How LCAS estimates the cost of product testing

Testing programme and applicability

The programme lists the methods, test conditions and points of assessment. In a working programme it reflects documented testing of similar products. In a full programme it covers every requirement of the named standard and edition that applies to the product, given its materials, coatings, construction and intended use. Each estimate states which variant was used and which requirements were excluded, with reasons.

Samples, variants and batches

Quantities follow from the programme: samples, material or colour variants, repeats and control runs. The plan records destructive tests, permitted reuse, testing sequence and reserves. Preparation is counted once per batch and repeated work once per run. Shared preparation is not multiplied by the number of parameters. Selection of a representative product must be justified for each property tested.

Hours, utilisation and annual costs

Annual resource costs are divided by expected productive hours for staff or hours of use for equipment. Lower utilisation raises the allocated hourly cost. Staff work and equipment occupancy are counted separately. If a chamber or run serves several jobs, its cost is allocated once using a documented capacity share. Equipment hours do not set the delivery date.

resource rate = annual resource cost / expected annual productive or operating hours

Cost is not price

Model cost is the cost of the resources needed to carry out the programme. A laboratory's price also reflects margin, competence, capacity, risk and lead time. LCAS reports cost and price separately and never presents a model cost as a quotation or a market rate.

Comparing market prices

Quoted or published prices are compared only for the same programme, number of samples, unit, currency and date. A quotation does not reveal the laboratory's cost or margin, and one quotation does not describe the market. Catalogue price comparisons are a separate track and are labelled as such.

Sources, dates and assumptions

Every input has a source, date, unit and status: actual record, quotation, published source or assumption. National averages stand in for a specific laboratory's data and are labelled as proxies. Currency conversions record the exchange rate and its date.

Incomplete scope and uncertainty

A missing method, time or rate is marked as unknown, never set to zero. An estimate with gaps is reported as partial. Lower and higher scenarios show sensitivity to key parameters such as equipment utilisation; they are not statistical confidence intervals or price guarantees.

Independent review

Before publication, an estimate is checked by someone who did not prepare it: the programme against the standard, units and arithmetic, double counting, and sources. The review confirms the calculation, not the accuracy of every rate.

Updates and version history

Recalibration should use actual quotations and completed work. Any claim of predictive accuracy requires separate cases that were not used to set the assumptions. This edition does not publish a measured accuracy rate. Methodology versions and price-data dates are recorded separately.