The metal import
procurement checklist.

Half the “exporters” in a search result are trading houses. These six checks tell you who actually owns a factory.

• Ask for the works address and verify it on a satellite map — a maker has a plant, not just an office.
• Request the Material Test Certificate for their last order of the exact product you're buying.
• Check the ISO 9001:2015 certificate number against the certifying body's public registry.
• Ask for a live factory video call, or send an agent to walk the shop floor.
• Put one question only a maker can answer — e.g. “do you punch fixing holes before or after galvanizing?”
• Confirm who issues the pre-shipment test reports: the factory's own QA, or a name you can't trace.

“Heavy-duty galvanized” is not a specification. These are the numbers that decide load, life and price.

• Base steel thickness in millimetres (side rail / bearing bar) — not just a duty label.
• Coating weight in g/m² or thickness in µm, with the standard: IS 4759 / ASTM A123, or the Z-grade for pre-galv.
• Load class and span-to-load conformance for the actual support spacing on site (IEC 61537).
• For copper: ETP purity (99.9% min) and temper. For earthing: copper-bond 0.25 mm or GI wall 3 mm (IS 3043 / IEC 62561).
• Tolerances for machined or custom parts — plus the method that will verify them (CMM, calibrated gauges).

The wrong document — or a missing one — holds a container at port for weeks and can forfeit your duty relief.

• Material Test Certificate (EN 10204 Type 3.1) referencing the actual heat / batch number.
• Certificate of Origin of the right type: preferential (to claim FTA / CEPA zero duty) or non-preferential.
• Coating, salt-spray and dimensional test reports from an accredited lab (NABL or equivalent) where required.
• The correct HS code, confirmed against the destination tariff — a wrong code means holds and lost FTA relief.
• Packing list, commercial invoice and — under an LC — documents that match the letter-of-credit conditions exactly.

Most field corrosion is decided in the factory, at the punch and the galvanizing bath — not on site.

• Confirm fixing holes are punched BEFORE galvanizing — holes cut after strip the zinc where corrosion starts.
• Match the finish of accessories and supports to the main run — a galvanized run with painted fittings rusts first at the joint.
• Agree a third-party inspection (SGS / BV / Intertek) stage plan if your PO calls for one: raw material, in-process, pre-shipment.
• Fix the acceptance criteria and how non-conformances are handled — in writing, before production starts.

The FOB price is 30–45% of what you actually pay. Price the whole journey before you compare quotes.

• Agree the Incoterm (FOB / CIF / CFR) and know exactly which costs sit with you from that point onward.
• Get the full landed cost — freight, insurance, duty, port, clearance and inland haulage — not just the FOB figure.
• Check FTA / PTA eligibility for your route (India–UAE CEPA, India–Australia ECTA, SAFTA…) and the COO you need to claim it.
• Specify export packing for a six-week sea voyage: anti-corrosion wrap, ISPM-15 heat-treated wood, secured loading.
• Confirm the load plan and container count against your volume before the booking is made.

The terms you set now are the only recourse you have if something goes wrong later.

• Payment terms you can live with (LC at sight / TT advance %) — and what each one protects.
• A realistic lead time: a real manufacturer quotes weeks of production, not “ready stock” for a made-to-order item.
• Minimum order quantity — and whether smaller lines can consolidate into a mixed container.
• Written recourse if goods don't conform: who pays for rework, reship or reject.