01
A quoted four-week lead time becomes eight
Your line plan assumed four weeks. The supplier confirms six, then pushes again. Every week of slip costs expedited freight, overtime, and a schedule you rebuild by hand.
Supply Continuity
Struggling With Disruptions to Your Supply Chain?
When your primary supplier slips, a qualified backup matters more than a cheaper quote. GreatLight runs 127 CNC machines across three plants and quotes new parts within 12 hours.
No minimum order quantity±0.005 mm toleranceISO 9001 / IATF 169493–5 day shipping
127High-precision CNC machines
15 yearsMachining since 2011
99.99%Qualification rate
<2%Historical late-delivery rate
Where It Hurts
Four Failures a Second Source Prevents
These are the situations buyers describe when one supplier controls the schedule.
02
One tool, one machine, one point of failure
Parts that live in a single mold or on a single spindle have no recovery path. A broken insert or a spindle fault stops your build until someone fixes it.
03
You cannot tell whether the delay is real
Status updates arrive without dates or quantities. You plan around a promise, not a schedule, and your own customers hear the same vague answer you did.
04
Rework eats the margin you quoted
Out-of-tolerance parts arrive, get rejected at incoming inspection, and come back as a credit note. The second pass costs more than the first quote saved.
The Fix
Qualify a Second Source Before You Need One
Dual sourcing works when both suppliers are already capable of the part, not when one is still learning it.
Dual Sourcing
Split the Volume, Keep One Drawing
Dual sourcing means two approved suppliers running the same revision. It works best on parts with steady demand, a stable drawing, and a tolerance band both shops can hold. You keep one inspection standard and compare first-article reports side by side.
It stops working when volumes are tiny, when the part needs a dedicated tool, or when the two suppliers run different processes. Then you have two learning curves instead of one backup plan.
- 1Best fitRepeated parts, 50–10,000 units a year, stable revision
- 2Poor fitTooling-bound parts or one-off prototypes
- 3Start pointSend the drawing and let us quote the same revision
Capacity
Spare Spindles Instead of Spare Promises
Backup capacity only counts if it is idle when you call. Our three plants hold 127 machines, including 16 simultaneous 5-axis centers and 16 mill-turn centers, so a job can move to another spindle without a new setup review.
A 750 × 1,150 × 550 mm envelope covers most housing and bracket work. For long parts we machine up to 4,000 mm. Production can start within 24 hours of an approved first article.
- 116 five-axis centersUndercuts and angled faces in one setup
- 24,000 mm maximum processing sizeLong rails and structural parts
- 3100% inspection before shipmentReports on request with each lot
Decision Guide
Which Recovery Route Fits Your Part
Match the route to volume, tooling, and tolerance before you commit.
| Situation | Route | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Steady volume, stable drawing | Dual sourcing | Two approved shops absorb demand swings |
| Owned tooling, low volume | Move the tool | Tooling stays, only the machine changes |
| One-off or prototype | Rapid prototyping | No tooling cost, geometry checked first |
| Tight tolerance, complex faces | 5-axis machining | Fewer setups means less stack-up error |
| Cast geometry, high volume | Die casting plus machining | Near-net shape cuts cycle time |
| Sheet parts, no turning | Sheet metal fabrication | Faster than milling from solid |
Services
What We Run In-House
One supplier for the processes a disrupted schedule usually needs.
01
5 Axis CNC Machining
Complex faces and undercuts held to ±0.005 mm without repositioning the part between operations.
02
CNC Milling & Turning
Mill-turn centers handle shafts and housings in one cycle, which shortens the queue for repeat parts.
03
Rapid Prototyping
Functional prototypes in metal or plastic to prove fit before you commit to a production route.
04
Sheet Metal Fabrication
Brackets, panels, and enclosures when the geometry is flat and the volume is low to mid.
05
Metal Die Casting
Aluminium and zinc castings for housings where the wall thickness repeats across thousands of parts.
06
Part Surface Finishing
Anodizing, plating, powder coating, and laser marking, kept under the same inspection record.
