Buy Locally or Import a Fiber Laser Cutter?

Not all the company is fit for importing a fiber laser cutting machine aboard because importing needs time, efforts, and a few experiences on both importing and fiber laser machinery. Before making a decision, it’s better to know the advantages and drawbacks. Do you want to see if you are fit? Let’s check some ideas for this article.

Local or regional-based laser company?

Buying custom trends worldwide, metal cutting equipment for metal plate and tube also is no exception. So you will face the following purchase method when you have an idea to have your fiber laser cutter. 

• Import a fiber laser cutter?
• Or buy locally

How to choose? There are at leaast 5 points that need to get your attention.

Price

• Firstly need to check if your budget is enough to buy locally? If yes, fortunately, you will have two choices.
• Secondly, you need to consider the occupied time of money. After you make the first payment on the deposit, you need to count time and wait. Exact investment time means starting from the date of paying advancement to have the metal cutting equipment running in the factory.
• The costs of importing a fiber laser cutter general include as below.
  • Machine costs
  • Freight and port charges, Sea/Train/Truck freight
  • Customs clearance and taxes
  • Installation and training (you may need to pay accommodation costs and business travel flights to the service team)
  • Service and handling fee

Chinese brands have the lowest machine price compared with worldwide brands based on the same configurations， resulting from a mature and perfect supply chain. 

When buying lasers in China, you can buy exceptionally reliable fiber laser cutting machines and easily customize your device. 

Time and Efforts

Time is money, and if you are rich in that and interested in importing fiber laser machinery, you could have a try.

Time

• Production procedure. 30~45 working days normally, and there will 15 working days for a stock machine. If you need a complicated device or customize made configurations, then the production time needs to check with your supplier.

• Booking and shipping. You’d better check this before ordering a machine from China. Like shipping to New York port, need about 35 days for reference.

• Customs clearance. An experienced importing company or forwarder usually need 5-7 working days.

Efforts

Purchase Procedures: If you are lucky to work with an expert in exporting and a fiber laser cutter, you will quickly complete this procurement project. How to import a fiber laser cutter from China? from finding a reliable supplier to installing the machine in your factory, you need to attend.

Placement and installation requirements of the laser cutting machine: If the layout plan of your factory and the layout of the fiber laser machine fit well? as for the last one, ask for help from a supplier before confirming a machine model.

5 days installation and training. Need your engineers to learn all the manuals and instructions provided by your supplier to make sure the installation proceeds smoothly.

Acceptance: pick up the metal cutting equipment from the port and loading successfully.

Communication:

• Email is the most efficient way when facing an essential issue needed to handle. Of course, I recommend discussing finding a solution by face to face or video meeting and sending an email to make a summary.
• By Call
• SNS, Social Networking Services like WhatsApp/Wechat/Skype/Facebook…… Which can quickly solve the problem.
• Recording and sending videos, you could check and record the machine configurations before shipping by yourself.
• Keep learning

The experienced sales manager will guide you and save a lot on this procedure. 

For a starter, If you need a running fiber laser cutter in your factory within 1-2 months, I advise buying locally. The procurement plan of 3-5 months is very reasonable because this period can entirely solve any emergencies such as waiting for full booking and customs clearance.

As a professional importer, you need to verify the factory production time and ensure timely delivery. A small reminder, there is no harm in leaving a little more buffer time for yourself.

After-sales service

Service is an essential factor when considering importing or buy locally. You may have to check with your supplier on the following points and find the right supplier for you.

• Warranty
  • Warranty period
  • You may need to ask for a Warranty Policy from your potential supplier.
• Ongoing service and technical support.
  • Future parts replacement
  • Easy to find?
  • From agents?
  • keeping a bank of spares on hand is useful 
• Trouble-shooting
  • Who will provide this service? Supplier, or local laser companies, or together?

If the supplier is experienced abnormal maintenance? How many years do they have? Once you get a positive reply then it’s time to go ahead.

Features and Quality

Make sure you will have a reliable fiber laser machine for metal cutting in your factory. You have to be wise in choosing a model with acceptable configurations and ask for advice.

Acceptable Configurations

• Quality
• Functions
• Configurations

We won’t write too much about this article’s quality because this is a vast topic.

Software

• Does it have your local language? 
• Is it easy to use? Most China suppliers use Cypcut software and also provide nesting software as an option. The price/performance ratio is not bad.

Quality of parts 

• Machine parts brands and models affect the quality and the price. Ensure the machine parts are with top brands for the fiber laser industry because this will avoid the hidden cost of maintenance afterward.
• Is your factory environment good enough for a fiber laser cutter by temperature, humidity, and voltage? Need to check if you need options like an air conditioner for laser source and chiller, a voltage regulator to make sure laser source in a stable production condition, fume filter to improve the living environment of employees, and all protective cover with European standard……

Installation and training

Need to check with the supplier, who will provide this? How many days does it need?

• What does it include?
• Each supplier has its policy. You need to check with them in detail and make sure it is in the price offer and contract.
• How could you choose a reliable supplier?

The core solution is to find an expert of local fiber laser machinery companies or an expert supplier on exporting fiber laser cutter.

Try to find an expert. It would help if you asked the following questions.

1. Have they exported a laser cutter to your market before?
2. Could they give you some successful user projects for our reference?
3. What’s a door to door price? So you can compare the price with your local supplier. How much can the supplier save?
4. If they could offer you some consumable parts when they sell the machine?
5. How can they help you with troubleshooting?
6. Do they have after-sale service and a warranty like a three-year quality policy?

The most important is that you should tell them you will visit their factory when everything is OK. What’s the attitude towards this?

If you need more advice or know more information in China Market, welcome to contact me. Finally hope you have a pleasant trip on your purchase experience and welcome to share your story. Your experience is potentially valuable for beginners.