For most of our projects, we do not really have a strict MOQ (Minimum Order Quantity). There is no magic number where we suddenly say yes or no. You can order one piece, or you can order ten thousand pieces. Either way, we will make them for you.
Now, here is the part that does matter. The quantity you order affects the price. That is probably not a surprise. Making gears and shafts involves some upfront work – setting up the machine, getting the tools ready, programming the CNC, and running the first test pieces. That setup cost is pretty much the same whether you are making one gear or a thousand. So when you order a small quantity, that setup cost gets spread over just a few parts, which means the price per piece is higher. When you order a larger quantity, the setup cost gets spread over many parts, and the price per piece goes down.
So what does that look like in real numbers? For a prototype or a single piece, you will pay more per part than someone ordering five hundred pieces. That is just how manufacturing works. But we are not trying to punish small orders. We understand that sometimes you just need one part to test a design, or you need a small batch for a repair job. That is fine with us. We will quote you a fair price for whatever quantity you need, and you can decide if it works for your budget.
Here is another thing worth knowing. For some specific projects, there might be a minimum if the material is hard to find or if the tooling is expensive. Let us give you an example. If you need a gear made from a very unusual alloy steel that we have to specially order from a mill, that mill might have a minimum purchase quantity. Or if your gear requires a custom cutting tool that costs a few thousand dollars to make, we would need to make enough parts to cover that tool cost. But those cases are not the norm. For regular materials and regular splines or gear teeth, there is no minimum.
For prototypes and samples, we are very flexible. One piece is fine. We can make it from your drawing or even from a sample you send us. That way you can test the fit and performance before you decide on a larger order. Many of our customers start that way – one or two pieces first, then fifty, then a few hundred. That is a smart way to work, and we support it fully.
For production runs, any quantity works. If you need fifty pieces, we will run fifty. If you need two thousand, we will run two thousand. If you need five hundred this month and another five hundred next month, that is fine too. We do not lock you into a big order just to get a good price. We tell you the price per piece for your quantity, and you decide what makes sense.
So the short version is – do not worry about MOQ. Tell us how many you need, and we will give you a fair price. Small orders are welcome. Large orders get better per piece pricing. But either way, we will make your parts.