
Know your cost before you quote the job.
Every engraving job is a blank, setup, laser time, finishing and packaging. Cajella adds up all five from your own prices and rates, so the number you quote covers the whole job, whether it's one name on one board or fifty logos on fifty tumblers.
Where quotes go wrong
Why custom quotes come in too low.
The blank was paid for weeks ago
Boards, tumblers, slate and acrylic are bought before anyone orders, so their cost is easy to forget by the time you quote.
Setup nobody pays for
Lining up the job, test burns, masking and cleanup take minutes that add up but never make it into a quick quote.
Bulk and corporate orders
Fifty engraved tumblers for a company event: the per-piece price has to cover blanks, laser time and setup without guesswork.
The cost of a job
Blank, setup, laser time, finishing, packaging.
The blank
Record blanks as components you buy and count. Cajella keeps their average cost from what you paid, and marks a blank Low Stock when you're down to the level you set. Sheet stock can be tracked by the sheet or by area.
Setup
Lining up, test burns and masking go in as labor minutes at your rate, so every piece carries its share instead of you absorbing it.
Laser time
Give your laser an hourly rate and enter the engraving or cutting minutes for the piece.
Take the minutes from your design or laser software and type them in: Cajella works alongside it rather than importing job files.
Finishing and the box
Add cleanup, oiling or assembly at your labor rate, and a packaging profile for the box it ships in. That's the full cost to quote from.
One board, five costs
A personalized maple cutting board.
| Item | Cost |
|---|---|
| Maple board blank | $9.50 |
| Laser: 14 minutes at $15/hour | $3.50 |
| Setup and finishing: 12 minutes at $20/hour | $4.00 |
| Packaging | $1.20 |
| Cost per board | $18.20 |
Example numbers — your costs will be different.
Every line comes from your own numbers: what you paid for the blank, your laser's rate and your labor rate. Whatever you quote above $18.20 is your margin. A one-off "Smith Family" board goes on the order as a custom item with its own price and cost.
Repeat designs and one-offs
Products you repeat, and jobs you make once.
Designs you sell again and again
Your best-selling board becomes a product with its blank, laser time and labor built in, ready to price and sell.
Requests you'll never repeat
A custom request goes on the order as a custom item, with a note for the engraving text. You set its price and its cost, and it counts toward your margin like everything else.
Fifty at once
Put fifty of a product on one order at the price you quoted. When it ships, Cajella locks in what those fifty cost, so you can see what the job actually made.
Engraving questions
Laser engraving questions.
Can I use the times from LightBurn or my design software?
Yes. Enter the engraving time your software estimates, plus your setup minutes, and Cajella turns them into cost. Job files aren't imported, so the minutes are typed in by you.
Where does the engraving text go?
On the order line, in its notes, so the wording travels with the job. Keep proofs wherever you handle them today: Cajella has no proof-approval step.
What if the customer brings their own item?
Add a custom item to the order and price it for your laser time and labor alone. With no blank to buy, there's nothing to take out of stock.
How do I keep track of blanks?
As components: receive them when they arrive, and Cajella keeps their average cost and how many you have, and marks them Low Stock at the level you set.
How should I account for setup time?
As labor minutes on the product, so every piece carries it. For a one-off job, build it into the custom item's cost.
Can I track sheet materials like plywood or acrylic?
Yes, by the sheet or by area, such as square inches. Thickness isn't tracked and parts aren't laid out on the sheet for you, so cost each part by the area it uses.
More makers
Other kinds of makers
Quote your next job with the cost in front of you.
Start free with your own blanks, laser rate and labor. Pro adds target-margin and minimum-profit pricing for the work you sell most.