From which date is the lead time on a quotation typically counted?

During the inquiry stage, the factory has not yet received complete drawings, material specifications, batch quantities, or inspection criteria, so it can only provide an "estimated lead time," which will be revised as technical data is completed. The quotation reply date is also not suitable as a start point, because at that stage the two parties may still have differences on material, surface treatment, tolerances, and packaging methods, and the factory has not yet committed production capacity. The true start point is when the buyer issues a purchase order (PO) based on the factory-confirmed quotation, and the drawing version, material specifications, inspection standards, and delivery address are all frozen. For buyers, understanding this difference can help avoid discovering after signing that "the lead time is two weeks later than expected," because those two weeks are often spent on technical data exchanges and material preparation, not on factory scheduling delays. Before receiving a formal order, Yuan Shun Li will use the estimated lead time replied by email as a reference, but the actual committed lead time is always written in the remarks column of the quotation, and the count starts from the order confirmation date.

Before the lead time officially starts, the buyer and the factory must first reach agreement on several technical data items; otherwise, the factory cannot proceed with material preparation and scheduling. First is the drawing version: the 2D and 3D drawings must be the same version, with complete tolerances, geometric dimensioning and tolerancing (GD&T), surface roughness, and special machining symbols. Second is material and material specifications: whether a specific alloy grade is specified, whether a material certificate (Mill Certificate) is required, and whether a designated supplier is needed. Third is surface treatment and heat treatment: whether it is outsourced to the factory or to a buyer-designated subcontractor, which directly affects the process arrangement. Fourth is inspection criteria and packaging methods: whether full inspection, first article inspection report (FA Report), pre-shipment measurement data are required, and whether rust-proof packaging, vacuum packaging, or individual packaging is needed. After receiving the above data, Yuan Shun Li will have the sales and quality assurance departments jointly confirm the completeness of the data, and will note the "data confirmation date" and "estimated start date" on the quotation. The count officially starts only after both parties confirm by email.

When issuing a request for quotation (RFQ), the buyer should proactively specify several key conditions to avoid later disputes. First, state the method for determining the delivery start date, for example, 'counted from the date we receive your official PO' or 'counted from the date technical information is confirmed by both parties.' Second, state the definition of working days, for example, 'working days exclude weekends and Taiwanese public holidays.' Third, state the material supply method, for example, 'material will be provided by us and is expected to arrive on [date]' or 'material will be purchased by you; please list material costs and preparation days separately in the quotation.' Fourth, state the handling of drawing changes, for example, 'if we change the drawing after order confirmation, the delivery date will be recalculated.' When Yuan Shun Li receives an RFQ with these conditions, it replies to each item on the quotation and asks the buyer to reconfirm when placing the order, to avoid disputes arising from different interpretations.

The most common consequence of an incorrect delivery start-date determination is a gap between the buyer's expected delivery date and the factory's committed delivery date, leading to disputes over expediting, penalties, or order cancellation. There are three common scenarios: first, the buyer counts from the RFQ date while the factory counts from the order confirmation date, and the difference in perception can be as long as 2 to 4 weeks. Second, the buyer does not provide material, and the factory counts from the material arrival date, but the buyer assumes the factory will purchase the material, so the material order is delayed. Third, the drawing is changed after order confirmation, and the factory recalculates the delivery date, but the buyer assumes the change is only a minor adjustment. To avoid these disputes, Yuan Shun Li clearly states the start-date determination method and the date of technical information confirmation on the quotation, and asks the buyer to sign and confirm before placing the order. This approach allows both parties to discuss delivery dates on the same basis, rather than each interpreting them differently.