{"id":8017,"date":"2026-10-16T08:20:59","date_gmt":"2026-10-16T08:20:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chinametalfoundry.com\/?p=8017"},"modified":"2026-10-16T08:20:59","modified_gmt":"2026-10-16T08:20:59","slug":"casting-minimum-order-quantity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chinametalfoundry.com\/ru\/blog\/casting-minimum-order-quantity\/","title":{"rendered":"Casting Minimum Order Quantity: Why Foundries Set MOQs and How to Beat Them"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Most buyers meet the casting minimum order quantity<\/strong> for the first time inside a quote, as a single line that reads “MOQ 500 pcs”. It looks like a commercial rule the supplier invented. It is not. It is an arithmetic result: a furnace that must be tapped, a setup that has to be paid for, and a tooling cost that has to land somewhere. This guide shows how a casting minimum order quantity is really derived, process by process, and which six levers actually move it.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Everything below is production arithmetic you can check yourself \u2014 melt batch sizes, setup recovery, tooling amortization and inventory carrying cost \u2014 with industry practice cross-referenced against AFS<\/a> \u0438 NADCA<\/a> publications rather than rules of thumb. If you already know how a casting is made, start with our \u0440\u0443\u043a\u043e\u0432\u043e\u0434\u0441\u0442\u0432\u043e \u043f\u043e \u043b\u0438\u0442\u044c\u044e \u043c\u0435\u0442\u0430\u043b\u043b\u043e\u0432<\/a>; if you are comparing routes for a low-volume part, jump to the process table \u2014 it shows where each casting minimum order quantity comes from.<\/p>\n

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Batch size is the whole story behind most MOQ lines: one pallet versus one crate.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

What a Casting Minimum Order Quantity Really Covers<\/h2>\n

A foundry does not set a number to be difficult. It sets the quantity below which the order loses money or blocks a machine for longer than the job is worth. Six drivers produce almost every MOQ you will see on a quote, and each one has a different fix.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Driver<\/th>\nWhat it sets<\/th>\nTypical floor<\/th>\nWhat the buyer can change<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Melt batch<\/td>\nPieces per furnace tap<\/td>\n30\u201380 pcs<\/td>\nShare the tap with other part numbers<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Setup and changeover<\/td>\nQuantity that keeps setup under 8\u201312% of unit price<\/td>\n300\u20131,000 pcs (die casting)<\/td>\nFewer, larger releases per year<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Tooling amortization<\/td>\nTooling cost \u00f7 target cost per piece<\/td>\nDrives die casting hardest<\/td>\nCommon mould base, longer tool life<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Cavities or tree count<\/td>\nPieces per shot or per wax tree<\/td>\n12\u201336 pcs per tree<\/td>\nRun a part-filled tree or fewer cavities<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
First article and inspection<\/td>\nOne-off $600\u2013$1,200 per programme<\/td>\nOften hidden, rarely stated<\/td>\nOne FAI per year, batch release after<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Packing and freight<\/td>\nFull pallet or full container<\/td>\nOne pallet minimum<\/td>\nConsolidated shipments, accept LCL surcharge<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Notice that only one of the six is about metal. A casting minimum order quantity<\/strong> is mostly a fixed-cost recovery problem, which is why the same part can carry an MOQ of 30 pieces from one process and 500 from another. That is also why the number is negotiable once you know which driver produced it.<\/p>\n

How Foundries Derive a Casting Minimum Order Quantity<\/h2>\n

Below are three real derivations \u2014 sand casting, high-pressure die casting and investment casting \u2014 each worked from shop-floor numbers you can audit in a quote. The pattern is identical in all three: add up the cost that does not change with quantity, then ask how many pieces it takes to make that number small.<\/p>\n

Sand casting \u2014 the melt batch is the floor<\/h3>\n
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Take an 18 kg ductile iron<\/a> pump housing. Poured weight per piece is 40 kg<\/strong> \u2014 18 kg of casting plus 22 kg of runner, gate and riser, which is a normal yield of about 45%. A 3 t coreless induction furnace gives roughly 2,400 kg of usable iron per tap, so one tap produces 2,400 \u00f7 40 = 60 pieces<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

The fixed cost of making that tap happen does not scale down:<\/p>\n