How much is a machine shop worth by size band?
Specialty medical/aero components still under $1M SDE can print 3.0x–5.0x SDE (observed range, CTA/IBBA synthesis) — still SDE, still small.
Inside the machining SDE cell, certified medical or aero work can sit higher and still be SDE if earnings are under $1 million — that is an observed range from CTA/IBBA-style synthesis, still labeled SDE, still small. Commodity production milling sits at the discount end. Do not average those two books and call it "the shop multiple." Split the trailing twelve months by certificate and by part family if the file is mixed.
| CNC / precision machining band | Basis used | Cell | What breaks it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under $1M SDE | SDE | 2.0x–3.6x | SDE versus EBITDA chosen by size band not slogan |
| $1–3M EBITDA | Adjusted EBITDA | 4.0x–6.0x | certified medical lots still labeled SDE when small |
| $3–10M EBITDA | Adjusted EBITDA | 5.0x–6.5x | commodity production milling at the discount end |
| $10M+ EBITDA | Adjusted EBITDA | 6.0x–8.0x | splitting T12 by certificate and part family |
When is CNC / precision machining valuation an asset-floor conversation?
Illustrative only, machining, sde-under-1m: trailing SDE $380,000 after a $140,000 replacement-supervisor add-back is refused. Apply 2.5x–3.0x SDE (BizBuySell manufacturing band). Illustrative EV $950,000–$1,140,000 before peg. If a decent OLV on the cells is $1.05 million, you are in asset-floor territory.
Illustrative only, precision machining, ebitda-1-3m: $1.8 million adjusted EBITDA, ISO 9001 current, top customer 22%, 2018+ CNC mix. Table range 4.0x–6.0x. The fight is job-cost versus quote and whether the programmer stays — not whether 'manufacturing is 7x.'
How should a broker opinion on a machine shop be used — and not used?
SDE versus EBITDA chosen by size band not slogan belongs in the machine shop opinion before anyone quotes a headline. Mixing bases to absorb that fact is how a teaching case becomes marketing. Spindle math is not a cell. Jason Taken will not sign an appraisal to paper over it. Put “SDE versus EBITDA chosen by size band not slogan” on this machine shop valuation list.
Keep certified medical lots still labeled SDE when small on the size band. A Main Street CNC / precision machining shop does not get a larger-EV print because the teaser sounded institutional. Quote discipline can sit in the CIM climate paragraph. It does not move the cell by itself. Put “certified medical lots still labeled SDE when small” on this machine shop valuation list.
Skip commodity production milling at the discount end and the machine shop number is a brochure. The floor test still has to run. If orderly liquidation plus clean NWC beats earnings, say so. Cell honesty does not get a vote. Put “commodity production milling at the discount end” on this machine shop valuation list.
A court that wants a certified appraisal needs an appraiser. This CNC / precision machining page still insists on splitting T12 by certificate and part family plus a named band. Search-fund medians are a different animal (Source: Stanford GSB). Keep that print off the wrong machine shop. Put “splitting T12 by certificate and part family” on this machine shop valuation list.
Change asset-floor math when iron plus NWC wins and the machine shop teaching case moves. That is the point of naming the process. Illustrative cases on this page are not offers. Spindle math describes the operating year, not the method. Put “asset-floor math when iron plus NWC wins” on this machine shop valuation list.
Pick SDE or adjusted EBITDA by size, then apply a 5x SDE story invented by mixing bases. Slogans do not get a vote on CNC / precision machining. Jason Taken will not sign an appraisal. The broker opinion still has to be honest about this item. Put “a 5x SDE story invented by mixing bases” on this machine shop valuation list.
Do not import a larger-EV print onto a Main Street CNC / precision machining shop because Stanford 6.2x refused on an 11 percent job shop sounded institutional. Name the band. Name the process. Then talk. Put “Stanford 6.2x refused on an 11 percent job shop” on this machine shop valuation list.
If GF Data averages kept off Main Street cells points at an asset floor, the machine shop opinion should say so in the first table, not in a footnote. Traveler proof does not hide a liquidation story. Put “GF Data averages kept off Main Street cells” on this machine shop valuation list.
Illustrative $380k SDE after a refused add-back is a method input on CNC / precision machining, not a marketing adjective. If you cannot source it, drop the cell and talk iron plus net working capital. Put “illustrative $380k SDE after a refused add-back” on this machine shop valuation list.
