Most quality problems in wholesale jewellery come from handovers — the point where one workshop passes work to another and something is lost. Our answer is to keep every stage under one roof, with one specification sheet travelling with the order from cutting to carton.
Departments and what happens in each
| Department | Work carried out | Capacity |
|---|---|---|
| Stone cutting | Blocking, brilianteering, calibration, sieve sorting | ~1.2 M stones / month |
| Wax & CAD | 3D modelling, resin printing, mould making | 40+ new designs / week |
| Casting | Lost-wax casting, 925 silver, 10K–18K gold | 1,500 trees / month |
| Setting | Prong, bezel, channel, pavé and invisible setting | 90 setters' benches |
| Polishing | Pre-polish, high polish, satin, matte | Inline, no outsourcing |
| Plating | Rhodium, 18K gold, rose and black finishes | 2 plating lines |
| Quality control | 10× magnification inspection, plating check, function test | 100% of output |
| Packing | Ultrasonic cleaning, photography, poly bag, carton | Same-day from QC |
Equipment we run in-house
- CNC and laser cutting for calibrated stone work and metal components
- Wax injectors, vacuum casting machines and centrifugal casting for gold
- 3D resin printers for rapid prototyping of new designs
- Ultrasonic cleaners and steam stations before every packing run
- X-ray fluorescence (XRF) analyser for metal composition and plating thickness checks
- Digital micrometers, stone gauges and calibrated carat scales
- Microscopes for 10× quality inspection and certificate inscription verification
How an order moves through the building
- Order intake. Your PO is converted into a production sheet stating stone grade, metal, gram weight, plating, sizes and packing.
- Stone selection. Stones are drawn from stock and checked against the sheet for colour, clarity and measurement before entering the line.
- Production. Casting or stamping, then setting, then polishing. The production sheet is stamped at every handover.
- Plating and finishing. Plating thickness is verified by XRF on a sample from each batch rather than assumed from the bath settings.
- Quality control. Every piece is inspected under magnification for prong security, stone alignment, plating coverage, clasp or hinge function, and hallmark accuracy.
- Cleaning and photography. Ultrasonic cleaning, then photographs against your PO number for your approval record.
- Packing and dispatch. Individual poly bags, inner boxes, desiccant where relevant, sealed export carton with the PO number on the outside.
Sampling and new product development
New designs run through a separate small-batch line so they never queue behind volume production. A typical development cycle is 48 hours for a first 3D rendering, three to five days for a printed prototype and seven to twelve days for a metal sample with stones set. Once you approve the sample, the approval sheet becomes the production standard for every subsequent run.
Capacity planning for wholesale programmes
We publish realistic lead times rather than optimistic ones: 7–15 days for stock designs and 10–20 days for custom or certified production. During peak season (August to November, ahead of Western holiday retail) we recommend placing orders two to three weeks earlier than usual, and we reserve production slots for accounts with confirmed quarterly forecasts.
Quality gates at every handover
Work moves between departments on a production sheet stamped at each handover, so if a defect appears in final inspection we can trace it to the exact bench and batch. This is unglamorous, but it is the difference between fixing a problem and apologising for it repeatedly. Three gates matter most commercially: incoming stone grading (before anything is set), setting inspection (where prong security is decided), and final inspection at 10× magnification (where plating, polishing and function are verified).
Packing, photography and records
Before a carton is sealed we photograph the order against your PO number and email the images to you. That record protects both sides: you see exactly what left the building, and if a courier damages a parcel we have evidence of its condition at dispatch. Packing uses individual poly bags, anti-tarnish paper for silver, desiccant in the inner box and a sealed export carton with the PO number printed on the outside for customs and receiving.
Capacity, seasonality and honest lead times
Monthly capacity is approximately 120,000 finished pieces, but capacity is not the same as available capacity. Between August and November — when Western retail buyers place holiday orders — our lines run close to full. We therefore quote two to three working days of additional buffer in that window and reserve production slots for accounts with a confirmed quarterly forecast. If a promised date becomes at risk, we tell you as soon as we know rather than the week the shipment is due.