Enter the radial depth of cut, axial depth of cut, and feed rate into the calculator to determine the material removal rate.

Material Removal Rate Formula

The following formula is used to calculate a martial removal rate: 

MRR = RDOC * ADOC * FR
  • Where MRR is the material removal rate (in^3/min)
  • RDOC is the radius depth of cut (in)
  • ADOC is the axial depth of cut (in)
  • FR is the feed rate (in/min)

To calculate material removal rate, multiply the radius depth of cut by the axial depth of cut, then multiply this result by the feed rate.

Material Removal Rate Definition

What is a material removal rate?

A material removal rate is a measure of how much volume of material per unit time is being removed from a stock piece of material, typically on a milling or similar CNC machine.

CNC machines aim to have the highest possible material removal rate while continuing to produce accurate and precise parts.

Example Problem

How to calculate a material removal rate?

First, determine the radial depth of the cut. In this example, the CNC is taking a radial depth of cut of .200″.

Next, determine the axial depth of the cut. For this case, the axial depth of cut is .250″.

Next, determine the feed rate. For this problem, the feed rate is set at 25 inches per minute.

Finally, calculate the material removal rate using the formula above:

MRR = RDOC * ADOC * FR

MRR = .200*.250*25

MRR = 1.25 in^3/min