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Frequently Asked Questions

Manufacturing

Frequently Asked QuestionsWhat is the minimum and maximum gauge part you can manufacture?Perfection Spring & Stamping Corp. has three primary manufacturing departments, all of which have different manufacturing capabilities, and as such difference gages we can accommodate: Punch Press: .0035" to .187", Fourslide: .004" to .093", Coiling: 003" dia. to .280".

What is your standard leadtime? It is difficult to provide a "Standard leadtime" without specific details regarding the particular part, the raw material type, material gage, part finish, and or number of secondary assembly operations that may be required. While the manufacturing leadtime is within our control, some raw materials have extended lead times. The lead-times for raw materials are beyond our control, and dependent upon the steel and wire mills capacity and backlog, we may request extended raw material authorization from our customers to cover larger raw material buys.

What is your on-time delivery record? Our on-time delivery record is tracked, monitored, and communicated as we work to meet a 100% on-time delivery goal. Delivery is affected by our customer's dynamic schedules and ability to provide adequate leadtime. Currently, our on-time delivery record for the last year averages between 98% and 100% based upon an average of 1,100 shipments per month. In many cases, with customer authorization, a safety stock level is maintained to accommodate schedule fluctuations to meet a 100% on-time delivery goal.

How do you control your manufacturing process? Every part we manufacture starts with a complete team feasibility meeting, review of the print, tolerances, and customer specifications. Our team, consisting of sales, manufacturing, engineering, quality, materials and traffic work together to review the specific part requirements and customer expectations to insure full compliance. Our control documentation is created which includes setup sheets, bills of materials, testing requirements, and packaging specifications. Customers are encouraged to attend our kickoff meetings to add any insight, experience, or knowledge which might be useful.

What material types can you work with? We work with a variety of ferrous and non-ferrous materials in both flat stock and wire. We are able to order, certify, and work with most ASTM, JIN, and DIN specs. as required by our customers custom requirements. These include, to name a few: Cold and hot rolled and stainless Steel, Aluminum, galvanized, tin plate, brass, phosphorous bronze, beryllium copper, nickel, music wire, hard drawn, chrome vanadium, basic, and oil tempered. These come in a variety of flat stock or wire, with various edge conditions, tempers or hardness as required.

For a complete list of finishing services, please open the following PDFRaw Material Types (PDF - 228KB).

Can you use our raw material? Yes. In some cases customers provide us with specialized material, or material supplied due to the benefits of their high volume discount. We are happy to provide a quote "Less material". Final piece part yield can be slightly less than expected due to standard setup scrap, and coil change loss, and development as part of the standard manufacturing process, so we request an allowance of 5% overage when calculating material requirements.

What is the leadtime on raw material? Leadtime varies based upon economic conditions, backlog at the steel and wire mills, and tolerances of the required materials (i.e. commercial or non-standard size or type), etc. When possible we will work with our customers to change prints to the most common raw material gages so that general availability is more common and lead-times become less of a factor. For special order items we will request extended raw material authorization as some time-times for materials can exceed 14-16 weeks at time.

Are there minimum raw material buys? Yes, in some cases. For non-standard gages, finishes, or small order sizes minimum charges or weight can apply. This usually will affect smaller order sizes for prototypes or short runs and will be quoted accordingly. When this occurs we will notify the customer and offer the minimum economic order quantity to fully consume the minimum buy. Minimum buys also come into affect for "Service Parts" after regular production has ceased. In these cases, leadtime and costs will be communicated to the customer with options to adjust the service quantity to the best economic order quantity.

Can you guarantee rust free parts? Unplated parts are subject to oxidation. A light oil will be added after heat treat to reduce the effect of oxidation, but may not eliminate it. In order to guarantee "Rust Free" pasts a finishing operation such as painting or plating is required. Special packaging considerations can be quoted separately upon request for product that must be bare to reduce the effects of oxidation. For example, parts can be oiled and packed in plastic bags, vacuum sealed, or packing can include desiccant or VPI paper. These methods will add to the protection of the parts, but again, may not eliminate all surface oxidation.

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Assembly and Finishing Services

What assembly services do you offer? A variety of secondary assembly services including resist welding, tapping, fastener installation, plastics assembly, grommets, the deburring, labeling, time-saving, mechanical fastening, special packing, tape and reel, etc.

What finishing services do you offer? Perfection offers an extensive amount of finishing services to the parts it manufactures. Generally, the most common are plating and heat treating. We do provide a wide range of secondary finishing services.

