Buying guide
Know what you are buying, and what arrives on site
Two product lines, two ways of quoting, and one rule behind both: we quote from four things and nothing else. Read this before you send a project list, so the quotation that comes back is the one you planned for.
A buying guide, not a specification - your unit's specification is confirmed in writing on your quotation
01Start with your project
Four answers stand between you and a price
What the units are for and how many, where they are going, when they have to be there, and what standard they have to meet. Each one decides a different part of the cost, so each one left blank is a question we would have to send back before we could quote. Pick the answers you already have; the note under each answer tells you what it decides.
Answer the four groups opposite. Each answer tells you what it decides, and the ones still open are what we would have to ask you before a price could go on paper.
02Inside the structure
Six parts, and the one that gets cut first
Cost is taken out of this trade in places a buyer cannot see: thinner steel, fewer welds, uneven insulation, fittings with no standard behind them. Point at a part to read what it is and what to ask for in writing. This is an illustration of how a unit is put together, not a drawing of yours.
- 01Base frame
- The frame the whole unit stands on. Steel grade and corrosion protection are the first two places a price gets lowered, and neither is visible once the unit is on the ground.
- 02Corner posts and columns
- These carry the lifting and stacking loads. Weld density here is the difference between a frame that lasts the project and one that does not, and it is hidden under the lining.
- 03Wall panel
- Skin, core and thickness together decide insulation, weight and fire performance. Uneven core fill is the most common defect found on arrival.
- 04Roof and roof joints
- Where leaks begin. Ask how the joints are sealed and what the roof is finished with, not only what the wall panel is.
- 05Doors and windows
- The first items swapped for cheaper non-standard fittings. Ask for the hardware, the glazing and the seals in writing.
- 06Electrics and plumbing
- Loose terminations, leaking joints and poor earthing are the usual findings at inspection. Ask which parts are installed in the factory and which on site.
Every unit is inspected before it is loaded and the photographs, video and test reports are kept against the order. Ask for your unit's specification in writing before you pay a deposit, not after.
03How it reaches your site
From a project list to a unit standing on site
The order of events is much the same for both product lines, but the work behind them is not. Choose a line and step through it.
Container accommodation
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01
Quotation from your list
The four answers go into the module price list and a written quotation comes back with the price, the trade terms, the lead time and the documents we can issue.
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02
Deposit and production slot
A deposit locks the order and a slot in the factory's production. You get the lead time in writing, taken from the factory's schedule with a buffer added.
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03
Inspection before shipment
We inspect at the factory, ourselves or through a third-party inspector: structure, water, insulation, electrics and plumbing. Photographs, video and the factory's test reports are filed against your order.
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04
Packed and loaded
Packing follows one standard for every order, and loading is checked against the same standard. The container is filmed as it closes.
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05
Shipped, then assembled on site
Balance paid, container shipped to your port under CIF and cleared by you at destination. The units arrive as modules and your team assembles them from the drawings.
Capsule cabins
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01
Base shell and options
Choose one of the factory's base shells and the options you want: fit-out, flooring, furniture, design, solar. Anything outside the list goes to the factory to be confirmed before it is priced.
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02
Quotation
Shell, options, freight and documents in one written quotation. Shape and size are fixed by the shell, so this is not a made-to-measure build.
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03
Deposit and build
A deposit locks the build. The factory makes the shell and completes the interior before the unit is finished as one piece.
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04
Inspection before shipment
Checked before it is loaded: structure, water, electrics, fit-out, and the internal finish you specified.
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05
Shipped, then set on site
Shipped whole in a container, CIF to your port. On arrival it is lifted into position and connected. A capsule is a unit, not a construction project.
04The panel, and what is inside it
The same wall can be four different products
A wall panel is two skins and a core. The core is the biggest single lever on price, weight and fire performance, and it is the part a quotation most often leaves unsaid.
- 01EPS
- Moulded polystyrene. The cheapest core and the commonest one in work-camp units, with the lowest fire performance of the four. It is also where the lowest prices come from.
- 02PUR
- Polyurethane. Better insulation for the same thickness, so a thinner panel does the same job. Costs more than EPS.
