A shutters quote 20 % under the cluster has moved one of three things: the louver material, the hinge type, or the inspection line.
Where the money goes in shutters
| Cost line | Share of price | What moves it | Material | 30-38 % | Basswood versus MDF versus PVC changes both cost and the market you can sell to | Machining | 20-26 % | Louver machining and jig setup; the precision you are paying for | Assembly and hinges | 15-20 % | Hinge quality is the difference between a 5-year and a 15-year product | Finishing | 12-18 % | Paint or stain, with a separate operation to clear the louvers | Packaging and freight | 10-15 % | Shutters are bulky; flat-packing saves 30-40 % of freight |
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Reading the shutters structure
The smallest line is often the one that protects you: packaging and freight at 10-15 %.
Shutters: three levers that actually move the price
Colour count, which is where shutters cost is really set
The factory cost is driven by setups, not by total metres, and 100-300 panels per finish is quoted per colour because a colour change resets the process.
Loosening finish, if the product allows it
Finish at painted / stained / primed is usually where a specification has been carried over from another programme without being re-examined.
Timing against a 30-45 days cycle
Production slots matter. A 30-45 days cycle can usually be met; a two-week expedite usually cannot, and when it is accepted the cost appears as overtime and air freight rather than in the unit price.
Where shutters savings come back as claims
The cause is frame out of square, or panels machined without a jig.
Shutters: what to ask for in the quotation
- The specification, line by line, against material and panel configuration at the values you asked for.
- The validity period, because the raw material index moves before the price list does On shutters that is louver width at 63, 89 or 114 mm.
- What is included: light gap, packing, certification, sample courier.
- The MOQ per colour (100-300 panels per finish is typical) separately from the order minimum.
- The payment terms and what would change them For plantation shutters it is frame type at L-frame, Z-frame or deco frame that settles it.
Cost detail for the material itself is on the shutters page; the commercial terms we work to are on the logistics page.
Questions buyers ask before ordering
How do you verify tolerance against 30-38 % on cost breakdown?
On cost breakdown, set tolerance at 30-38 % and the rest of the order follows; leave it open and the mill decides for you.
Does tolerance move between the cost breakdown sample and bulk?
On cost breakdown, we quote 30-38 % and test to third-party report.
What happens to cost breakdown if we need tolerance tighter than 30-38 %?
On cost breakdown, set 30-38 % as the acceptance figure.
Shutters: reading a quote that looks too low
- Louver width 63, 89 or 114 mm — measured at three positions on the roll, recorded as a number rather than pass or fail On shutters, skipping this is what produces light leaking through a panel gap.
- Frame type L-frame, Z-frame or deco frame — cut from the middle of the lot, not from the end of the roll For plantation shutters, the figure to write down is light gap at 3 mm or less between panels.
- Light gap 3 mm or less between panels — read at 23 C / 50 % RH after conditioning, not straight off the machine On shutters that is louver width at 63, 89 or 114 mm.
- Hinge hidden, aluminium or stainless — checked on production material, at in-process rather than only at pre-shipment For plantation shutters it is frame type at L-frame, Z-frame or deco frame that settles it.
- EN 13120 for internal blinds, EN 16433 for cord safety, EN 13501-1 for reaction to fire — run to the method named above; the report travels with the lot On shutters, skipping this is what produces light leaking through a panel gap.
Shutters: three concessions that lower the price honestly
- Fewer colours. Setup is per colour, so consolidating shades cuts cost without touching the specification For plantation shutters, the figure to write down is light gap at 3 mm or less between panels.
- A longer slot. Four extra weeks lets the factory combine runs; the saving is real and it costs you nothing if the launch date allows it On shutters that is louver width at 63, 89 or 114 mm.
- Looser non-critical tolerances. A tight figure on finish adds cost and the product does not need it.
The three price bands behind a shutters quotation
A plantation shutters price is a stack, not a number. Almost all of the spread between offers comes from the louver material, then the hinge type, and only then how the frame is machined.
| Tier | What changes in plantation shutters | What it means at louver width | Where it shows up | Entry | MDF in place of timber and surface-mounted hinges | louver width from 63, 89 or 114 mm upward, frame type from L | light leaking through a panel gap inside the first season | Standard | louver width held at 63, 89 or 114 mm | louver width inside 63, 89 or 114 mm, frame type inside L-frame, Z-frame or deco frame | The shutters lot matches the sample | Controlled | how the frame is machined plus retained samples | light gap at the top of 3 mm or less between panels, logged per lot | An audit trail a brand customer accepts; measured on louver width, 63, 89 or 114 mm |
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The step from entry to standard on shutters is usually 6-12 %%, and it buys the distance between light leaking through a panel gap and a shutters lot that passes inspection. The step to controlled is smaller in money and larger in paperwork: the hinge type on file, per shutters lot, for as long as the warranty runs.
Ask which tier a shutters quotation sits in before comparing it. Two shutters offers that both name louver width at 63, 89 or 114 mm can be compared; two that name only the category cannot.
What a shutters quote below the floor has already removed
A plantation shutters offer 15 %% under the median is rarely a better deal. The saving is taken from one of four places, and three of them are visible if you ask about louver width.
- the louver material — moved one step down the range, still inside the band, no longer inside what retail frontage needs.
- the hinge type — reduced until the shutters sample still looks right and the fifth lot does not.
- how the frame is machined — dropped to a standard option that meets the drawing and not the retail frontage use.
- Inspection and retained samples — the line nobody prices on plantation shutters, and the first thing a low quote removes.
None of the four shows up as a defect at goods-in on shutters. Light leaking through a panel gap appears at the end user, which is why a claim on a cheap lot is hard to win: the material is inside the written hinge band and outside the written use.
The counter is one paragraph in the enquiry: name louver width at 63, 89 or 114 mm, name frame type at L-frame, Z-frame or deco frame, and ask which of the four was changed to reach the price.
Building a shutters specification?
Send what you have — louver width, frame type, target market. We reply with the band we would hold and the two parameters we would test before the first bulk run.
Products in this range
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Catalogue and current price list · Neutral packing and private label · Consolidation, documents and lead times
