WayhomartAsk for a unit price in the first email of a supplier switch and the two numbers usually cannot be compared. One is a finished product with a colour box and an insert, the other is a bare part. One uses your existing die, the other quotes a new one.
Get six documents first and the quotes share a baseline.
The short version
Without a drawing revision and a signed sample, two factories are not quoting the same product.
Six documents
| Document | From whom | What goes wrong without it | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| Drawings, 2D and 3D | current supplier or your own product team | the new factory measures the sample and invents tolerances | before quoting |
| Mould and die list | current supplier | you do not know which tooling you paid for, and cannot move it | before quoting |
| Signed samples and colour standard | current supplier and buyer, one each | colour and feel cannot be checked, the first batch is rejected | before sampling |
| Packing spec | current supplier or packaging supplier | carton size re-guessed, volume and freight recalculated | before quoting |
| Inspection criteria | buyer or third-party inspection | the same batch gets two verdicts | before first article |
| Certificates and test reports | current supplier | unclear whether the new plant can rely on the files, market access stalls | before ordering |
Of the six, the first two get skipped most often and are the hardest to reconstruct.
Drawings and mould ownership
One rack may exist as a design revision, a tooling revision and a production revision. They differ at hole positions, bend radii and weld locations, none visible from outside.
Ask three things: drawing number and date, what the last change was, and whether anything was changed verbally in production. Verbal changes are the worst case, absent from the drawing and remembered only by whoever was there.
The new factory’s first job after receiving the drawing is to send back a measurement confirmation, marking the dimensions and tolerances it has understood. That reply is worth more than any assurance, because it shows where it misread.
Next to the drawing sits the mould. Who paid for it, who owns the drawing, and where the transfer conditions are written: all three belong before the switch, not after.
Three situations turn up in practice:
- Tooling paid off, ownership written into the purchase contract. Easiest, a notification is enough.
- Tooling not paid off, the current supplier claims it. This becomes a buy-out or compensation negotiation, and it takes time.
- No written agreement, only payment records. The hardest, usually settled commercially.
Colour box dies work the same way. Record ownership and storage location next to the packing spec, or the new factory cuts another die and a few millimetres of carton change the container load.
Signed samples, colour and packing spec
Keep at least three signed samples: current factory, buyer, new factory. Packing and labels must match across the three, or the comparison turns into an argument about which version is which.
The colour standard needs a light source and a date. The same RAL number varies between production years, and more so on plastic and powder-coated parts. Without a physical standard, the comparison falls back to photographs, which look different on every screen.
Packing travels with the samples. It covers carton size, insert type, pack quantity, barcode and label position. Those decide container load and whether the product can go on a retail shelf, and a photo of a carton is not a specification.
Inspection criteria state the sampling method, the items judged and who signs. A buyer’s standard, a third-party inspector’s standard and the factory’s own standard are three different documents. Put all three side by side during a switch, list the differences, then decide which one governs.
Certificates: verification only
Whether an existing report carries over depends on the applicant named on it, the model range and the sample tested. Change the plant and the applicability has to be re-confirmed; copying the file is not enough.
The working question is what documents are needed, how they are verified and who to request them from. Asking whether the factory “has passed” returns a verbal assurance and nothing you can file.
When not to switch
- The current supplier is stable and only expensive. Negotiate first: shared tooling, a narrower colour range, simpler packing. Usually less work than a switch.
- One model is moving. Tooling and sampling for a single model rarely pay back, unless that model carries most of your spend.
- The certificate sits with the current supplier and cannot transfer. A switch means reapplying, and the lead time belongs in the comparison.
- The drawing was never complete. Finish the drawing first, or the new factory works from guesswork.
Next steps
- What an RFQ should carry: dish rack RFQ checklist.
- How much volume justifies dedicated tooling: the dedicated tooling threshold.
- Models already in the range: dish rack range.
- Have drawings and samples, ready to switch: contact us to check the document list.
