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process-economics-estimator skill

/plugins/babysitter/skills/babysit/process/specializations/domains/science/chemical-engineering/skills/process-economics-estimator

This skill estimates capital and operating costs for chemical processes, delivering profitability metrics and sensitivity analysis to support investment

npx playbooks add skill a5c-ai/babysitter --skill process-economics-estimator

Review the files below or copy the command above to add this skill to your agents.

Files (1)
SKILL.md
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---
name: process-economics-estimator
description: Process economics estimation skill for capital costs, operating costs, and profitability analysis
allowed-tools:
  - Read
  - Write
  - Glob
  - Grep
  - Edit
  - Bash
metadata:
  specialization: chemical-engineering
  domain: science
  category: Process Design
  skill-id: CE-SK-032
---

# Process Economics Estimator Skill

## Purpose

The Process Economics Estimator Skill performs economic analysis of chemical processes including capital cost estimation, operating cost calculation, and profitability metrics.

## Capabilities

- Capital cost estimation (factored, equipment-based)
- Operating cost calculation
- Raw material cost analysis
- Utility cost calculation
- Labor cost estimation
- Depreciation and taxes
- Profitability metrics (NPV, IRR, payback)
- Sensitivity analysis
- Monte Carlo simulation

## Usage Guidelines

### When to Use
- Evaluating project economics
- Comparing process alternatives
- Supporting investment decisions
- Analyzing sensitivity

### Prerequisites
- Equipment list available
- Capacity defined
- Utility requirements known
- Market prices available

### Best Practices
- Use appropriate estimation method
- Document all assumptions
- Include contingency
- Perform sensitivity analysis

## Process Integration

This skill integrates with:
- Equipment Sizing and Specification
- Process Flow Diagram Development
- Separation Sequence Synthesis

## Configuration

```yaml
process-economics-estimator:
  estimation-classes:
    - order-of-magnitude
    - study
    - preliminary
    - definitive
  profitability-metrics:
    - NPV
    - IRR
    - payback
    - ROI
```

## Output Artifacts

- Capital cost estimates
- Operating cost analyses
- Cash flow projections
- Profitability analyses
- Sensitivity charts

Overview

This skill performs economic analysis for chemical and process projects, estimating capital and operating costs and delivering profitability metrics. It combines factored and equipment-based costing with cash flow modeling to produce NPV, IRR, payback, and sensitivity outputs. The skill is aimed at early-stage to definitive study levels and supports risk-informed decision making.

How this skill works

The estimator ingests equipment lists, capacities, utilities, and market prices to calculate capital expenditures and recurring operating costs. It applies cost-estimating classes (order-of-magnitude to definitive), builds cash flow projections with depreciation and taxes, and runs sensitivity or Monte Carlo analysis to quantify uncertainty. Outputs include detailed cost breakdowns, profitability metrics, and sensitivity charts for scenario comparison.

When to use it

  • Screening economic feasibility for new process projects
  • Comparing alternative process routes or technologies
  • Preparing investment summaries for stakeholders or lenders
  • Updating cost models as equipment specs or market prices change
  • Running sensitivity or risk analysis before final investment

Best practices

  • Supply a complete equipment list and defined production capacity
  • Choose an estimation class matching study maturity and data quality
  • Document all cost bases, assumptions, and escalation factors
  • Include contingency and owner’s costs explicitly in capital estimates
  • Validate key inputs with market quotes or vendor data when possible

Example use cases

  • Estimate total installed cost for a pilot plant using factored and equipment-level methods
  • Model operating cost impacts of raw material price shifts and utility efficiency improvements
  • Generate NPV and IRR for a brownfield expansion with tax and depreciation schedules
  • Perform Monte Carlo simulation to quantify project value uncertainty for board review

FAQ

What inputs are required to run a reliable estimate?

Provide an equipment list with sizing, defined production throughput, utility demands, and current market prices for raw materials and utilities. The quality of results scales with data quality.

Which estimation class should I choose?

Select the class matching study maturity: order-of-magnitude for early screening, preliminary for concept selection, and definitive for budgetary commitments with detailed equipment data.