How to Find Good Machinery Factories in China

With economic globalization, more and more overseas customers would like to purchase products in China, and there are large quantities of machinery factories in China. How to identify the good manufacturing company, it’s not a easy job. Maybe you don't have this experience. This article introduces some points to help you to choose good suppliers in China.

Step1. Identify the purpose of the product you need, when you are looking for machinery factories

(1) What is the use of your product

a.  Appearance parts

Appearance parts are those that can be seen by people, and usually have higher requirements on surface treatment, such as flatness and smoothness.

b.  Functional parts

Functional parts mean those with functional requirements, such as those that play a key role in supporting or absorbing energy. Their dimensions are very critical, and they can be either external or internal parts.

c.  Both

Some parts can be both appearance and function parts, such as lighting parts, which requests both critical dimensions and beautiful appearance.

(2) The important points you should pay attention to

a.  If you need appearance parts, you should pay attention to the surface finish, maybe you should learn more about the vendors of the factory, because many factories will not do surface treatment in home.

b.  If you need functional parts, you should pay attention to the dimensions, technical department and quality control department of the factory.

c.  If you have critical requirements for both appearance and function, you should try your best to learn the details of the factory to ensure it can meet your requests.

Step 2. Ways to find machinery factories on internet

(1) The geographical location of machinery factories in China

Generally speaking, machinery parts includes casting parts, machining parts, forging parts and stamping parts, which are in different industries, such as Mechanic industry, Automatic production line, Telecommunication equipment, Automatic industrial equipment, etc. And the raw material mainly includes aluminum AL5052/6061/6082/7075, stainless steel SUS303/304/316/316L, SS440C, Carbon Steel, Alloy Steel, Brass, Copper, Bronze, Titanium.

Here is a list of the most important cities and provinces in machinery industries, among them, most heavy industries or large machinery are in North China, such as Shandong and Hebei provinces.

• Kunshan, Jiangsu • Changzhou, Jiangsu     • Xuzhou, Jiangsu      • Shanghai, Shanghai   • Jinhua, Zhejiang

• Ruian, Zhejiang       • Wenzhou, Zhejiang      • Ningbo, Zhejiang    • Taian, Shandong        • Jinan, Shandong

• Qingdao, Shandong  • Shenyang, Liaoning      • Dongguan, Guangdong

Relatively speaking, southern China is more developed than the north, and heavy industries are located in the north, which can save a lot of costs for land and manpower.

In most industries, the eastern provinces of Zhejiang, Jiangsu and Shandong occupy more than half of China’s machinery exports, many international customers visiting and buying products from these places.

If you need to visit different suppliers, the most convenient way to get there is by first flying to Shanghai, and then travel by high speed train to, and between, the provinces and cities. Of course you should make appointments by phone or emails in advance.

(2) Machinery Trade Fairs in China, help to find more machinery factories

a.  Canton Fair

The Canton Fair is not only China’s biggest trade fair, but also Asia’s biggest trade fair for machinery and parts. Here, you’ll find suppliers of electric engines, pumps, packaging machinery, sewing machines and much more – everything is under the same roof.

When: October

Location: Guangzhou, China

Visa required: Yes

Airport: Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport or Hong Kong International Airport

Venue: China Import and Export Fair Complex

Address: No. 380, Yuejiang Zhong Road, Guangzhou (Map)

More details please click below link https://www.cantonfair.net/canton-fair/canton-fair

b.  Hong Kong Trade and Development Council (HKTDC) Fairs

HKTDC hosts several annual trade fairs in spring and autumn. The following trade fairs are relevant to medical devices, printing machinery and electrical machinery:

Hong Kong Electronics Fair, October

Hong Kong International Medical Devices and Supplies Fair, May

Other information

Location: Hong Kong S.A.R

Visa required: No

Airport: Hong Kong International Airport

Venue: Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (HKCEC)

Address: 1 Expo Drive, Wan Chai

c.  Other Trade fairs

And there are also many other trade fairs in China, you can search the detail information on the internet if you are interested in.

(3) On-line B2B, B2C website

a.  Alibaba https://www.alibaba.com

Alibaba is a good tool help you to find more machinery factories. You could click the website and sign in it with your username and password ( Please kindly register it if you don’t have one ), then you can get below screen shots.

