How Custom Glass Is Priced, Made and Shipped: From RFQ to Crate

Step One: The RFQ That Gets an Accurate Answer

Custom glass pricing is driven by five variables: glass type and build-up, dimensions (sheet yield — how many panels fit a stock sheet), processing (holes, notches, edges, tempering), coatings or printing, and volume. A request-for-quote that states all five gets a firm price in 24 hours; a vague one gets a guess. The fastest format: a drawing or spreadsheet with quantities, sizes, glass build-up, edge treatment and destination port.

What Moves the Price (and What Doesn't)

• Sheet yield dominates: a panel sized to cut 6-per-sheet instead of 4 can drop unit cost 30% — worth asking before locking dimensions.
• Processing adds real steps: each hole, notch and special edge is machine time and quality-check time.
• Tempering, lamination and IGU assembly each carry fixed line costs — small quantities price higher per m², not because glass is dearer but because setup is.
• Volume discounts step at crate-fill quantities, because freight, not production, becomes the limiter.
• Brand-name glass (e.g. imported coatings) costs more than equal-performance generic — performance data, not labels, should decide.
• Drawing format matters more than buyers expect: a clean DXF or dimensioned PDF prices faster and cuts fewer arguments than a photo of a napkin sketch with numbers beside it.

Production: What Happens on the Line

Cutting from stock sheets, then edgework (polish/bevel), CNC holes and notches, and any printing or coating — all before heat treatment. Tempering or bending comes next, then lamination and IGU assembly, then inspection and heat-soak where specified. Each stage has its own tolerance check; panels that fail any stage are recycled, not shipped. Our capabilities page details the equipment behind each step.

Quality Checks That Protect the Project

• Dimensional inspection per batch, with reports available per shipment.
• Tempering verification (fragmentation tests) and heat-soak certificates where ordered.
• Print and coating color checks against approved samples.
• Cross-section photos for IGU builds (spacer, seals, gas fill) on request.
• Physical samples before production for any new build-up — cheap insurance on large orders.

Export Packing: Where Good Glass Goes to Die (If Done Wrong)

More glass dies in transit than in production. Panels ship in plywood or MDF crates with foam interleaves, V-groove or vertical racking per panel type, corner protection, and desiccant for ocean freight. Crates are engineered per panel family — tabletops rack differently from curtain wall units — and every crate is marked with contents and orientation. Freight terms are flexible: FOB, CIF or door delivery via our forwarders, or your own.

The Honest Timeline

Standard processed panels: 10-15 days after drawing approval. Complex laminated or IGU builds: 15-25 days. Custom molds (curved glass) or first-time builds with sampling: add 1-2 weeks. Ocean transit varies by destination — we quote production and transit separately so project schedules stay honest. Start a conversation via our contact page and you'll have a firm, itemized quote — not a range — within one working day.

The RFQ Field Checklist, With Examples

Every field below either shortens the quotation or prevents a change order. Copy it into your email template once and every future RFQ prices faster — and flag which fields are flexible, because that is where the factory can trade cost for you.

Incoterms Without the Jargon Headache

Freight terms decide who books what and where risk transfers — worth two minutes of clarity before the order, not after the container sails. They also interact with packing: a door-delivery shipment rides more handling steps than an EXW collection, so crates are engineered accordingly.

• EXW: you collect from the factory; we hand over packed crates at the gate. Cheapest, all logistics on you.
• FOB: we deliver to the vessel at the named Chinese port; ocean freight and insurance are yours.
• CIF: we book freight and marine insurance to your port; risk still transfers on loading, so document condition at discharge.
• Door delivery: our forwarders handle the chain to your warehouse — simplest for first-time importers, priced accordingly.
• Insurance under CIF is typically 110% of invoice value; check the certificate matches the cargo before sailing.

Tolerances: What 'Good' Means in Numbers

Expectations should be numeric before production starts. Standard cutting tolerance on CNC-processed panels is around ±1 mm; thickness follows float glass production tolerances per EN 572-2; tempered panels show roller wave typically within 0.2-0.3 mm per 300 mm per EN 12150 practice; hole diameters run +0.5/−0 mm with positions ±1 mm. Coated glass adds color-position tolerances across batches — one more reason spares belong in the original production run rather than in a later reorder. Put the tolerance table into the drawing set and most disputes evaporate before they exist; the capabilities page lists what each line measures.

Receiving: Ten Minutes That Protect the Whole Order

1. Count crates against the packing list before signing anything.
2. Photograph every crate, especially crush points, before opening.
3. Open one crate per position on the manifest first — spot-check before unloading everything.
4. Check panels against the packing photos we provide pre-shipment.
5. Document any damage with photos of the crate and panel together, same frame if possible.
6. File claims within the insurance window — transit claims age badly, and so does their paperwork.