For a complete list of finishing services, please open the following PDFFinishing Services Offered (PDF - 192KB).

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Engineering, Design and Project Management

Can you accept my drawings electronically, and in which format? Yes. Our preferred files are DXF, IGES, an STP files, however, we can convert most CAD files for use.

How do you track and monitor projects? We have a fully integrated custom project management system and use "MS Project". We are able to track and monitor projects from the initial quote, through tooling development, quality submission, and on to final part shipment and approval. We update our Advanced Planning Quality Progress (APQP) report weekly for each project. For those customers that request a copy, they can monitor our progress for any open action items and the status.

Do you extend your internal training programs to your customers? Yes we do! Please watch for flyers detailing our "Free Technical Seminar Series" or contact sales for a schedule of upcoming seminars being offered.

Can you provide special packing? Yes we can. We will customize packaging to fit any specific design or engineering standard to insure the product is presented at the point of use in a manner acceptable for assembly. This includes tape & Reel packaging, cell packing, vacuum pack, "Candy tray" packing, or any other packaging specified. We also work with "Returnable packaging" programs we required for many of our customers.

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Tooling

Can you accept die or tooling transfers? Yes. We can handle standard transfers, or for more urgent requirements we have an "Accelerated Tool Transfer" program to assist when timing is critical. Tooling can be pre-examined at a 3rd party location to insure our ability to absorb and provide an accurate quote prior to the transfer. For more information, contact our sales department for a copy of our "ATTP" program (Accelerated Tool Transfer Process).

Do you make your own tooling? Perfection Spring & Stamping Corp. has five departments which use tooling; punch press, four-slide, coiling, assembly and prototype/short run. Depending on the particular type of tooling and leadtime provided, we will determine whether we manufacture it internally, or outsource it to one of our certified partners.

Will there be additional tooling charges after the primary tool is built? There are no additional tooling charges for normal production once the tooling is completed. The exception would be for any unanticipated engineering changes requested from the customer. Tooling however does have an engineered "Die Life". If anticipated volumes are greater than originally communicated, or if the life of the program exceeds the expected life provided at time of quote, tooling may have to be refurbished or replaced. In these cases the customer will be notified and adequate time to budget properly. During the normal course of business all normal and scheduled maintenance of the tool, such as perishable tool punches, sharpening, etc. are covered within the negotiated piece price and will not be billed separately.

What is the lead time for tooling? Tooling lead time varies based upon the particular part design, complexity, and tooling type. Generally, progressive die lead-times for progressive dies run 6-15 weeks. Four-slide tooling runs from 5-10 weeks. Coiling tooling lead time generally runs less than 4 weeks. Of course, holiday periods in both North American and Asia can also affect the lead-time.

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Quality Assurance

What type of quality systems you have in place? We have total management quality systems in place, certified by independent third party auditors. Our system encompasses not only the production areas, but also that of the support departments including documented procedures for administration, maintenance, sales, human resources, scheduling, etc. We are certified to ISO 9001: 2008, TS-16949, QSR FDA Compliant, etc. For further information, please contact the sales department.

What PPM (parts-per-million) quality level can I expect? Our goal is always zero defects with a "Zero" PPM Level. Depending upon your particular part, design, tolerances and the processing limitations (i.e. batch plating, heat treating, etc), the actual PPM many be higher than zero. In many cases secondary sorts, manual and automated, can be included in the standard routing to meet targeted PPM requirements for a particular application.

What is the procedure should a quality concern arise? Our Quality Department will be happy to assist you with any quality concerns you may have after receipt of product. A formal "8D Quality Process" will be initiated to document your concern. After an initial investigation is completed, we will work with you to resolve the issue and insure the problem does not reoccur through formal corrective actions and adjustments to our quality control plans. If required, a "Return Material Authorization" will be provided should product have to be returned to us.

What warranty do you offer? We offer a limited warranty for a period of 12 months that the parts ship and warrant that such parts will conform to the print specifications. For a complete review, our quote will include a web address for our "Terms and Conditions of Sale" which include the detailed limited warranty. If you would like to review this in-advance of receiving a quote, please contact our sales department.

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Scheduling, Orders, Customer Service

How long is the quote price valid? Quoted prices are valid for 30 days from time of quote, unless otherwise specified. Due to market conditions of raw material and other outside services, the quoted prices are subject to change based upon conditions beyond our control. When a purchase order is issued a formal "Contract Review" process will begin to come to an agreement for future pricing for both short (Spot Buy) and long term blanket order agreements.

