Plastic Products from Verified Chinese Manufacturers

What Decides the Price of an Imported Plastic Product

For a plastic product, the unit price is a function of five things far more than of labour: the process, the tooling amortisation, the material, the decoration and the packing. A buyer who understands this can usually find 15–30% between two quotes that look identical on paper.

Process — injection moulding for dimensional parts, blow moulding for hollow bodies, thermoforming for trays and lids, rotational moulding for large tanks, extrusion for profiles and sheet.
Tooling — whether the mould cost is quoted separately or absorbed into the unit price, and how many cavities it runs.
Material — virgin versus regrind, filled versus unfilled, food-contact grade versus industrial grade.
Decoration — in-mould labelling, silk screen, hot stamping, pad printing, spray coating, laser marking.
Packing and logistics — nested or assembled, carton cube, pallet pattern. The cube often decides your landed cost more than the FOB price does.

How Order Volume Changes the Best Process

Annual volume	Usual approach	What to watch
Under ~2,000 pcs	Buy from an existing mould the supplier already runs	Limited shape and colour freedom; check the mould's remaining life
2,000–20,000 pcs	New single-cavity or two-cavity injection mould	Tooling cost per unit is high; negotiate amortisation terms
20,000–200,000 pcs	Multi-cavity mould, optimised cycle time	Tool quality and cooling design decide your long-run cost
Over 200,000 pcs	High-cavity tool, automation, sometimes in-house assembly	Lead time risk and tool maintenance planning

Specification Points Buyers Forget

Wall thickness and tolerance — plastic tolerances are not metal tolerances. Reference a standard such as DIN 16742 or state per-dimension tolerances rather than one blanket figure.
Colour and finish — a Pantone reference plus an agreed ΔE, and whether the visible surface is textured (MT/VDI grain) or polished.
Drop and load testing — state the test and the pass criterion, for example a carton drop test to ISTA 1A or a static load for crates.
Food contact — if the item touches food, name the market: EU 10/2011, US FDA 21 CFR 177, or a national scheme.
Age and UV stability — for outdoor or garden goods, ask for the UV stabiliser package and any accelerated weathering data.
Assembly — whether the item ships assembled, flat-packed or with hardware, and who owns the assembly labour cost.

Quality Control on a Plastic Product Order

A practical inspection plan for consumer plastics covers, in order: pre-production sample approval, first-article inspection at the moulder, in-process checks on weight and key dimensions, and a pre-shipment inspection using AQL sampling with a written defect classification. Define critical, major and minor defects yourself — a supplier's definition of "minor" is often wider than yours.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I order a plastic product without paying for a new mould?

Yes. Many suppliers run catalogue moulds and will produce your quantity in your colour, sometimes with your logo. You avoid tooling cost but accept the existing shape, and you should confirm that the mould is not already being used for a competing brand in your market.

Who owns the mould if I pay for it?

You should, but ownership only exists if the purchase order says so and the tool is identifiable. State ownership, the amortisation method, and the conditions under which the tool can be moved or bought out. Our guide to mould ownership and transfer covers the clauses to fix before you pay.

How long does production take after sample approval?

For an existing mould, production of a few thousand pieces typically runs in weeks, not months, once material is in house. For a new tool, add design review, tool manufacture, trial and correction cycles before production starts. Ask for the timeline as a dated schedule, not as a single number.

Is recycled or regrind material acceptable?

Often yes for industrial and non-food items, and it lowers cost. For food-contact, medical or load-bearing parts, decide in writing what percentage and from which source. Uncontrolled regrind is one of the most common causes of brittle parts and colour drift.