Shipping and Samples
How a hardware order moves from sample to delivery, what we need from you at each step, and which details are settled at quotation rather than stated as a blanket policy.
Sample stage
Standard sample lead time is 7–10 working days, or 3–7 when expedited. The figure that applies to your part depends on material, finish and whether a new mold is required, so it is confirmed after technical review rather than promised up front.
- What starts it — A drawing, a reference photo, or a physical sample in the post. You do not need a finished drawing.
- What we confirm first — Material and finish direction, dimensions at the fitting position, and whether existing tooling can be used.
- What you get back — Samples produced by the process bulk will use, so appearance and fit can be approved against something representative.
Approve appearance from the physical sample under the lighting your product is sold in, not from photographs. Colour and gloss do not survive a screen reliably.
From approved sample to delivery
Production lead time is 15–25 working days once the sample is approved and the order is confirmed. The stages buyers most often underestimate are the confirmation before production starts and the finishing queue afterwards — both are covered in the guide below.
Packing, labelling and documents
Packing has two jobs: stop finished parts rubbing against each other in transit, and let your warehouse identify what arrived without opening cartons. Both are specified per order, because the right level depends on the finish and on your own receiving process.
Any documentation you need should be named with its scope at enquiry stage. A request raised near shipment is the most common avoidable delay, because some documents depend on testing that has to be planned into the production schedule.
Trade terms decide who does what
A trade term allocates three things between buyer and seller: who arranges and pays for each leg of carriage, where risk of loss or damage transfers, and who handles export and import formalities. It does not set price, quality or delivery date — those stay in the order.
Two quotations on different terms are not comparable as given. Record the term together with its named place, and check that the risk transfer point matches your insurance arrangement.
What we confirm at quotation
The following depend on the part, the order and your destination, so they are confirmed for your project rather than published as a single policy:
- Sample charges and how sample shipping is arranged
- Shipping mode and the trade term for your destination
- Packing level, inner pack counts and labelling format
- Any documents required to accompany the goods
- The lead time that applies to your specific part and finish
Send your destination, intended shipping mode and any document requirement with the enquiry and these come back answered in one pass instead of three.