- 03PIR
- Polyisocyanurate. Insulation close to PUR with better behaviour in a fire, which is why it is the usual answer when a fire report has to be presented.
- 04Mineral wool
- Non-combustible core, the heaviest and the most expensive of the four. Used where the specification demands a non-combustible wall rather than a fire-rated one.
Which cores the factory supplies, and the price step between them, is confirmed for your project. This explains the choice; it is not a stock list.
05What is in the quotation
Where our part stops
Both sides of this line are worth reading before you order, because the cost of a project is never only the unit.
Ours to arrange
- Price and trade terms, CIF by default: we book the shipping and take it as far as your port of discharge.
- A written lead time taken from the factory's schedule, with a buffer added, stated in the quotation.
- The documents that can be issued for your destination, named on the quotation rather than described in general.
- Packing to one standard, and the loading recorded.
- Inspection before shipment, with photographs, video and the factory's test reports kept on file.
- Drawings and instructions for assembling the units on site.
Yours to arrange
- Import clearance and delivery inland from the port, unless you are an individual buyer taking a DDP quotation, where clearance and delivery are arranged for you and charged per shipment.
- Offloading and assembly on site, by your own team or one you appoint.
- Whatever the site needs before the container arrives: access, ground and lifting. Ask us what your units need, and ask before loading rather than after.
Individual buyers are quoted DDP only. Everywhere else the terms are CIF, which is why the split above matters.
06Before it is loaded
What is checked, and what it is checked against
Most disputes in this trade are about what was or was not inside the container. These three steps are what makes that answerable.
Inspection at the factory
By us or by a third-party inspector, against the same list every time: structure, water, insulation, electrics and plumbing. Photographs, video and the factory's test reports are filed against the order, not against the shipment in general.
Packing and loading
One packing standard for every order: the parts list, how each part is protected, and the order it goes in. Loading is checked against that standard and the container is filmed as it closes.
Documents, by destination
Saudi Arabia needs certification per shipment, complete before loading. The UK has two levels of standard and the level decides the specification. Europe is dealt with part by part, because there is no single approval for a whole building. The quotation says which of these we can issue.
07The questions we are asked
Straight answers
Eight questions that come back on almost every enquiry. Where the answer depends on your project, it says so rather than inventing a number.
What decides the price?
Four things: use and quantity, destination and delivery point, target date, and the standard required. Container accommodation is priced from a module list, where each type of room carries its own price. Capsules are priced from the base shell plus the options you choose.
How long until it ships?
Every order gets its own written lead time, taken from the factory's schedule at the time of ordering and with a buffer added; there is no single number that fits all orders. As a planning figure, the sea passage is roughly two to three weeks to the Saudi ports and three to four weeks to the UK, and the Saudi lane also needs its certification finished before loading.
What is your minimum order?
One full container is the normal minimum. Below that a container is shared with other cargo, and freight spread across a few units becomes a large part of the unit price, so we quote it separately rather than pretend it is not there.
Can a capsule be built to my own design?
No. A capsule is chosen from the factory's base shells and changed inside an options list: fit-out, flooring, furniture, design, solar. Size and shape are set by the shell. Anything outside the list goes to the factory to be confirmed before it is priced.
Who clears customs?
Under CIF, you do, at the port of discharge. Individual buyers are the exception: they are quoted DDP only, with a clearance and delivery agent arranged on their behalf and charged per shipment.
How do I pay?
A deposit to lock the order and the balance before shipment, by transfer. The proportion is written in the quotation. Custom-built units cannot be sold to anyone else, which is what the deposit is for.
What if parts are missing or arrive damaged?
Photograph what arrived, within the window written into your contract. Missing parts are re-sent, and damage is judged against those photographs and the inspection record for your order, which is part of why the inspection and the loading are filmed.
Are you the factory?
No. We are an independent export company. The contract, the invoice and the shipping documents are in our name. We buy from one factory in Guangdong, and we answer for the specification we quote.
08Build your project brief
The four answers, written down
Fill these lines and what appears beside them is the enquiry we need to quote from. Nothing leaves your browser: copy it into an email or a message, or download it and attach it.
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Send the brief, get the numbers
Send the four answers and we reply with a quotation written against your list: price, trade terms, lead time, and the documents we can issue for your destination.