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What Is The Average Cost for Shot Blasting?

Shot blasting is not only used as a blast cleaning process for casting, steel fabrications, metal sheets, et cetera, but also as a pre-treatment process for painting, a surface strengthening process for gears, a stress relief process after welding, et cetera.

By Mathew Lee| Updated: April 17, 2023

The composition of shot blasting cost typically not only includes labor, auxiliary material, energy consumption, maintenance, and other aspects but also includes plant, equipment, and other fixed assets depreciation.

As the shot blasting equipment, especially some extensive shot blasting equipment, not only occupies ample plant space and is expensive, the production of higher fixed costs, thus making the production costs higher. How reduce the production cost of shot blasting treatment is a problem faced by every production company.

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Main Point

1. The composition of shot-blasting cost

1. plant, equipment, and other fixed assets depreciation

2. Energy consumption

3. Blasting media, wear parts consumption

4. Labor cost

5. Equipment maintenance costs

2. Factors affecting shot-blasting cost

1. Equipment purchase price

2. Production load

3. Hoisting process

4. Labor wages

5. The choice of auxiliary materials

6. The material of workpieces

3. Control of shot-blasting cost

1. Choose the most cost-effective shot-blasting solution

2. Maximize production capacity

3. Mixing of steel shots

4. Other aspects

The Composition of Shot Blasting Cost

1. plant, equipment, and other fixed assets depreciation

Shot blasting production requires investment in plant, shot blasting equipment, lifting, transportation equipment, and other fixed assets. These fixed assets as an investment in the enterprise, apportioned to the cost of production, generally following a certain number of years of depreciation. Plant depreciation is typically 20 years, while the depreciation of machinery and equipment is ten years. Once put in place, even if these plants and equipment are not used, from the financial point of view, their value is also decreasing year by year, so the plant and equipment that does not produce must also calculate the depreciation costs.

shot blast machine
shot blasting machine
blasting machine

Shot blasting treatment needs to be depreciated, including workshop ventilation and dust removal equipment, handling vehicles, spreaders, et cetera. Different fixed assets’ depreciation life is different according to the relevant national standards to determine the depreciation life. Calculate the annual depreciation cost, and then calculate the average daily and hourly depreciation cost according to the number of working days or hours per year.

2. Energy Consumption

Shot blasting cleaning equipment shot blasting machine, blasting media elevator, screw conveyor, separation system, dust removal system, electric door, lighting, conveying, and other systems are electric. Once the equipment gets to work, there will be electrical energy consumption. Shot blasting equipment size is different. The power consumed by its equipment is not the same, small tens of kilowatts, large hundreds of kilowatts. Therefore, the operating costs of various equipment will not be the same.

In addition, shot blasting equipment operation and subsequent blowing will use compressed air. Compressed air consumption is ultimately converted to the power consumption of the air compressor. Of course, an air compressor or an air pressure station produced by the compressed air is not necessarily for shot blasting production.

3. Auxiliary material consumption

The primary auxiliary material for the production of shot blasting is the blasting media. Commonly used projectiles are cast steel shot, wire cut shot, alloy shot, stainless steel shot, et cetera. The price of different blasting media is very different, even if the same blasting media has different prices in different countries. Of course, different types of workpiece requirements for the steel shots quantity are not the same because of different blasting effects requirements. In shot blasting production, the blasting media can be recycled through the blasting media auto reclaim system like elevators, screw conveyors, separation systems, et cetera. The flawed blasting media wear out very soon, and the excellent quality blasting media will last for a very long time.

Shot consumption is related to the equipment and the actual production because different equipment has different blast wheel numbers, different blast wheel types and different sizes of blasting chambers, and different productivity requirements. For shot blasting equipment, shot blasting equipment installed by the number of blasting turbines is specific, so the amount of projectile shot per unit of time is not the same. However, blasting media consumption is also very different due to the workpiece’s size, material, and shape. Etc. BlastKing advises the users of the shot-blasting machine always check their current gauge value during the blasting process, which ensures sufficient blasting media inside the whole shot-blasting machine unit.

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In shot blasting production, since some workpieces are machined first, shielding protection is needed to prevent damage to threaded holes, finishing surfaces, pinholes, et cetera during shot blasting. It is necessary to adopt the essential materials or tools to shield and protect these threaded holes, finishing surfaces, et cetera. Commonly used shield protection tools include magnetic rubber plates and rubber plugs. Although we can recycle magnetic rubber plates and rubber plugs, they will become thinner and shorter under the projection of projectiles as the number of uses increases, eventually losing their function. In the process of shot blasting, the handling, hoisting, purging, equipment operation, and projectile replenishment of workpieces all require manual operation. However, the automation degree of the production line is different, and the number of employees or labor intensity is different. 

4. Labor cost

Shot blasting production process workpiece handling, lifting, blowing, equipment operation, abrasive replenishment, et central, need manual operation, but the production line automation is not the same. The number of people or manual labor intensity is different. In addition to labor wages, labor costs include various social security funds, labor insurance supplies, et cetera.

5. Equipment maintenance costs

Shot blasting equipment in the process of use will inevitably break down. Some parts are wearing parts, so the need for repair and replacement parts, that is, the equipment maintenance costs. Maintenance costs include two parts, part of the labor costs. The other part is more repair and replacement parts costs, the maintenance process used for the tools, energy consumption, auxiliary materials, and additional charges. For example, the replacement of the blast machine, the blast machine itself requires a fee for the overhaul process of welding. It will use a welding machine, welding wire, gas and other equipment, and auxiliary materials to consume electricity.