What is your minimum order size? We do not have the minimum order size by "Quantity of parts"; however we have a $400 minimum invoice charge per shipment. Price options will be provided for various order sizes and release quantities for our customers to determine the most attractive economic order quantity.

Does the selling price reflect a delivered price? In most cases the selling price does not include the freight. Unless otherwise specified the quoted price is based upon freight "F.O.B., Our dock". We will ship via our customer's specified carriers, or recommend the most economic method. We ship by land, air, rail, and sea and are happy to discuss the various options available.

Is the quoted price firm for any volume shipped? At the time of the quote, price options will be provided based upon "Minimum run & ship quantities" and not based upon the EAU or estimated annual usage as provided by the customer. Price may be adjusted in the event that the customer's actual releases & orders do not meet the quoted "Minimum Run Quantity". The price quoted is not valid for future "Service Orders" or requests for less than the "Minimum Run Quantity". In these cases, the part will be requoted at time of request, based upon actual quantity and associated outside costs at the time of request (i.e. raw material, outside processing, freight, etc.). The price quoted does not include additional applicable surcharges note on the quote. Additional documentation such as raw material certifications, SPC quality data, or other such custom report requests is not included in the quoted price. Any quote that includes "Freight costs" are subject to a quarterly review and adjustment based upon actual freight costs and Buyer acknowledges prices will be adjusted accordingly or included and accepted as a "Surcharge".

As actual volumes may vary once production starts, pricing may change if the volume delta is great enough affect the purchased costs of raw material, freight, or outside process costs and services. Long term price agreements, or blanket contracts are available, and will be reviewed on an individual basis for long term price agreements.

How are fluctuations in raw material costs handled? The quoted piece price is based upon market costs of purchased materials/services (i.e. raw material, components, plating, freight, etc...) as of the quote date. We reserve the right to reset the base price upon actual market costs at time of production start. A monthly surcharge will be billed separately if market costs exceed quoted base costs of purchased materials. In some cases when mutually agreed upon, quarterly pricing or spot buy pricing may be available in lieu of monthly surcharges.

What are your standard Terms and Conditions of Sale? Our offer of sale is based upon our "Terms & Conditions of Sale".  Our quotes will include a web address to direct you to the current version located on the internet for your review.  Should you require a copy prior to receiving your quote, please contact a representative in the Sales Department, or request a copy at 411@pss-corp.com

Will you split shipments up to allow for larger run quantities? Yes. If adequate authorization is provided to cover larger production runs, we will run larger batches and inventory a portion of the production run for up to 45 days. Firm ship dates must be provided to cover the additional inventory being held for future ship dates. Please contact our sales department for further information.

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Shipping, Receiving, & Packaging

What are the hours for the Shipping and Receiving Department? Receiving Hours: 7:00 am - 2:00 pm (M-F). Shipping Hours 9:00 am - 6 pm (M-F) or by special appointment.

Are you familiar with customs paperwork, declarations, etc.? Yes. Approximately 30% of our shipments are exported outside the United States. As such, we are able to process all paperwork, documentation, declarations, manufacturing origins, etc. to insure smooth international shipments. We also work with specified freight forwarding companies or brokers as directed by our customers.

Can you provide advance shipping notices (ASNs)? Yes. We can provide electronic advance shipping notices upon requested via e-mail or Internet based systems. Automated tracking for shipments can also be setup, if offered by the carrier, such as UPS, Fed X, and L-T-L freight companies if the services are available. For specific shipments we can also forward you the "Tracking number" or "PRO number", upon request.

Do you have the ability to mark each particular part with an I.D. or Tracking Code? Depending on the part size and type, we do have the ability to mark parts with an i.d., date code, or part number. This is usually completed with a "Stamp" placed in the primary die or tool. Some parts are also marked with a secondary label applied at the appropriate sequence in the manufacturing operation (i.e. after plating). "Laser marking" parts are also possible with logos, barcodes, or any number of specific i.d. requirements. Please contact our sales department for more information on this additional operation and associated fees.

Do you have the ability to supply custom bar-coding? Yes. We can conform to most AIG standards and are able to create custom barcodes for most requirements. Bar-coding can include part number, lot date, serialization, raw material tracking, manufacturing dates, etc. Please contact our sales department should you have a unique requirement.

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