An RFQ for a custom metal enclosure is only as good as the information attached to it. Buyers who send six items in the first email usually get a usable price and a technical answer in one round; buyers who send a photograph and a quantity usually get a list of questions instead. This page is the checklist that avoids the second outcome.
The Six Items That Decide the Price
Cost in sheet metal fabrication is driven by the process route, and the route is driven by the drawing. Everything below changes either the route or the risk attached to it, which is why it is worth stating even when the answer is “not yet decided”.
RFQ Checklist for an Enclosure Project
| Drawing and model | A 2D drawing gives the dimensions and tolerances; a 3D model shows bends, clearances and assembly fit. Where only a sample exists, photographs with overall dimensions are enough to start. |
|---|---|
| Material and thickness | The grade and the sheet thickness. This decides the tooling, the welding process and the bend allowances, so a later change is not a trivial one. |
| Finish and cosmetic surfaces | Coating reference and which faces are visible in service. Both affect handling, masking and packing. |
| Quantity and repeat demand | Prototype, first batch and expected annual volume. The three numbers together decide whether setup and tooling are worth amortising, and they often change the answer on price per piece. |
| Critical dimensions and inspection | The characteristics that matter, and the documents your own quality system needs alongside the shipment. |
| Assembly and packing | Hardware, gaskets, cable entry parts, labels, and how the parts have to arrive at your line. For export projects this also covers the trade term and the destination. |
What Happens After You Send It
Your inquiry is reviewed by the sales manager within one business day (GMT+8). Where something on the drawing is unclear or looks difficult to manufacture, the reply contains the engineering questions first, and the price once those are settled. That order exists because a price given against a drawing that cannot be made as drawn is not a price at all.
The quotation states the intended process route, the material, the finish, the lead time and the trade term, so that two quotations can be compared on the same basis. If the review raises a design point — a hole too close to a bend, a weld the operator cannot reach, hardware that does not suit the sheet thickness — it is raised before the order rather than after the first article. See drawing review for what that covers.
Two Things Buyers Commonly Leave Out
The first is the destination and the packing expectation. A cabinet that ships in a carton to a domestic customer and one that crosses an ocean on a pallet have different protection requirements, and the cost of getting that wrong is a damaged delivery. The second is the revision level of the drawing. Where more than one revision exists, state which one the quotation applies to, because a report and a first article are only valid for the revision they were measured against.
How to Structure the First Email
An enquiry that gets a usable answer in one round usually reads in four short parts: what the part is and where it is installed; the attached files with the revision stated; the quantity, material, finish and destination; and the date you need to decide by. Anything not yet settled can be listed as open, because an assumption stated in writing is something we can quote against.
Attachments are best sent as native drawing files rather than screen images, because a PDF or DWG keeps the dimension text readable when the drawing is reviewed. Where a model exists, sending it alongside the drawing is what allows bend clearance, hardware access and assembly fit to be checked before the quotation rather than after it.
FAQ on Metal Enclosure RFQ Checklist Overseas Buyers
How much detail do you need before quoting?
A 2D drawing with material, thickness, finish and quantity is enough for a firm quotation. Where that is incomplete, send what you have and we will quote against the stated assumptions and list the questions.
How fast will I get a reply?
Inquiries are answered within one business day (GMT+8), Monday to Saturday. Where engineering questions are needed first, the questions come with the reply so the next round produces the price.
Do you sign NDAs?
Customer drawings are treated as confidential and used only for the project they were sent for. If a signed agreement is needed before files are released, say so in the first message and we will confirm what we can sign before anything is transmitted.
Drawings to Include for Metal Enclosure RFQ Checklist Overseas Buyers
For a useful quotation, send drawings, quantity, material, finish and assembly requirements. Violet Gao will review your project and reply with technical feedback.
Request a QuoteWhat stands behind this quotation
- Manufacturing since 20162,500 m² Ningbo plant — 3 laser cutting machines (including newer TRUMPF), 4 CNC press brakes and 10 welding stations.
- Shipped to more than 30 export marketsEnclosures, cabinets and formed parts supplied to OEM buyers across Europe, North America and Asia.
- 123 documented product casesMedical device housings, HVAC and heat pump enclosures, agricultural and livestock equipment, industrial hydraulics, material handling trolleys and EV charging cabinets.
- Factory evidence you can checkTUV Rheinland audit reference MIC-ASI243729 and Bureau Veritas reference MIC-ASR263630 available for buyer review under NDA.
Before you send drawings: an NDA is signed on request · first-article inspection is carried out before a batch continues · pricing is staged from prototype quantity to repeat volume · pre-shipment photos and packing records are prepared when the project needs them.