01What “custom” covers here
Custom means the dimensions come from you, and so does the geometry. In practice the work divides into four kinds, and they are priced differently because they are different jobs.
| Kind | What changes | Drawing needed | Typical lead |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cut to size | Length, depth, apertures | Plan with dimensions | 15 days |
| Folded edge | Front or upstand folded from the same plate | Edge section detail | 15 days |
| Multi-part set | Tops split for shipping or access, joint positions fixed | Plan with joint lines marked | 15–20 days |
| Welded fabrication | Bowls, upstands, corners welded and dressed | Full fabrication drawing | Quoted per drawing |
The one thing that is not custom: the alloy and the mill. We cut from standard 304 (1.4301) plate, with 316L (1.4404) available on request. We do not pretend to roll our own.
02What has to be on the drawing
The most common delay is not production, it is a drawing that is 90 % there. These five items resolve almost every question we would otherwise email you about.
- A stated datum. Mark one edge and one end as reference. Every dimension is then measured from it. “Centred” is not a datum.
- Units. Millimetres, stated once, on the drawing.
- Openings positioned in two directions. A sink 300 mm from the front edge is only half a position.
- Joint lines, if the set ships in pieces. A joint on a cabinet divider is invisible in use; a joint 80 mm off one is a phone call after install.
- Edge and finish per edge. The front edge and the wall edge are rarely the same treatment.
A photograph of the joinery with overall dimensions written on it is enough to price. We will mark up what is missing and send it back the same day.
03Tolerance: what we hold and what we do not
This is the section to read before you compare quotes, because a tighter number on a competitor's sheet is often a number they cannot inspect.
| Feature | We hold | How it is verified |
|---|---|---|
| Machined edge to drawing | ±0.05 mm | Measured at the edge, at stated temperature |
| Cut aperture (sink, hob) | ±0.5 mm | Template or gauge |
| Part length under 2000 mm | ±1 mm | Tape or laser, per part |
| Part length over 2000 mm | ±2 mm | Laser, at stated temperature |
| Flatness | Mill standard (EN 10051 / ASTM A480) | Straight edge |
| Squareness of a corner | ±0.5 mm per metre | Diagonal check |
Two honest limits. First, ±0.05 mm is an edge tolerance, not a part tolerance — a 3000 mm top does not arrive 3000 ±0.05 mm, and any supplier who says it will has not measured one. Second, long parts move with heat: 304 expands about 17 µm per metre per kelvin, so a 8000 mm part is roughly 1.4 mm longer at 35 °C than at 15 °C. We state the measuring temperature on the inspection sheet so the number means something.
04Packing and what a container holds
Plate tops are heavy and they scratch each other. Packing is not an afterthought, it is the difference between a delivery and a claim.
| Item | Value | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Weight per m² | 47.6 kg | 7.93 g/cm³ × 6 mm |
| A 3000 × 600 mm top | 85.6 kg | Two people, or a lifter |
| Edges | Protected with card or foam | Edge damage is the most common claim |
| Faces | Interleaved, grain direction marked | Grain must run the same way |
| Loading | Vertical or on-edge racks | Flat stacks bend under their own weight |
| Container | 20 ft or 40 ft, braced against shift | Weight limit binds before volume |
A 20 ft container is weight-limited long before it is full of countertops. If you are consolidating with cabinets, tell us early — the loading order changes what goes on the floor of the container.
OEM and private label is a separate page: where your mark can go on a stainless part.
05From drawing to shipped, in order
- Drawing in. You send a PDF, DXF or a marked photograph.
- Quote in 24 hours. Priced by line: plate, cutting, edge, welding, packing.
- Drawing check. We return the drawing with the datum and joint lines marked and any dimension we cannot hold flagged. Nothing is cut before you confirm.
- Cutting and machining. Plate cut, edges machined, apertures cut to template.
- Inspection. Edge tolerance and key dimensions measured and recorded.
- Packing. Edges protected, faces interleaved, grain marked.
- Shipping. 15 days from confirmed drawing, documented per order.
You are dealing with one person from first email to bill of lading. That is deliberate: on a custom order the questions that matter are dimensional, and they are faster answered by the person who read the drawing.
06Where to go from here
If you are still choosing a thickness, start with the countertop specification. If the sink is the open question, the three joint methods is the page that decides it. If you need to know what the shop can and cannot do before you send anything, capabilities is written to be read by a buyer, not a brochure.