7 things your rotomoulder doesn’t want you to ask!

Francis Ward Managing Director Jonathan Wurr outlines seven things you should consider prior to commissioning a rotomoulder.

Do they have ISO9001? Many rotomoulders can make a good sample for approval before they go into production, but how many times did they get it wrong before they got your sample. Make sure that your rotomoulder can repeat the process by ensuring they have a robust quality system. Returning non-conforming products is an expensive business. Don’t be afraid to audit your moulder’s customer complaints and see what you are really getting into!

Are they financially stable? Many rotomoulding customers think that it doesn’t matter if their rotomoulder is financially secure. If the moulder goes bust they think can just move their mould to another moulder to ensure supply (and possibly get away without paying a bill). However, remember that if your moulder goes bust, then the Administrator will probably impound your moulds until clear ownership can be established. Your moulds may be sat there doing nothing for days, or weeks, before they can be released. What effect will that have on your own production? Use your credit-checking facilities on your moulder before you give him your moulds!

Do they mark-up tooling? Most moulders will sub-contract out the manufacture of moulds and tooling to specialist engineering mould-making companies. Sometimes the mark-up made by rotomoulders on these moulds can be substantial. Do not be afraid to ask your moulder if he is making his own moulds and if not, then ask what the mark up is. It may save you money to go direct to a mould-maker yourself.

Do they have machine capacity? Rotomoulders love to oversell the capacity on their machines with the consequence that they do not always meet your delivery times. Specifically ask your moulder if they have capacity and audit their systems to check that they are not misleading you. Check whether your moulder records On-Time-In-Full (OTIF) for his business and ask to see the data. If he won’t show you, maybe there is a reason....!!

Do they tie you into an unnecessary long-term contract? Don’t be fooled by slick salesman saying you have to be tied into a long-term manufacturing contract. Most of the rotomoulding industry works on a pay-as-you-go basis from order to order. You should only have to sign into a contract if the moulder has made some investment on your behalf, such as buying moulds for you.

Do they include all the extras in the price? Some moulders may lure you in with good unit prices, but then ramp up the price by adding in one-off pieces of kit such as cooling jigs or routing jigs. Make sure you get a price up front for any other parts that might be needed. Also, make sure you establish who owns them – many moulders argue that they own the ancillary equipment to make it harder for a customer to move production to another moulder. Make sure ownership of the parts is clearly stated in writing if you think you have paid for them.

Can they trace your products? It is rare, but sometimes plastic material suppliers can have quality problems themselves and might only notify the moulder after your products have been shipped. Can your moulder determine if any of your products were made with a faulty batch of material? Or if you have a quality problem with a product, can your moulder identify other products made with the same batch of material? Check your moulder can trace products quickly and effectively. Francis Ward Contract Moulding +44 (0) 1274 707030 http://contractmoulding.francisward.com/