Then you can enter the product name ( such as CNC machined parts )on the arrow and after that click the “Search”, you will see a list of many different factories on the page.

In the middle of this page, you can find different factory names and product names( you can click it to see the detail information of the product if you like ). On the left of this page, you can find some simple comments information about the company , and you can also contact the company online or by emails. On the right of this page, you can enter some more detail information to limit the search results to meet your requirements, if you pull down, you will find you could also choose different countries, locations and certificates.

b.  Made in China https://www.made-in-china.com

It is similar to Alibaba, please also refer to below screen shots. Next page, you can find more machinery factories.

Alibaba and Made in China are the 2 most famous and widely used B2B online websites in China, you can search for almost all kinds of products on it.

Even if you don’t know any machinery factories, tell people in your network what you’re looking for. Being open about your needs and goals can be helpful within China as well. Other business travelers to China can also be very helpful, given the entrepreneurial nature of the community. I found buyers are happy to share their recommended machinery factories. In other words, simply by asking for advice from other people with purchasing experience in China, you will receive many recommendations of the best suppliers to partner with based on your specific needs.

Step3. What Questions Should I Ask Potential Machinery factories?

(1) Will you sign an NDA (Non Disclosure Agreement)?

Many companies now require machinery factories to sign confidentiality agreements in order to protect product drawing copyrights and company information. We also have this request for both trusts. Factories don't agree with this will not be chosen.

(2) Does the factory handle the type of manufacturing you need?

It seems very easy, but actually it becomes complicated when getting to the specific phase, especially as per different customers' requests. For example, a factory produce electronics parts, which doesn’t mean they have the capability to manufacture the electronic product you need– there is a wide range of needs here, so please make sure the machinery factories you are interested in can meet your needs. You can ask the manufactures to send some similar product photos or samples to you to verify, which will be more convincing, and it is also better for the next progress.

(3)What types of companies do the factories typically work with?

Generally, you’ll want to choose a manufacturing company who works with companies similar to yours. For example, if you’re a large company specializing in household appliances, you’ll want a factory who tends to work with large companies specializing in household appliances. If you’re an entrepreneur creating a new design product, you’ll prefer a factory that typically works with entrepreneurs who are creating a new tech product. Make sure it’s a good fit by looking at who the manufacturing company has worked with in the past. You can research the company detail information on the internet, such as the number of workers, R&D department, sales and management, the establish year, or just ask the person you contact in the company to send the company presentation for reference, you can also ask the company to advise the customers they cooperated with, but maybe they will not want to share it with you, because you have not built any business relationship with them.

(4) Minimum order quantity (MOQ), Prices for samples, Samples quality, Prices for production, Time to manufacture, Payment terms.

a.  MOQ

You need to strike a balance between not spending too much to buy way more than you need, but not seeking such a small amount that you have to use a second-rate factory.

Most machinery factories in China require a minimum order quantity (MOQ), depends on different products and requirements in different industries. The more quantity of the product you’re ordering, the less each unit will cost. Products like glassware or plush toys may have a MOQ of around 1,000 pcs, while complex items like hardware products could have a MOQ around 200-500 pcs.

Small factories in China may be more willing to give you a lower MOQ than larger machinery factories because they may not have so much business and don’t want to turn yours away. If you choose to work with a small business, it’s important to confirm that they can meet the delivery date as well as product standards so you don’t waste time and money on poor quality production.

b.  Prices for samples

Before placing a mass production order to a Chinese manufacturing company, you need to get some samples of your product to inspect its quality. There may be very big differences in prices for samples from different suppliers, from free to a discount to the normal price of manufacturing the item.

c.  Samples Quality

There may be also a big difference for quality between different suppliers, even a big difference between samples and mass production from the same supplier. So please be careful with the samples quality as well as mass production quality.

d.  Prices for production

Find out how prices change depending on different order volume. Ask for a breakdown of costs, such as the cost for the item, the cost of shipping, the cost of tariffs and anything else that the manufacturing company includes in pricing. You need to learn if the price is reasonable from the details, and if you can cut the cost down.

e.  Time to manufacture

Don't pay less attention to the delivery time, it may be the key point influence you, maybe you are not the end customer, if the supplier can't make sure the deal delivery date and affect your customer's business, you may be blamed, and face a penalty, or the biggest problem is the order may be canceled. So please make sure the production capacity of the supplier to make sure your production time.

f.  Payment terms

As a new customer, be aware that you might have to pay the half amount of your first order up front, Almost all machinery factories expect to be paid in advance especially for big orders, the risk should be shared by both the customers and the machinery factories. Maybe some customers will suggest the suppliers buy insurance for the order, but I think the safest way is to receive the down payment in own account. You can talk about future payment terms if you become a regular customer.

