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How much to charge for a project in Malaysia.

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ee.tee.jay

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Hey,
I've jst been ask by a company to do a microcontroller project involving ADC and PWM.
Basically, there are 2 ADC input and 2 PWM output. The dutycycle of each PWM is depended on the ADC input..

I've completed the project but I'm not sure how to charge the 'customer'..
Any suggestion on how to calculate the fees..? BTW, I'm in Malaysia..
Thanks..
 
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Figure out how much you want to be earning per hour of your time, figure how long it took you to do everything and add the cost of all materials.
 
A little bit of internet research for electrical engineering consultants or contractors in Malaysia, you might come up with a typical hourly fee by averaging the rates you manage to find. You might even call several agencies and inquire about their fees. Take the average rate and highest rate on your list and settle on a rate inbetween. Charging the average rate or less would be shortchanging yourself. Charging too much would be uncompetitive and bad for business. Add up your material costs and add 10-15% to that figure and bill it as shop supplies. Present the total bill, and be flexible enough to wave the "shop supplies" fee if the customer seems unhappy with your total. This will give them the impression that they have made a bargain with you, even if you didn't expect that money in the first place. Most important is to have your bill itemized, professional, and accounted for.

I'm surprised that the bill is being discussed after the work has already been done. Was there no quote offered before accepting the job?

Hope this helps.
 
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I went through a similar exercise a few years ago.

I was asked to provide a very simple wind velocity data logger, for a very worthy alternative energy project for a village.

Because it is a third world country, and it was all done through the professor of a local university,
(a long term personal friend) I decided to charge zero for my time, and charge only for the cost of components I had to buy in.
Anything I already had was included for free.

In other words I would do all the R&D, write the software, and build the thing for my cost only.

After spending a couple of hundred dollars, and many many hours to build and demonstrate a working pototype, and offer a years free service warranty, I was greeted with absolute horror "why does it cost so much".

Just realise that in a third world country, what you may consider a trifling amount for a few hours work, may be a years salary or far more for the average Malaysian family.

Yet many Malaysians are corrupt, decadent, and cunning multi millionaires.
I just don't know................

I suppose it depends on who in Malaysia this project is for.

Some wealthy company just trying to rip you off, or someone more humble really deserving of some help that may possibly change their life, and maybe enable them to succeed in business, in a very cruel and competitive world.

Anything you do will probably be wrong.

Let your conscience be your guide, help if you can, and hope for the best.
Personally I would try to help, and look on it as a charitable act. If you are being conned by a shark, it does not really matter.
 
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Hi ee.tee.jay,

I think you messed up the job right from the beginning. Before you start any job in a foreign country you should provide a list for the customer stating at least:

- payment (based on hourly rate or fixed amount)
- transportation (on customer's expenses)
- accomodation (dito)

If you charge a fixed amount you must include probable delays caused by any person or company working at the same project and charge "standby" costs.

Calculating your price according the country's common income you might not even want to start the job.

E.g. a Thai engineer gets a monthly payment of 40,000 Thai Baht. (my retirement payment is double as much).

If a foreign country is calling for your help and work it proves their own engineers aren't able to handle the problem.

Business is business and you shouldn't have pity with the customer. You also shouldn't have any bad feelings charging much higher prices than local companies do.

If you don't charge the money it is going to be taken by corrupt officials.

That applied to Thailand after the Tsunami 2006. Germany paid 500,000,000 EURO to Thailand to compensate for damage. The maximum paid from that amount was 24,000 EURO. Since that time Thailand has a dozen more multi-millionairs.

Boncuk
 
I suppose it depends on your attitude to life in general, and business.

If some dude finds you trapped in your crashed and burning vehicle, it may not be worth his time to stop and help you.
 
Malaysia is in the Orient where there are trillions of other starving people? Then charge 1.25 bowls of rice to do the project.
I think ordinary workers get paid only one bowl of rice each day.
 
Don't laugh too hard just yet.

The Malaysians had their economic collapse in 1997.
It was horrific.
America is right on the threshold of something infinitely worse.

All those unemployable IT experts may soon be digging drains for one Mc Donald's crap burger per day, as full pay.
 
They lived for many years with their pay being a bowl of rice or less per day.
Here we lived for many years being paid lots of money.
This world is very different in the different parts.
 
Doing custom work for anyone is very hard and often somewhat risky work to take on. Especially if they are a new customer who you dont know personally or are unable to get a feel for their business morals and ethics by word of a trusted source.

Ive been burned a few times on smaller custom work projects where I was specifically told cost and time where no object. Only to have that customer back out when it was done because it took longer than they expected and cost more that they thought even though the project was completed in less time than the estimate was for and was also under the estimated cost that was clearly stated before any work was actually done. It turned out that they never had the money for the work in the first place. :mad:

Now I have customers with larger or more costly projects sign agreements before anything is started and also require a 50% payment up front before anything is actually done. That greatly helps on weeding out the bad ones from the ones who really want and understand what having custom work done is worth. :)

But hey, its only business. :rolleyes:
 
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They lived for many years with their pay being a bowl of rice or less per day.
Here we lived for many years being paid lots of money.
This world is very different in the different parts.

