Chapter 8 - Estimating revenues and production costs

Abstract

An understanding of process revenues and production costs is key to determining the profitability of a process and to optimizing the process to reduce costs and maximize the value created. Sources of price data and methods for forecasting product, feedstock, and energy prices and for determining revenues and variable costs of production are given. Estimation of other variable costs such as utilities, consumables, packaging, and effluent treatment is described. Methods are given for estimating fixed costs such as labor, supervision, overheads, maintenance, taxes, licenses, and insurance.