How much does ultrasonic cleaning cost?

How much does ultrasonic cleaning cost?

We’re based in Yorkshire and the cry “ ’Ow much ?!” is a common response to quoting a price so we are used to explaining where our prices come from. However, we’ve never thought to explain our pricing in public before.

Yes, every part is different, just like cars, so prices do vary. However, the following factors are the major variables influencing the price of an ultrasonic cleaning job.

Firstly the item itself;

1. Size – small items require smaller ultrasonic baths which reduces cost ;
2. Geometry of the part – complex surfaces and interiors require more bespoke cleaning occupying more machine and labour time.
3. Weight of the item – larger items are harder to handle and usually bigger so occupy more time and usually more space in a tank.
4. Complexity of the cleaning process – some items require a simple clean and rinse. Others require a more complex and labour intensive series of cleaning, rinsing, drying and packing.
5. Quantities – your cleaning setup of an ultrasonic bath is really the same whether it’s 1 item or 101 items you’re cleaning.
6. Contamination – the type of contamination, whether it’s light or heavy contaminant all has an influence on how quickly something will clean.
7. Drying – some parts are very easy to dry whilst other parts like plastics with lots of complex geometry are far harder and so take more time.
8. Frequency of cleaning – this has 2 influences. Just as with volume discounts, the more frequently a customer sends parts to clean the better price you can give, and also the more frequently parts are cleaned the lighter contaminant present and easier to clean.
9. Level of cleanliness required – Precision engineered parts used in high tech, high spec industries do require a very high level of cleanliness which ties in with the number of cleaning operations that may be required.

Secondly, the cleaning process itself

The unpacking, washing, rinsing, drying and repacking that is the basic series of operations within the cleaning process has 4 main cost constituents

1. The machinery which usually costs thousands of pounds.
2. Labour which generally costs hundreds of pounds.
3. Ultrasonic cleaning chemicals which normally cost up to £100 or £200.
4. The overheads of the cleaning site which have to be covered.

We normally like to split the cost between a setup charge and a unit cost, to accommodate varying quantities that may be sent. As a rough guide we would normally try and recover around £500 per day of 1-man/1-machine/1-chemical.

Examples of the costs of cleaning various common parts may prove helpful, so here goes!

• Filters – from £25 to £500 depending on size, part complexity, and cleanliness spec levels;
• Print Rollers – from £40 to £400 depending upon size;
• Precision engineered parts – from £5 to £100 depending upon size, weight, cleanliness spec, quantity and complexity of the cleaning process & packaging.
• Auto parts – from £50 to £500 depending upon size, contamination levels, and quantity
• PCB boards – from £30 to £50 depending upon quantity.
• Small plastic/metal items – usually pennies to low pounds, almost totally dependent on the level of contamination and volume.

This is a rough guide, but hopefully gives some indication of where we get our prices from. We don’t just conjure them from thin air. We always try and make it work for the customer, but sometimes it won’t. Usually, when it doesn’t work it is because people have unrealistic expectations of what the cleaning should cost. Hopefully this brief guide will give a few insights into what will influence the price you will pay for cleaning.

For a definitive answer just get in touch. We’ll often suggest a free trial clean to both prove the cleaning from your point of view, and assess the price we need to charge from our point of view. Call us today on 01924 495 975 or email hello@sonicsolutionsltd.com

Dishing the dirt! The true costs of dirt examined

Cleaning parts is free!

When you consider the true costs of dirt on either the end product or the parts used to make the end product, the removal of that dirt is free. It costs much less to remove the dirt than to leave it on and suffer the consequences. The true costs of leaving dirt on include the following;

• Rework – often by skilled personnel, and using additional materials;
• Scrapping of product and material – often of material whose only defect is dirt;
• Repeated service – when failure due to dirt requires replacement parts or service both time and material is wasted;
• Inspection – “inspecting out” dirt is rarely cheap !
• Testing – where the consequences of dirt requires intense testing of parts prior to dispatch;
• Delay and failure to meet schedules – where dirt requires rework it is often the case that production schedules fall behind with consequent costs of failure to meet orders and customer timetables;
• Warranty costs – the direct costs of replacement or repair plus the often significant damage to reputation.

Over the 15 plus years we have been cleaning industrial parts the most commonly cited reasons (with statistics often quoted) for getting us in to either do the cleaning or to supply the cleaning equipment and process, have been as follows;

Time taken in house to do the cleaning, often by skilled personnel, often done badly, and usually very unpopular with staff ! The direct cost of this Labour and the opportunity cost of lost production was calculated at around 7.6% of total production time by an electronics company, a truly staggering amount.