Yes and things are about to even up quite considerably.

Those that are dirt poor will have nothing to lose. For them nothing much will change.

The decadent immoral yuppies with stuff they have bought on credit, and investments in shonky companies that are about to collapse, are going to lose the lot, plus their highly paid jobs in many cases.
 
The original poster was asking how much to charge someone in a third world country.

And do you really think a discussion about the relative wealth versus poverty is off topic ?

I would say it is a vital consideration in scaling your charges.
 
The original poster was asking how much to charge someone in a third world country.

And do you really think a discussion about the relative wealth versus poverty is off topic ?

I would say it is a vital consideration in scaling your charges.

Yeah that is exactly what I seen when I read this:
The Malaysians had their economic collapse in 1997.
It was horrific. America is right on the threshold of something infinitely worse.

The decadent immoral yuppies with stuff they have bought on credit, and investments in shonky companies that are about to collapse, are going to lose the lot, plus their highly paid jobs in many cases.
3v0
 
When it comes to work, regardless of the location and poverty of the people living in a specific country work should be charged normally.

I'm not member of the salvation army (conisting of many criminal elements anyway) and I don't intend make gifts for government officials in third world countries.

Especially malaysian political leaders are extremely corrupt. Any money, paid by a foreign country to build and support the country's economy and help building better infrastructure, disappears in dark channels - with absolutely nothing being changed for the benefit of people.

Those leaders don't hesitate to squeeze poor people's money out their pockets by establishing banks and giving loans for a tremendeoulsy high interest rate of 24% per year.

Boncuk

P.S. @Warpspeed: Are you into electronics anyway? All I read are hate campains against the USA.
 
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Read some of my other posts here, to decide if I am into electronics or not.

Yes America is a very much hated country these days, but Americans just cannot figure out why that is so.

Sorry for revealing the truth about the war in Iraq to you.

But one thing really stands out.

Nobody here has been able to refute a single word I have said.
And nobody will.

What I have stated is the truth, however much you may hate hearing it.
 
Read some of my other posts here, to decide if I am into electronics or not.

Yes America is a very much hated country these days, but Americans just cannot figure out why that is so.

Sorry for revealing the truth about the war in Iraq to you.

But one thing really stands out.

Nobody here has been able to refute a single word I have said.
And nobody will.

What I have stated is the truth, however much you may hate hearing it.

No further comments on your tyrades of hate.

Just a small story: The USA and USSR had a two party competition one day and the USA were the winners. How can this be used for good propaganda?

The USSR were an honourable second place winner while the USA just gained second before last.

American citizens certainly know what has been done wrong by their government. No country's government is errorfree and - last not least not free of false descisions and laws.

Raising the finger against forum members just has the effect to gain "lots of friends", including me - a German.

Why don't you apply for work in the diplomatic service of your country? :)

Try out you diplomatic abilities in Germany first visiting a beer pub. May be you leave it talking one octave higher than you entered it. :D

Boncuk
 
Read some of my other posts here, to decide if I am into electronics or not.

Yes America is a very much hated country these days, but Americans just cannot figure out why that is so.

Sorry for revealing the truth about the war in Iraq to you.

But one thing really stands out.

Nobody here has been able to refute a single word I have said.
And nobody will.

What I have stated is the truth, however much you may hate hearing it.

I thought politics was a no-no except in chitchat?

But I will comment. There is a reason why Americans are hated, as every other great nation before it was hated by others.

I will give you a perfect example. My young son plays soccer (football), he is quite good at it. He scores the most goals on his team and is very quick on his feet defensively. There is another child on his team who is fat and slow, very unathletic. In youth league, often the coach has no choice but to make the fat kid the goalie and hope his big size will help him block goals.

Well, this chubby kid is slow and more than half the balls get by him. He stands and watches while the other kids score points, and his big time comes when the ball is kicked his way, yet he fails often. He is just a kid, so I am not being hard on him, this is just a metaphor with a point so bear with me.

This child is jealous of my son and complains and says he brings down the team. All of the games his team lost this year were because the chubby goalie couldn't block a goal. In reality, he is the weak link on the team and my son is the asset. But he complains and picks fights with my son. He is jealous and has a chip on his shoulder.

America is a great nation, we have come to be this way by mostly doing good. This world would not be what it is without a strong America. Millions of people around the world ate dinner tonight because of American surplus and generosity. America leads, innovates, creates, but sometimes we make mistakes.

Most countries recognize the benefit that American prosperity has made for them. They appreciate the leadership of America. It is the jealous who believe America is a threat. It is the jealous who despise and run America down. Just as at one time the British were despised and resented.

I said my thing, go in peace and place hate where it is really due.
 
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