WayhomartThe usual misjudgement on a multi-SKU programme is treating “twelve styles at once” as “one large order”. To the line it is twelve changeovers, four colours and possibly three packaging formats. Neither scheduling difficulty nor management load scales linearly.
The short version
Batch by colour, batch by wire diameter, split by packaging. Those three rules decide whether a programme ships in a reasonable window, and none of them is about price.
Where changeover cost comes from
| Source | Content | Can it be batched away? |
|---|---|---|
| Colour change | Booth cleaning, recovery system, jigs | Yes — group the same colour |
| Fixture change | Teardown, trial weld, first article | Yes — group by wire diameter and structure |
| Packaging change | Dieline, labels, stacking | Partly — packing lines can run separately |
Colour is the most expensive of the three because it touches the entire pre-treatment and coating line, and cleaning labour does not scale with quantity. That is why colour count affects lead time more than SKU count.
Three batching rules
Batch by colour first. Put every SKU of one colour into one window, even across different families. This usually saves the most time.
Batch by wire diameter and structure second. SKUs sharing a fixture or a similar structure can be grouped, saving a trial weld and a first-article check.
Split packaging. Packing changeover is far cheaper than coating changeover, so do not distort the first two rules to keep packaging tidy. Split when it helps.
What it means for the buyer
- More colours, narrower replenishment windows. In peak season, your window depends on how many colour changes are already queued.
- More SKUs, more first articles. Each is a quality cost and a time cost.
- More complex packaging, more missing parts. Multi-language labels and multiple accessory bags need longer on the packing line.
Practical advice: release the programme as “core colours first, supplementary colours second” rather than all at once. Core colours land and go on shelf; the rest follow.
Three things to agree with the schedule
- Frozen window — how many days before the order can no longer change.
- Colour ceiling — how many colours one batch allows before it needs another window.
- First-article approach — per SKU, or sampled by structure.
Written into an annual framework, these protect delivery better than a price discussion. See annual framework buying.
One common wrong expectation
“Same line, so a few more styles should be much the same.” In reality, same structure in different sizes (a tall and a short three-tier rack) batches cheaply; same size in a different structure (a shelf turned into a hanging rack) is close to two products. The test is not whether they look alike, but whether the fixture is shared.
Fixture boundaries: the limits of small-batch customisation. Loading and mixed containers: KD vs welded wire racks.
Where to go next
- Line changes and finishing capacity: surface finishing.
- Two SKUs in one container: a two-SKU mixed container.
- Choosing the volume tier: how much to order first.
- Programme schedule in hand: contact us.
