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Methodology

How we calculate packaging cost per bag

Every number in the Lintyco Packaging Cost Calculator comes from publicly auditable formulas. Engineers should be able to reproduce any result by hand. This page documents every input, every formula, and every default — no black boxes.

Lintyco VFFS packaging machine

Lintyco VFFS Series — typical installation

Worked example used throughout this page

Pillow bag 100×150mm · 50μm PE film · 60 bags/min · 16h×22d/month · OEE 0.75 · 1 operator @ $15/hr · $50,000 machine, 10y life · 8kW @ $0.12/kWh

1 Film weight per bag

The flat film width required to form a bag:

film_width (mm) = (bag_width × 2) + (gusset_depth × 2) + 10  // seal margin

Film length per bag adds 10 mm for cross seals:

film_length (mm) = bag_length + 10

Area in square meters:

area (m²) = (film_width / 1000) × (film_length / 1000)

Film weight in grams. Derivation: 1 m² × 1 μm = 1e-6 m³ = 1 cm³, so 1 cm³ × density (g/cm³) = 1 g per m²·μm.

weight (g) = area (m²) × thickness (μm) × density (g/cm³)
         = 0.0336 × 50 × 0.93
         = 1.56 g/bag  (for the example above)

2 Monthly production 

monthly_output = speed × 60 × hours/day × days/month × OEE
               = 60 × 60 × 16 × 22 × 0.75
               = 950,400 bags/month

The OEE factor (default 0.75) accounts for changeovers, cleaning, micro-stops, and preventative maintenance. World-class packaging lines sustain 0.85; new lines typically run 0.65–0.75 during their first year.

3 Cost per bag — four components 

film_cost/bag     = (weight_g / 1000) × price_per_kg
labor_cost/bag    = (operators × hourly_rate) / (speed × 60 × OEE)
energy_cost/bag   = (power_kW × electricity_rate) / (speed × 60 × OEE)
depreciation/bag  = machine_price / (lifetime_years × 12 × monthly_output)

total_cost/bag    = film + labor + energy + depreciation

Film

$0.00547

Labor

$0.00556

Energy

$0.00036

Depreciation

$0.00044

Total for our example: $0.01183/bag (film 46% · labor 47% · energy 3% · depreciation 4%)

4 Investment payback 

monthly_savings = (current_cost/bag − new_cost/bag) × monthly_output
payback_months  = machine_price / monthly_savings
3yr_savings     = monthly_savings × 36 − machine_price

Example: if your current method costs $0.05/bag and the Lintyco line produces at $0.012/bag, monthly savings = $0.038 × 950,400 = $36,100/month → payback ≈ 1.4 months → 3-year net savings ≈ $1.24M.

5 Defaults — where they come from

Questions about the math?

Disagree with a default or want a tailored calculation for your specific line?

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