Cost savings with a CNC bridge saw
Many fabricators look at purchasing a CNC saw with concern and that’s fair. A 5 axis CNC saw can easily cost 2 to 3 times more than a regular manual saw. It’s far more technologically advanced and allows for much more cutting detail and programming so that’s part of the cost differential. However, when you look at all the factors that are involved, it’s virtually guaranteed that you’ll be saving money from day one. Let’s take a look at the reality of these elements
To use some numbers as an example, let’s say your company does $2 million per year in overall revenues.
Look at your approximate material costs = $600,000
Labor costs 30 – 40% = $600,000
Gross Profit = $800,000 without a CNC saw!
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Savings #1) Slab Efficiency
Using a CNC saw or a Saw-Jet will produce increase yield
of 10% to 20% on your slabs. This produces additional
revenue/savings of $60,000 per year.
Net profit = $800,000
+ $60,000
$860,000
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Savings #2) Cutting efficiency
A CNC saw is able to take a laser template or other DXF file of your countertop, input it into your saw programming, receive any adjustments or details you need, and than cut it entirely without human assistance or oversight safely behind the stainless steel walls. It functions fully automatically, needs no encouragement, never takes breaks, never gets sick, never asks for more money, it just works until the cutting is done. While it’s cutting your fabricator can, instead of manually cutting with a regular bridge saw, do other things like polishing, grinding, or whatever else needs to be done. This frees up his time while the saw is working and results in savings, financial savings to you. Figure 1 – 2 hours of gained time because the saw needs no attention.
$30 – $45 per hour saved, let’s use $37 x 2 hours = $74 per slab Figuring a fabricator at this level is doing 25 kitchens per week. So presuming 1.1 slabs per kitchen = 30 slabs per week
30 x $74 per slab savings – $2,200 per week x 48 weeks = $106,560 per year savings
Net profit = $860,000
+ 106,560
$966,560
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Savings #3) Sink and faucet shaping & cutting
A CNC saw with a finger bit spindle can process sink holes
and faucet holes quickly and efficiently. This is a savings
of at least 1 – 2 hours per kitchen fabrication job. Using the
numbers above, figuring that an employee can do other
things while the CNC saw is cutting out sinks and faucet
holes, results in yet more savings.
25 kitchen per week, x 1.5 hours saved = 37.5 hours saved per week
37.5 hours x 48 weeks = 2,700 hours saved x $37per hour = $99,900
Net Profit = $966,560
+ 99,900
= $1,066,460
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Savings #4 Installation speed and accuracy
It’s well known that having a CNC cut your kitchen from
a laser or highly accurate templating system results in
faster installations because everything fits well, tight, and
is lined up from the start. You can figure saving
approximately $100 per installation just in time savings.
Speed of fitment, less cutting and grinding on site, better
fit and finish in less time.
$100 per installation x 25 kitchens per week = $2,500 per week x 48 weeks = $120,000 per year savings.
Net Profit. $1,066,460
+ $120,000
$1,186,460
So, your numbers may be different but do the math using this calculation. A one-year savings of nearly $1.2 million in this reasonable example is a massive difference. Of course, this is just an estimation, and you’ll have to use your own numbers, but we think you’ll see that purchasing a CNC machine is more than a good investment, it’s a business necessity and a huge boost to your bottom-line profits.
Summary of Annual Savings:
All numbers and totals below are estimated and for general informational purposes only. Your results will vary depending on your overall sales as well as other factors involved.
Slab Efficiency: $60,000
Cutting Efficiency: $106,000
Sink and faucet savings: $99,900
Installation speed savings: $120,000
Total Annual Savings: $386,460
Estimated
Tax Savings
In addition to the annual savings shown above, one final BIG opportunity lies in something called the IRS Section 179. Through the use of this IRS allowance (still available for 2026) you can deduct the entire amount of your machine purchase – even if it’s financed – in the year it was purchased. This is huge as it preserves working capital, improves cash flow, and can capture significant tax benefits without a large upfront expense. Figure your savings by multiplying your equipment cost x your tax rate. Here’s sample estimate:
Machine Cost: $150,000
Estimated Tax savings: $31,500
Net Machine Cost: $118,500
