Compare the deposit with cash due before the final customer payment, rather than with total project cost alone.
Try this with your own numbersFormula and worked example
Funding gap = early cash cost − quote × deposit rate
| Input | Example |
|---|---|
| Cash needed before customer balance payment | 3,000 |
| Total customer quote | 6,000 |
| Deposit rate | 30 % |
| Calculated result | 1,200 |
Choose reliable inputs
Plan materials, travel and crew time before committing to a price. For this welding shop calculation, use a completed job sheet, supplier quotes and a crew schedule and a consistent definition of one fabrication job.
- Metal: include the portion belonging to this fabrication job or reporting period, and record where the value came from.
- Consumables: include the portion belonging to this fabrication job or reporting period, and record where the value came from.
- Machine time: include the portion belonging to this fabrication job or reporting period, and record where the value came from.
Use the same currency for every money input. Do not mix weekly costs with monthly revenue, or count the same expense in both an itemised cost and allocated overhead.
Does a deposit cover the project cash requirement?
Compare the deposit with cash due before the final customer payment, rather than with total project cost alone.
Deposit permissions and contract terms must be determined separately; no legal entitlement is implied.
What if this input changes?
If cash needed before customer balance payment rises by 10%, this example changes by 300 . This shows the effect of one change; it does not predict what will happen.
Open the calculator, save your baseline, then change the input supported by the least reliable estimate in your records. Compare both scenarios before committing to a price or capacity promise.