Our Process
From first inquiry to repeat order.
A sintered metal element is bought twice: once on a drawing and once on how it ran. This page is the whole path between the two — what happens at each stage, how long it takes, and what reaches you at the end of it.
The Short Version
Ten steps, four dates that matter
Most of the calendar is consumed by testing, not manufacturing. The four numbers below are the ones buyers plan around, and each of them is fixed before an order is placed.
Inquiries enter the same review from two directions: a drawing or part number you already run, or a set of operating parameters with no drawing yet. The first route is faster because the envelope is known; the second one exists because a filter element is often the last part of a process change nobody could specify on paper.
3–5 days
Drawing Review
Feasibility, media selection and a dimensioned drawing to approve
20–30 days
Sample
A few pieces, tested in your laboratory and then on the line
30–60 days
Production
Batch bubble-point and permeability records with every dispatch
1–3 months
First Order
From first contact to a validated element on your line
Stage By Stage
What happens, and when
Five stages carry an order from an inquiry to delivered elements. The stages after that — service and repeat supply — are on the next block down.
Stage 01 · Inquiry & triage
Two doors into the same review
About 70% of inquiries arrive with a drawing, an OEM part number or a spent element; the rest describe the process. Either way the inquiry goes to an engineer rather than a queue, and the first thing we check is whether the element can be built at all.
| You send | A drawing, an OEM part number, a spent element — or the operating parameters. |
|---|---|
| You receive | A first read on feasibility and a named engineer to talk to. |
| Typical duration | Same working day |
Stage 02 · Technical review & drawing
Media, alloy and a drawing you approve
The design team selects the filtration medium, the alloy and the layer structure against your temperature, pressure and corrosion data, then issues a dimensioned drawing with the tolerance stack-up and connection details. Nothing is sampled until you have approved that drawing.
| You send | Approval of the drawing, or the changes you want made to it. |
|---|---|
| You receive | Media and alloy selection, and a dimensioned drawing with the tolerance stack-up. |
| Typical duration | 3–5 working days |
Stage 03 · Quotation
Price, MOQ, lead time and terms in one round
One quotation carries the unit price, minimum order quantity, production lead time and payment terms, so none of it has to be renegotiated later. New customers work on T/T — a deposit with the order and the balance against the bill of lading; established accounts can be given short credit terms.
| You send | Order quantity and any commercial requirements you have. |
|---|---|
| You receive | Price, MOQ, lead time and payment terms in one round. |
| Typical duration | With the drawing |
Stage 04 · Sample & line trial
A few pieces, tested on your own line
Samples are charged to new customers and free of charge to established ones. You test them in your own laboratory and then on the line itself. If performance does not match the target we adjust the medium or the structure and sample again, before anything runs in volume.
| You send | Test results from your laboratory and from the line itself. |
|---|---|
| You receive | A few sample pieces, adjusted until performance matches the target. |
| Typical duration | 20–30 days |
Stage 05 · First order & dispatch
A small first batch, records with the goods
The first production order is deliberately small: enough to validate the element over a full cycle, not enough to carry inventory risk. From first contact to this point runs 1–3 months, and by then you can judge the element on your own operating data rather than on a datasheet.
| You send | A first order sized to validate, rather than to stock. |
|---|---|
| You receive | Batch bubble-point and permeability records for the production run. |
| Typical duration | 30–60 days |
After Delivery
The part that decides the second order
Every element eventually blocks, gets cleaned or gets replaced. How that is handled is the difference between a one-off purchase and a scheduled part.
-
We diagnose before we ship anything
Technical sales work through the medium, the symptoms and your operating data with you remotely, the same day where possible.
-
A selection problem gets re-selected
If the element turned out to be the wrong choice for the duty, we select again and recommend the medium and structure that fit the process.
-
A quality problem gets replaced free
If the element itself is at fault, we replace it free of charge rather than turning it into a discussion about liability.
| Replacement cycle | 3–12 months on most lines |
|---|---|
| Repeat orders | 60–80% of our revenue |
| Supply rhythm | Project-based for equipment builders and distributors |
| Exclusivity | Non-exclusive — you keep your other brands |
Questions At This Stage
What buyers ask before the first order
Six questions that come up in almost every inquiry, answered with the terms we actually quote. Anything not covered here is a question for the engineer, not the website.
How long does the whole first order take?
One to three months from first contact. Drawing review takes 3–5 working days, samples 20–30 days and first production 30–60 days; the rest is the time your own testing and approval take.
Do I pay for the sample?
New customers are charged for the sample, established customers are not. A sample run is a few pieces, and we adjust the element until performance matches before mass production.
What is the minimum order quantity?
A few pieces to a few dozen, depending on element size and material. There is no container-sized minimum on a first order.
How do we pay?
New customers work on T/T — a deposit with the order, the balance against the bill of lading. Established accounts can be given short credit terms.
What if the element does not perform on my line?
We go through the medium, the symptoms and the operating data first. If the selection was wrong we re-select and recommend again; if the element is faulty we replace it free of charge.
What documentation arrives with the goods?
Batch bubble-point and air permeability records, and the ISO 9001 quality system behind them. EN 10204 3.1 material certificates are not issued by us — tell us what your project requires and we will confirm what we can provide before quoting.
Start at either end of the process.
Send a drawing or part number if you have one, or send the operating conditions if you do not. Either route reaches the same engineering review, and the feasibility answer comes back in 3–5 working days.
First order 1–3 months · Samples ship in 20–30 days · Drawings handled under NDA