Scope
Tolerance, Materials, and Order Size
The numbers you need before sending a drawing.
| Item | Range |
|---|---|
| Tolerance | ±0.005 mm (±0.0002 in) |
| Surface finish | Ra 0.2–0.8 μm fine, Ra 1.6–3.2 μm as machined |
| Aluminium | 6061, 7075, 2024, 5083, ADC12 |
| Stainless | 303, 304, 316L, 17-4PH (SUS630) |
| Steel | 1018, 1045, 4130, 4140, 4340, A36 |
| Titanium and special | TC4 (Ti-6Al-4V), Inconel, magnesium AZ31B |
| Plastics | POM, PEEK, PA, PC, ABS, carbon fibre |
| Order size | One prototype to 10,000+ part runs |
Why GreatLight
Six Reasons Buyers Keep a Second Source Open
Data points, not adjectives.
12 h
Quote and DFM in 12 hours
Send a STEP file and get a price plus manufacturability notes the same working day.
24 h
Production starts in 24 hours
After first-article approval, the job releases to the floor instead of waiting in a queue.
3–5 d
Parts ship in 3–5 days
Standard machined parts leave within the week, with inspection records attached.
±0.005 mm
Tolerance we hold daily
Five-axis and mill-turn setups keep tight features on one datum.
0
No minimum order quantity
One prototype and a 10,000-part run use the same quoting path.
4
Certifications in place
ISO 9001, IATF 16949, ISO 13485, and ISO 27001 cover quality and data.
7,600 m²Manufacturing space
150Technicians on staff
3Wholly-owned plants
99.99%Qualification rate
What Buyers Ask For
Requirements We Get Held To
Automotive and EV
Housings and brackets need traceable first-article reports and IATF 16949 records.
- IATF 16949
- ±0.005 mm
- 3–5 day shipping
Industrial Machinery
Long rails and structural parts up to 4,000 mm, checked before they leave the floor.
- 4,000 mm max size
- 100% inspection
- Mill-turn
Medical Devices
Clean geometry and documented inspection steps under an ISO 13485 quality system.
- ISO 13485
- Ra 0.2–0.8 μm
- Reports on request
Electronics and Robotics
Frames, heat sinks, and fixtures quoted from a STEP file with DFM notes attached.
- 12-hour quote
- No MOQ
- DFM included
FAQs
Questions Buyers Ask Before Switching
When does dual sourcing actually pay off?
It pays off on parts with steady repeat demand and a drawing that will not change for a few months. Both suppliers quote the same revision, and you compare first-article reports against one inspection standard.
It is a poor fit for one-off prototypes or parts locked to a dedicated tool. In those cases the setup cost doubles and you still have one process path.
How fast can you quote a part we have never sent you?
We return a quotation and a free DFM analysis within 12 hours of receiving a STEP file and the tolerance callouts. If a feature cannot be machined as drawn, the note tells you which one and why.
Complex assemblies with several parts take longer because each drawing is reviewed separately.
Can you hold our material and finish specification?
Yes, if the grade is on our list. We machine 6061, 7075, 304, 316L, 17-4PH, 4140, TC4, and POM among others, then anodize, plate, powder coat, or bead blast to your callout.
We check the raw material certificate before the first cut, not after the parts are finished.
What tolerance should we put on the drawing?
Put the tightest tolerance only on the features that need it. ±0.005 mm is our standard capability, but applying it to every dimension adds cost without adding function.
Datums and a clear fit to the mating part matter more than a long list of tight numbers.
How do you handle confidentiality when we send drawings?
Uploads stay secure and confidential, and we sign an NDA on request before any file moves. Our quality system is certified to ISO 27001 for information security.
Send the drawing through the quote form and we will confirm the NDA path before production starts.
What happens if our primary supplier slips mid-build?
Send the released drawing and the quantity you need. We check whether the part is already in our process list, then quote against the existing revision instead of rebuilding the setup from zero.
Production can start within 24 hours of first-article approval, and parts ship in 3–5 days after that.
Do you take small orders?
Yes. There is no minimum order quantity, so a single prototype and a 10,000-part run go through the same quoting path. Small orders are not pushed to the back of the schedule.
For repeat small orders, we keep the setup record so the second run starts faster than the first.
Which processes stay in-house?
Five-axis, four-axis, and three-axis milling, mill-turn, sheet metal fabrication, die casting, vacuum casting, 3D printing, and surface finishing. Keeping finishing in-house means one inspection record covers the whole route.
If a step falls outside our scope, we tell you at the quote stage instead of after the parts are made.
Get a Second Source Quoted This Week
Send a STEP file and drawing. You get a price, DFM notes, and a clear lead time within 12 hours.
12-hour quote100% inspection before shipmentNo minimum order quantity
