How to Setup a Milling Process to Add Cost by Time

Learn how to optimise your milling process to increase cost-efficiency through time management strategies in manufacturing.

Written by Ryan Osborne

Updated at February 5th, 2025

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Setting up a Mill Processes Based on Total Processing Time How to set up the process. Video Guide

Setting up a Mill Processes Based on Total Processing Time

In this guide, we will walk you through setting up a new milling process to calculate the cost of a mill job based on its total processing time. This includes both the setup time and the actual processing time. By accurately accounting for these factors, you can ensure your cost calculations reflect the true resources used in production.

Please note: This process is designed to help you determine internal costs and does not alter the selling price of the final product.

How to set up the process.

Before starting, ensure that you are logged into Merchanter with a user with a Pro level account and the Milling module set to High or you will not have the required permissions to complete the next steps.

From the menu bar click Mill and then the Mill Processes option from the dropdown.

In the mill process window you can edit existing processes or create a new process, we will create a new process so click the New button and a Mil process specification sheet will open.

In here you can give your process a clear and descriptive Name.
You can set which depot can use it if required
add a 2-letter code to help identify the item.
You can add in setup and run time for an item as well as a minimum run time

If required piece, Length, Width or Thickness factors can be set.

You will need to select a cost calculation, click the Add mill process cost button and select the time (mins) option

now give the process and an average cost per minute in the rate field.

Please note that the time processes do not adjust the selling price of the goods.

Once these details are filled in click the Save button.

Now when we raise a mill order and add a product to take to the mill, we can click the + Process button to add in our new timed cost

if we now add one item to process 1, At £2/min this gives a process cost of £120. 1 piece takes 40 minutes (30 setup + 10 to process) but is rounded up to 60 minutes as the minimum run time is set to 1 hour.