I think a lot of engineers make the mistake of thinking that "cost-plus" is the most appropriate way to price a product/service.

Do I care whether Dunkin makes a nickel or $0.75 on the donut they sell me? No. Is it "unfair" for them to have 4x margins on donuts? No.

Relatively few services are sold by the hour. Most spreadsheet mining is done for the value derived, not for the human labor input.