At the development of new machines or modernization of existing ones a special requirement is applied to the operating safety of this equipment. First of all, this requires certain strength calculations. For this, the manufacturers use various methods of calculating the strength of materi-als using a wide range of software applications and online services. In the calculations, special emphasis should be placed on deformation, that is, on the stiffness of structural elements, since stiffness characterizes the ability of a part to withstand a load without significant deformations. Using the example of calculating the deformation of the plate fixing the knife of a rotary grinder, comparative calculations were made in various ways. This is necessary due to the fact that during operation significant forces arise that can change the structure. The following computational methods were used as the investigated methods: online calculators, the method of initial parameters, Kompas-3D and APM WinMachine software applications, bench tests and opera-tion tests. It seems that the solution of one problem in dif-ferent ways should not cause a problem - the initial condi-tions are the same everywhere. However, each of the con-sidered methods has its own peculiarities just in laying the initial conditions. If the conditions are not laid, the result will be significantly different, and this will lead to incorrect de-sign actions. In this case, the use of various methods of calculation and testing, even at the design stage, should lead to a deep analysis of the results. The calculated data may differ from experimental results. This is due to the inconsistency of the materials under study with the claimed requirements, fastening conditions, load application, etc.