Sourcing8 min read
Steel price indexing: grades, surcharges and the timing trap
A steel clause has to name the grade, the coating and the period. Get one wrong and the index moves while the argument starts.
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Sourcing notes for custom parts
Drawings, tooling, quality and landed cost, from the team that runs the programmes.
All guides, page 5
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Sourcing9 min read
Volume breaks and MOQ economics
A lower unit price at a higher quantity is not automatically a better deal. Setup, tooling, inventory and the supplier's minimum order quantity decide where the saving stops.
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Sourcing8 min read
Aluminium price indexing: choosing a reference and writing the clause
How to separate the metal price from the conversion price, pick an index and settle the monthly invoice without a dispute.
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Sourcing9 min read
Cost breakdown: material, conversion, tooling, finish, packing, freight
A quote becomes useful when it is broken into lines. Each line has a driver, a piece of evidence and a question that tells you whether the number is real.
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Sourcing9 min read
HS code 3926 for plastic articles
Heading 3926 covers other articles of plastics. For a moulded housing, the first question is whether it is a general article or a part of an electrical apparatus.
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Sourcing9 min read
LCL vs FCL: cost and damage risk
Where the shared container stops being cheaper, what the extra handling does to a pallet of parts, and how to test the break even properly.
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Sourcing9 min read
Supply continuity planning
How to map single points of failure, choose between a second site and buffer stock, and set triggers that turn a plan into action.
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Sourcing8 min read
Bill of lading and airway bill: title, release and the fields that matter
One document can transfer ownership of the cargo. The other cannot. A practical guide to the transport documents behind an import.
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Sourcing9 min read
Freight modes: sea, air, rail and road
How cost, transit, cargo shape and risk decide the mode, and why the door to door chain matters more than the headline rate.
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Sourcing9 min read
How to compare quotes with different Incoterms
A step by step method for moving every quote onto one cost and risk basis, so the cheapest number is actually the cheapest deal.
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Sourcing9 min read
HS code 7616 for aluminium articles
Heading 7616 covers other aluminium articles. An extruded profile and a finished bracket can share a drawing family but not a tariff line.
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India10 min read
Manufacturing in India: a capability map by industrial cluster
India is not one supply market. The cluster you choose changes the process depth, the tooling base and the logistics route.
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Go from reading to checking
The guides are built around the same questions as the free tools. Size a busbar, check an ISO 2768 callout, build a first article report or compare landed cost.
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