Step4. Do I Need to Visit the Factory?

(1) Large order

For a large or complicated order, it takes a long time to research and prepare. You need to learn the company's scale, production capacity, registered capital, major customer groups, qualification certificates, and preparations before officially starting production. Ability to solve problems encountered during production, after-sales service when problems occur after the delivery, etc. It is necessary for you to go and see the actual situation of the factory, that would be also helpful for future cooperation.

(2) General order（Production Capabilities, Working Legally）

a.  You can search the detail information on the internet, or ask samples or pictures to make sure the quality before mass production.

b.  Third party background investigation company

You can also contact a third party research company to visit the factory instead of yourself, that would be easier and more convincing. Of course you need to pay for the third party, and then you just need to wait for the result at home.

Step5. How Do I Verify Product Quality?

(1) Inspection Reports

An inspection report can show the detail dimensions of each section, and if the dimensions are qualified as per your request, which you can verify if it qualified in theory.

(2) Replacement Parts & Warranties

Many Chinese machinery factories promise that they will offer warranties, sometimes spanning for several years. However, before you place an order, it is better to confirm the specific warranty terms set by the supplier.

Most of the Chinese suppliers offer free spare parts, but only if the importer pays the freight cost. In some cases, it’s cheaper to buy spare parts locally, rather than paying for the air freight, not to mention import duties and other taxes.

Replacement part deliveries also take plenty of time, and a temporary stop in production may cause millions of lost.

Thus, it’s critical that you should have a spare parts storage, which can keep you running until the supplier has delivered the replacement. You may need to wait at least 30 days for the new spare parts to arrive.

May be some Chinese machinery factories also have a bad habit of doing whatever they can to avoid honoring the warranty terms. Thus, you need to clarify how warranty claims shall be settled.

Sending damaged parts back to China for examination will need time and expensive. It is better to settle warranty claims by sending images and videos, documenting the damages.

(3) Functional testing

When you received the products, the first thing you need to do is to do the functional test to check if it can be assembled successfully and if it can function normally. It is better for you to record the test time, test environment and temperature, and also remember to take some photos. If there are some problems occur, this would be helpful.

(4) Material certificate

Many Chinese factories will have ISO 9001 certificates, TS16949 certificates and many other certificates. Many customers will also request factories with these similar certificates because they think it can show more strong ability to quality control and problems solving.

There are also many factories do not have these certificates, their customers are mainly small and medium customers, if your order is big and complicated, we suggest you to choose the factories with these certificates. If your order is small, factories without certificates may be also a good choice, which should be easier to move forward to save some time and cost.

Step6. Good cooperation

If everything is moving smoothly, no problem occur, the test result is also qualified, you can start your cooperation with the factory.

You can also establish a long time relationship and make deep cooperation if the first cooperation makes you feel good.

Find a good factory is not easy, it needs time, trial and mutual trust and understanding. Each customer wants to find a good factory to establish a long time business relationship, because it is also easy to move forward for new projects, they know each other better and deeply.

China Export Status and advantages

More and more of China's products are exported, especially in the processing industry and manufacturing, Chinese factories pay attention to the international business opportunities and they are willing to do international business, because China has unique advantages.

1. It has a dense population, high processing capacity and high efficiency, which can increase production capacity.

2. The technology is becoming more mature and the quality is increasing day by day, which could be easier to occupy the market with high quality requirements.

3. There are many types of processing, which can meet the processing requirements of different types and different quality.

4. There are many types of large, medium and small factories, which can meet the requirements of customers at different levels.

5. Chinese government encourages exports, which can bring China to all of the world.

Through this article, you can gain some points to find the good manufacturer in China. If you have more ideas to share, you can also contact us or send email to rita@desheng-precision.com.