Darex Sharpening Cost Calculator at

This will help you determine the hidden costs of buying new drills and end mills and/or using a sharpening service. Replace those figures with figures representing your own situation.
Only two fields require answers. Answer all questions for a more precise calculation.
Scroll down to calculate your costs.

Machinery down time. Estimate monthly costs due to lack of sharp drills or end mills. $ What do you pay for sharp drills or end mills? Required

1/2" jobber drills average $7.16 per drill.

High perfomance drills from Guehring, Toshiba, Kenametal and others range from $150 to over $350 per 1/2" drill.

Sharpening services average $2.25 per drill.

End mills are more expensive and costs vary.

Employee down time. Estimate monthly costs due to lack of sharp drills or end mills. $ Number of drills or end mills used per month Required
Change this number to your actual usage #

Scrap or rework. Estimate monthly costs due to lack of properly sharpened drills or end mills. $ Administrative costs Purchasing, issuing checks, collecting drill inventory, etc. Calculated at 1% (0.01) of drills/end mills purchase or service costs. %

Additional employee monthly costs. In many shops, the most experienced employees are asked to re-sharpen "emergency" drills by hand. $ Duplicate drill or end mill inventory If you are using a sharpening service or if you buy new drills or end mills when needed, you'll need to maintain approximately 5% (0.05) in duplicate drills or end millsinventory. %

Other monthly costs $ Number of months
Leave this number at 1. #