prime cost

American  

noun

1. that part of the cost of a commodity deriving from the labor and materials directly utilized in its manufacture.

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prime cost British  

noun

1. Also called: variable cost.  the portion of the cost of a commodity that varies directly with the amount of it produced, principally comprising materials and labour Compare overheads

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Etymology

Origin of prime cost

First recorded in 1710–20

Example Sentences

Labor is indeed a prime cost factor in an industry that has never been able to mechanize to any great extent.

From Time Magazine Archive

High speed and power require a larger outlay in prime cost, in material and building, for the adequate resistance required by such power: III.

From Ocean Steam Navigation and the Ocean Post by Rainey, Thomas

An addition to the price; rise in price or value; as, an advance on the prime cost of goods.

From Webster's Unabridged Dictionary by Webster, Noah

His Lordship at one time shipped a large quantity of warming pans to the West Indies where they were sold at a great advance on prime cost, and used for molasses ladles.

From The Olden Time Series, Vol. 6: Literary Curiosities Gleanings Chiefly from Old Newspapers of Boston and Salem, Massachusetts by Brooks, Henry M. (Henry Mason)

Could not you manage so by your authority, that he should take them at prime cost?

From The Lawyers, A Drama in Five Acts by Iffland, Augustus William