An OEM buyer pays a tooling charge and later asks to move the mould to another production site. Only then do the parties discover different assumptions about ownership, custody and handover. Payment alone is not a substitute for a clear agreement. Define the tools, rights, maintenance duties and transfer conditions before commissioning, with appropriate review of the actual contract.
Identify what the tooling charge purchases
A quotation's mould charge may cover design, machining, trials, revisions, dedicated inserts or development services. It does not automatically include every tool or intellectual-property right associated with production.
List the mould base, cores, cavities, inserts, gauges and dedicated fixtures. State their ownership arrangement, location and permitted use. A shared mould base and customer-specific inserts may have different terms.
Without an inventory, the parties may not even agree what “the complete mould” means at handover. These are commercial and engineering discussion points, not a universal legal conclusion about ownership in every jurisdiction.
Accept more than one attractive sample
Define dimensional, appearance, assembly, sealing and relevant performance requirements. Consider cavity consistency and the agreed process window, rather than judging the tool solely by a selected sample.
Mould acceptance and finished-pump acceptance are connected but distinct. A successful tool trial does not establish that every resin, machine or factory can reproduce the approved result.
Retain approved drawings, tool identity, cavity identification, material and relevant processing records. If trials change shrinkage allowance or a mating dimension, update the drawing and change history. A physical sample alone cannot explain every adjustment to the next production team. Link payment milestones to defined deliverables so completion has an observable meaning.
Make maintenance responsibilities measurable
Agree responsibility for cleaning, corrosion protection, routine service, worn inserts and abnormal repair. Define how operating cycles or production quantities will be recorded. “Free maintenance” without a scope can become ambiguous precisely when significant wear appears.
Include storage during inactive periods, extended gaps between orders and the response to damage. These conditions affect whether the tool remains ready to produce conforming parts when seasonal demand returns.
For an illustrative example, a replaceable insert forms a sealing groove. If dimensions begin to drift, the record should connect the insert revision, before-and-after measurements, repair and approval. Unrecorded polishing can change product fit even while the mould continues to make visually acceptable parts. This is a mechanism example, not a claim about a particular factory.
Treat transfer as an engineering project
Where transfer is permitted, agree notice, cost, transport, insurance, inventory and the tool's handover condition. The receiving site must check machine interfaces, cooling, ejection, processing and safety requirements.
Moving the steel does not automatically transfer the approved product state. Trial production at the new site still needs appropriate dimensional, material, assembly and finished-product verification. Assess certification and labelling implications where the change affects them.
Previous samples and reports should not be extended beyond their relevant production conditions without assessment. Technical portability and legal transfer rights are different questions, and both can matter to the timetable.
Keep one connected tooling history
Connect the tool register to the existing project and product revision. Purchasing, engineering, quality and the supplier should share the current inventory and approval state. A disconnected tool spreadsheet can obscure which product change a repaired insert actually implements.
The purpose is not to make the contract as long as possible. It is to avoid discovering after payment that important tools, records or use rights were outside the expected scope.
Define file formats, revisions and permitted use, rather than accepting an image that cannot reproduce critical dimensions. Include dedicated gauges and their maintenance where relevant. If the supplier retains existing process know-how, distinguish retained information from deliverable records in the agreement. The purpose is a known boundary before transfer, not an argument over files after a shipment date has been set.
Questions before commissioning
Can the buyer move the tool whenever it has paid?
That depends on the contract, rights and applicable law. Payment by itself does not settle every condition.
What mould-life cycle count is reasonable?
Establish it for the material, design, equipment and maintenance conditions, including counting method and end-of-life criteria. No single number suits all pump parts.
Is an appearance check enough after transfer?
No. Verify dimensions, sealing, assembly and affected pump performance under the approved change plan.