What Investors Should Check in Production Line Offers

Is there a significant price difference between two offers for the same line? Almost always, the reason is the same: scope difference. The seemingly cheap offer turns expensive when filling in the gaps on-site. Here is a pre-signature checklist:

Technical Scope

1. Is the equipment list itemized?

Not just a single line saying "complete line"; request a list specifying brand/model/capacity.

2. Under what conditions is the capacity guaranteed?

"2,000 bottles/hour" for which bottle size, which product? Acceptance Test (SAT) criteria should be documented.

3. Material declaration

Which surfaces are AISI 304, which are 316? Will a certificate be provided?

4. Automation details

What is the PLC brand, HMI language, number of recipes, is remote access available?

5. Who is responsible for auxiliary installations?

Steam, air, water, electricity distribution — mark the items as "by customer"; your real budget is hidden in these lines.

Commercial Scope

6. Delivery terms (Incoterms)

There is as much difference in container freight between EXW and CIF.

7. Is installation and commissioning included?

Supervision or full assembly? Who is responsible for the team's accommodation/transportation?

8. Training

How many days, how many operators, in which language?

9. Warranty conditions

Duration, scope (does it include electronics?), response time.

10. Spare parts

Is there a critical spare parts list and prices for the first year in the offer?

11. Payment plan

Payment linked to milestones (order/FAT/shipment/commissioning) protects both parties.

12. Delivery and delay clause

Production + shipment + installation should be written separately.

Golden Rule

Compare offers not by the price column, but by the scope column. A low price with missing scope is the most expensive line in the project.

Example Scenario: How a "cheap" offer turns expensive

Consider two offers; Offer A is significantly lower than B. When you put their scopes side by side, the table looks like this:

Offer A is EXW (factory delivery): freight, insurance, and customs are your responsibility.
In A, installation is listed as "supervision": installation labor, crane, and scaffolding are your responsibility.
In A, the electrical distribution panel is marked as "by customer".
In A, training is 2 days, while in B it is 10 days; the difference will show in the first month's productivity.
In A, there is no spare parts list; emergency shipping costs will be incurred at the first failure.

When items are added, the two offers often equalize; in fact, A may surpass. The difference is not in price, but in where the risk lies.

What You Need to Prepare Before the Offer

A healthy offer starts with healthy input. Provide the other party with:

Product description and any sample/analysis values
Target capacity (with unit) and shift plan
Packaging samples or technical drawings
Facility layout: m², ceiling height, door dimensions
Existing infrastructure: electrical power, steam, water, air
Target commissioning date

Offers received without providing this information cannot be compared; each manufacturer makes different assumptions.

Make Sure to Write It in the Contract

Everything discussed during the offer stage should be turned into lines in the contract:

Capacity guarantee: which product, which packaging, how many units/hour under which conditions — and how it will be measured in SAT.
Delivery: production, shipment, and commissioning with separate dates; with a reasonable delay compensation clause.
Training: number of days, scope, and language.
Warranty: duration, scope (distinction between electronics/wear parts) and response time for failures.
Spare parts: first-year list and price validity.

Unwritten commitments are those that are forgotten when the project is finished.

Red Flags

Some signals indicate the risk behind a low price early: having only general descriptions instead of brand/model in the equipment list; saying "yes, included" to every request without negotiation (scope probably was never read); avoiding FAT invitations; reluctance to share reference facilities or video/evidence; asking for almost the entire payment plan upfront. If several of these are present, regardless of how attractive the price is, a second technical review is mandatory. Remember: evaluating offers is also an engineering task, and the cost of the wrong machine is always greater than the cost of this evaluation.

How Does the Offer Process Actually Progress?

A healthy offer process does not end with a single email; it is a maturing dialogue. The typical flow consists of four steps. (1) Information sharing: you convey your product, capacity, packaging, and site information — this writing's "what you need to prepare" list is precisely for this moment. (2) Preliminary assessment: the engineering side calculates the capacity, drafts the equipment list, and estimates the investment range; this stage takes days, and most companies do it for free. (3) Technical clarification: sample evaluation, site visit or video call if necessary to close open points; the scope matrix is written at this stage. (4) Binding offer: a document ready for signature with a list at the brand/model level, delivery terms, and payment plan. The total duration is a few weeks, depending on the project's complexity. An offer that claims "everything included, we start tomorrow" deserves the question of which of these steps were skipped.

Method to Align Multiple Offers to the Same Base

Different manufacturers' offers come with different assumptions; align them before comparing. A simple method: create your own scope matrix (equipment items + services + Incoterms + training + spare parts), mark each offer with "included / excluded / uncertain" and write to clarify the uncertainties. After two rounds, you will have two or three truly comparable figures. This two-day task is the insurance for a decision worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is FAT?

Factory Acceptance Test: testing the machine in the manufacturer's factory with your product/conditions before shipment. Request it.

What is SAT, and how is it different from FAT?

Site Acceptance Test: acceptance testing conducted at your site under actual production conditions after installation. The capacity guarantee is primarily verified here; criteria should be written into the contract.

Why is the validity period of the offer important?

Steel and freight prices are variable; the offer validity period and price revision conditions should be documented so that your budget is protected until the order date.

If you want to compare your offers with this list, ProcessTürk engineers will support you with an independent scope assessment. You can also submit your current offer through "Get a Quick Quote."