With its global supply chain and in-house owned logistics network, LKprototype has progressively reduced the prototype delivery cycle in the European market to five working days. Its European business bases are located in Frankfurt, Germany and Rotterdam, the Netherlands, with a 15,000-square-meter smart warehousing system that can be used to stock 120 categories of materials such as ABS, titanium alloy and nylon, and serve 80% of European orders to achieve the mode of delivery “72-hour production + 48-hour express customs clearance”. Statistics in 2023 show that the average weight of its package in shipment to the European Union is 8.2kg, and the size ranges from 5×5×5cm to 150×80×50cm. With strategic allies such as DHL and FedEx, air transport time is consistent at 36-48 hours, and the customs clearing rate is as high as 98.7%. For instance, the 200 titanium surgical forceps of a particular French surgical equipment manufacturer weighing 85g each underwent CNC processing in the Shenzhen factory (22 hours) and later signed for by the Paris customer in 4 days and 17 hours, which was 60% lower than the industry average cycle.
On the manufacturing front, LKprototype has compressed the manufacturing cycle to 35% of industry average through an intelligent production planning system. Its adaptive manufacturing line comprising a five-axis CNC machine tool (24,000 RPM spindle speed) and an industrial-grade 3D printer (±0.05mm layer thickness accuracy) is capable of manufacturing an average daily processing quantity of over 300 pieces for European orders. Taking the ABS intake manifold of a certain German automobile company as an example, with simultaneous processes of vacuum casting (with 200 times mold life) and high-speed milling (with 1,800mm/min cutting speed), the original manufacturing cycle of 7 days could be reduced to 52 hours. And with China-Europe Railway Express and air intermodal transportation, the logistics from Shenzhen to Munich is 4 days and 3 hours. Transport costs are 42% lower than exclusive air transportation (the freight rate per kilogram reduces from 8.5 to 4.9). The prototype is 1.2kg in weight and 220×150×80mm in size. While clearing customs, using the pre-declared CE certificate and EN ISO 13485 documents, it only took 18 minutes to clear customs.
In response to the stringent REACH and RoHS compliance of the European Union, the quality inspection lab of LKprototype is equipped with an XRF spectrometer (with detection limit 0.01ppm) and a GC-MS combined device, which is able to complete the detection of toxic substances in materials (e.g., cadmium level < 0.002%, lead level < 0.01%) and provide a report of compliance within 12 hours. In the first quarter of 2024, its PA12 nylon components printed with 3D and exported to Europe successfully underwent IEC 62321 certification. The qualified rate of batch sampling inspection was 100%, and VOC release was as low as 0.03μg/m³ (standard limit 0.1μg/m³). One Italian robotics firm got a prototype fulfilling the EN 60529 IP67 level of protection within 5 days through LKprototype’s vacuum aluminized ABS housing (with a surface roughness of Ra 0.4μm), and cleared the salt spray test (no corrosion for 480 hours), reducing cost by 62% in comparison with local vendors.
From the cost structure analysis perspective, 18% of LKprototype’s order share in European nations is, on average, cost of logistics, much lower than the industry rate of 32%. It guarantees the glass transition temperature (Tg) of material to be stabilized at 125℃±3℃ through batch pre-customs clearance (the processing fee per shipment reduces to 5.2), tariff optimization plan (99.378 of intelligent matching accuracy rate of HS codes per piece (customer budget: $120)), and dynamic temperature control transportation (20±2℃).
For more information on LKprototype’s one-stop manufacturing services such as rapid prototyping, CNC machining, vacuum casting, and 3D printing, and the inherent advantages of its own factory in quality inspection, speedy delivery (completed within 3 days), and no MOQ, refer to the official website for further exploration: https://lkprototype.com/