Practical guide

How to send a drawing that gets an accurate quote fast

Seven facts we cannot work without, which file format to send, and the six details that get missed most often.

Why some enquiries get a price in a day and others take a week

When we can see a part clearly, we can price it. When we have to guess, we have to ask — and every question is a day of round trips. This is what makes the difference.

The minimum we need

• Inner diameter (the bore) and outer diameter, or the bore plus wall thickness
• Length, and where it is measured from if the hose is bent
• The medium — water, coolant, glycol, air, oil, steam
• Working temperature, continuous and peak
• Working pressure, and whether there is vacuum or pulsing
• Quantity for the first order and per year
• Destination — port or address

Everything else we can work out with you. Those seven we cannot.

Which file to send

A 2D drawing

Best for a part that is basically dimensions and a shape. Make sure the bore, wall and length are all on it, and that bend radii are dimensioned rather than scaled off the drawing.

A 3D model (STEP, IGES, X_T)

Best if tooling will be needed. Send the hose as a solid, not just a centreline.

A photo with a ruler

Perfectly acceptable for a first look, and often the fastest way to start. Put a steel rule across the part so we can read the scale, shoot straight on rather than at an angle, and take a second photo of the end so we can see how it attaches.

The old sample by courier

If the part is complex, or the customer’s drawing does not exist, posting the sample is often cheaper than a week of emails. Mark it clearly and tell us what matters about it.

The six things that get missed most often

1. Wall thickness. An outer diameter alone does not define a hose.
2. Bend radius. Two hoses with identical dimensions behave completely differently at different radii.
3. End form. Clamped, beaded, barbed, flanged or fitted — it changes the tool.
4. Temperature, not just medium. “Coolant hose” can mean 90 °C or 150 °C, and those are different compounds.
5. Quantity. One hose and ten thousand hoses are quoted on completely different economics.
6. Whether it is a new part or a copy. Replacing a competitor’s part and developing a new one are different projects.

What happens after you send it

1. We look at the part and come back with either a price or a short list of questions — usually within one working day.
2. If tooling is needed we quote it separately and tell you the sample date.
3. Samples are made and sent for your approval, and to your customer if there is one.
4. Production runs only after the sample is signed off.

If you are not sure whether your information is complete, send it anyway. An incomplete enquiry with the part described honestly is far more useful than a perfect enquiry that never gets sent.

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