The Car Models family example
The commercial description below is the representative description for this family only, transcribed from the official site's representative page for this family. It is a family example, not a site-wide rule, and it must not be read as applying to any other family, because each family's commercial terms are confirmed per family, in the inquiry.
For the car models family, the representative description states a production timeline of 50 days for prototype, 50 days for mold, 30 days for pre-production sample, and 60 days for mass production, as stated on the official site's representative page for that family. For the motorcycle family, the representative description states 25 days for prototype, 30 days for mold, 15 days for color sample, and 30 days for mass production. For the space and airplane family, it states 25 days for prototype, 30 days for mold, 15 days for pre-production sample, and 30 days for mass production. For the cartoon character family, it states 15 days for prototype, 30 days for mold, 15 days for pre-production sample, and 30 days for mass production. Those timelines are family examples, each for its own family, and they are not site-wide rules, because each design's timeline is confirmed per design, in the inquiry.
A buyer who wants another family should not assume its timeline from these examples, because families differ, and because a timeline that fits one family may not fit another, however similar the families appear. Note in particular that the four families' timelines differ at every stage — prototype 50, 25, 25, and 15 days; mold 50, 30, 30, and 30 days; sample 30, 15, 15, and 15 days; mass production 60, 30, 30, and 30 days — so no single timeline can be stated for the site, and any attempt to state one would mislead.
What a timeline counts from, and what it excludes
A timeline must state what it counts from: order, payment, design approval, or mold approval, because a timeline counted from order is not the same as a timeline counted from payment, and a timeline counted from design approval is not the same as a timeline counted from mold approval, and because a buyer who plans on a timeline counted from the wrong start will plan for a delivery that arrives later than expected, with a project delayed, a customer disappointed, and a schedule disrupted.
A timeline must also state what it excludes: shipping, customs, and inspection, because a production timeline that excludes shipping is not a delivery time, and because a buyer who plans on a production timeline as a delivery time will plan for a delivery that arrives later than expected. Ask for the timeline in writing, with its start point, its end point, and its exclusions, because a timeline stated without them is a timeline that cannot be planned on.
What to confirm, in the inquiry
Name the design, the material, the scale, the quantity, and the market. Ask for the production timeline for that design, in writing, with its start point, its end point, and its exclusions: prototype, mold, sample, and mass production, each with its duration and its start. Ask for the minimum order quantity, the payment and shipping terms, the mold ownership terms, the packaging options, and the certificates that apply to your market, by name, with documents attached. Confirm the timeline in writing, before payment.
Before payment, confirm the minimum order quantity, lead time, payment, shipping and mold ownership terms for your order. Certificates are available upon request.