Scrap from wasted product – one printing company cited scrap paper and ink from dirty production parts was running at 1% of total material cost. in this case 1% of many millions of pounds. Another company making electronic sensors estimated product failure costs attributable to dirt were running at 2% on items worth many thousands of pounds each.

Production downtime and process failure – when a line or process has to be stopped because of dirt, the outcome ranges from costly inconvenience to near total disaster. One instance of the latter is when a power station brought dirty filters that had resulted in the power generating turbines stopping completely. Now matters are rarely as extreme as this, but stopped production lines not only occupy expensive labour to put right but result in either lost production or delayed production. The costs of both can be very high.

Delays – Time is money and, whilst similar to the above, the cost of delays to production or despatch are often overlooked but considerable. In an increasingly “just in time” world if a product is not available when needed the consequences are potentially serious. Lost sales, reputational damage, poor on-line ratings and disrupted process flows are the costs associated with delays and over time can destroy businesses. Many businesses, particularly B2C, have found delay getting product to market near fatal. One automotive parts customer calculated lost sales because customers were sourcing parts from competitors when they experienced delays from themselves as up to 3% of sales. The majority of delays were caused by product rejection, a principal cause of which was dirty product.

Health, Safety & Environmental – Dirt itself can be a hazard to either the product or personnel. This is most noticeable in areas such as food, pharmaceutical and medical, where dirt can threaten lives. However even when not taken to this extent, a product contaminated with dirt is a diminished, less valuable product. If a competitor is offering a similar product without this, they will appear superior.

To book a Free Trial Clean or to discuss your ultrasonic cleaning requirements with one of our expert staff. Call us today on 01924 495 975 or email hello@sonicsolutionsltd.com

What we need from you to give you an ultrasonic cleaning quote

For us to give you the most accurate quote possible for our ultrasonic cleaning service, we need as much information about your items as you can give. This checklist will help you put together all the necessary information that we would need which allows us to provide you with the most accurate quote possible.

What is it / What is its use?

Knowing what the item is and what it is used for is a great place to start. We may not know exactly what it is, but allowing us to build a picture in our mind of what it goes through helps us to know what we are dealing with.

What is the contaminant?

What you are looking to remove is one of the most important things we need to know. This dictates what ultrasonic cleaning chemicals we use and helps us to work out how long an item will take. Removing thick scale buildup from pipework takes a lot longer to remove than a thin layer of cutting oils from freshly manufactured parts. These two examples also require vastly different chemistry which would affect the price.

How big is the item(s)?

Letting us know the dimensions of your item is essential. We have large ultrasonic baths that can handle most items that our customers send. But every now and then we get an enquiry for an item too large for us to handle. Knowing the size also gives us a rough idea of how long an item will take which will allow us to provide you with an accurate quote.

How heavy?

Additionally to size, we need to know roughly how much your item weighs. It makes the job longer if we are having to use our crane or forklift to get your items into our tanks so knowing if your item is liftable will help us with your quote.

What is it made from?

What your item is composed of effects what solution we can use. Light metals such as aluminium react with our caustic based chemicals so we would need to use an aluminium safe product. Knowing the makeup of your item will allow us to build a picture of what the job will involve.

How fragile is your item(s)?

Although we take the utmost care with all our customers’ items, it is good to know how fragile the item is. It takes longer for us to clean thin, highly polished aluminium parts that we have to individually handle as to not scratch or bend compared to a lump of iron that could take the force of a car hitting it.

What quantities are we dealing with?

We charge a setup fee per tank to cover our setup costs and book the machine and staff. This remains the same whether you send ten parts or a thousand. Letting us know the quantities allows us to know which tank we would need and what setup cost to charge.

Is the work a one off or ongoing?

For ongoing contracts we can be more flexible with our price so it is helpful for us to know if the job will be a one off or part of an ongoing requirement.

Photos

A picture paints a thousand words. However good you are at describing something, there is always a chance of something being miscommunicated. Detailed photographs are immensely helpful in letting us know what we are dealing with.

All these small details go a long way for us to be able to provide you with an accurate quote. Being as thorough as possible with your details can save a lot of back and forth and allow us to gain a complete picture of your requirements.

You can submit any images through our online quote form

Trial Clean

Even with all of this information, it is still impossible in some situations to know how much work is going to be involved in a clean. This is why we offer a trial clean where we will clean a small sample batch of your items free of charge*. This allows us to lock down our process and decide what chemistry and methodology we would use. It also gives us a chance to prove our service to you so you know the end results before committing to any capital expenditure. * Terms & Conditions Apply.

To book a Free Trial Clean or to discuss your ultrasonic cleaning requirements with one of our expert staff. Call us today on 01924 495 975 or email hello@sonicsolutionsltd.com