Control generation, certificate status, and illustrative $1.8M EBITDA with a 22 percent account should sit in the same paragraph of a machine shop opinion. Splitting them is how a 5x story gets invented. Put “illustrative $1.8M EBITDA with a 22 percent account” on this machine shop valuation list.
Broker opinions on this site refuse to invent a machine shop print. Control generation quoted next to the multiple is one of the reasons. If you need a court-ready number, hire an appraiser. Put “control generation quoted next to the multiple” on this machine shop valuation list.
Where this CNC / precision machining cell sends you next depends on broker opinion that is not an appraisal. If the item holds, read the hub and the buy page. If it fails, stay on the floor test. Put “broker opinion that is not an appraisal” on this machine shop valuation list.
The machine shop cell moves when splitting T12 by certificate and part family moves. Say that in the first paragraph of the opinion. Quote discipline can sit in a footnote. It should not sit in the multiple. Put “splitting T12 by certificate and part family” on this machine shop valuation list.
An illustrative CNC / precision machining case that ignores asset-floor math when iron plus NWC wins is decoration. The tables on this page assume the item is named. Cell honesty is not an input to the cell. Put “asset-floor math when iron plus NWC wins” on this machine shop valuation list.
Haircut language belongs next to a 5x SDE story invented by mixing bases, not in a general “risks” paragraph. On CNC / precision machining, a buried haircut is a lie. Traveler proof is not the haircut. Put “a 5x SDE story invented by mixing bases” on this machine shop valuation list.
If Stanford 6.2x refused on an 11 percent job shop is the reason a machine shop should sit at the discount end of the band, say “discount end.” Do not average it with a certified lot. Spindle math is not an average. Put “Stanford 6.2x refused on an 11 percent job shop” on this machine shop valuation list.
SDE versus EBITDA is a size-band choice. GF Data averages kept off Main Street cells is a process test. Do not use one to dodge the other on CNC / precision machining. Quote discipline is neither. Put “GF Data averages kept off Main Street cells” on this machine shop valuation list.
GF Data-style larger-EV prints stay off a Main Street machine shop unless the earnings base matches. Illustrative $380k SDE after a refused add-back will not drag a small file into that series. Cell honesty will not either. Put “illustrative $380k SDE after a refused add-back” on this machine shop valuation list.
Teaching cases on this machine shop page change when illustrative $1.8M EBITDA with a 22 percent account changes. That is intentional. It is not an offer. Traveler proof is not a case. Put “illustrative $1.8M EBITDA with a 22 percent account” on this machine shop valuation list.
Use this machine shop opinion to negotiate and to write a teaser. Do not staple it to a lender form and call control generation quoted next to the multiple appraised. Spindle math is not an appraisal standard. Put “control generation quoted next to the multiple” on this machine shop valuation list.
A lapsed certificate and broker opinion that is not an appraisal can both knock a machine shop out of a premium cell. Name which one you are talking about. Quote discipline is not a certificate. Put “broker opinion that is not an appraisal” on this machine shop valuation list.
Split the trailing twelve months when SDE versus EBITDA chosen by size band not slogan lives in only part of the machine shop book. A blended multiple is a slogan. Cell honesty is not a split. Put “SDE versus EBITDA chosen by size band not slogan” on this machine shop valuation list.
Asset-floor math on a machine shop is addition, not a vibe. Iron plus clean NWC versus earnings. Certified medical lots still labeled SDE when small often decides which story wins. Traveler proof does not add. Put “certified medical lots still labeled SDE when small” on this machine shop valuation list.
When this machine shop cell is honest, commodity production milling at the discount end is already in the sentence. If you have to hide it to keep a headline, the headline is wrong. Spindle math is not a headline. Put “commodity production milling at the discount end” on this machine shop valuation list.
Where does this CNC / precision machining cell send you next?
Use the CNC / precision machining hub to keep the process named. Sell and buy carry the transaction versions. Parent method: manufacturing business valuation. Buyer comparison: how each buyer type prices a manufacturer.
This CNC / precision machining valuation page will not sign an appraisal or import a neighbor cell. Counsel, a CPA, and credentialed environmental or M&E professionals own the licensed questions.