FAQs
Quick answers about custom plastic injection molding at Lyetek. If your question is not here, send it through the contact page — an engineer will reply.
Quotation
What do you need to provide a quote?
A 3D file (STEP or IGES) plus a 2D drawing if you have one. Tell us the material, surface finish, colour, estimated annual volume and your target price if you have one. We reply with a DFM review, a tooling price and a piece price.
Are tooling and piece prices quoted separately?
Yes. Tooling is a one-time cost and the piece price depends on material, cycle time and volume. Quoting them separately keeps both sides honest and makes future volume changes easy to negotiate.
Who owns the mold?
You do, once the tooling invoice is paid. Your mold runs only for your orders, is maintained free of charge during normal production, and can be shipped to you or another molder at any time.
Sampling & production
How long does tooling take?
Sampling takes about 21 days from design freeze, and production runs ship about 21–25 days after the order is confirmed. Complex tools can take longer, and we confirm the exact date in writing before cutting steel. Deep ribs, mirror finishes or complex unscrewing mechanisms add time. We confirm the exact date in writing before cutting steel.
What are T1 samples and what comes with them?
T1 is the first shot from the new mold. You receive samples together with a dimensional report and an appearance check, so your team can approve against the drawing before mass production starts.
What is your MOQ?
Tooling is invoiced in three instalments (50% / 40% / 10%) tied to the project milestones. Production runs start from about 3,000 pieces; the practical MOQ depends on part size, cavity count and material and is stated in the quotation.
Materials & quality
Which materials can you mold?
PP, ABS, PC, PC/ABS, PA6/PA66 (with glass fibre), PBT, POM, PMMA, TPE/TPU, plus food-contact and medical-grade resins. If your material is unusual, send the datasheet and we will confirm processability.
What tolerances can you hold?
Standard production tolerances follow DIN 16901 / SPI guidelines. We have held 0.02 mm parallelism on precision parts and 0.01 mm on insert-molded metal-plastic components. Critical dimensions are measured on the CMM and documented.
Do you sign NDAs?
Yes, before any drawing is exchanged if you wish. We do not publish customer parts, brands or project details, and samples or photos of your parts never appear anywhere without your written permission.
Payment & shipping
What are your payment terms?
Tooling is invoiced in three instalments: 50% on order, 40% before trial and the final 10% on sample approval. Production orders are settled by T/T; the balance terms are confirmed in the quotation.
How do you ship?
Your forwarder or ours. We pack for sea, air or express, and prepare full export documents including packing list, commercial invoice and bill of lading.