We asked one of our clients to give us their impressions during a China factory visit during a buying mission recently. Read below to see how they felt during this trip. This is one of a series of blogs that we title: Buyer Diary.

For every production, there is a need to purchase raw materials. Let’s take a look at the different materials required to manufacture a plastic toy!

China Factory, Where to get raw materials?

I was lucky enough during my china factory visit to be able to experience the purchase the raw materials. Factories would usually purchase these raw materials during their usual routine for the day. Take for example, the driver would drive to the collection point to purchase these raw materials on the way to the market to get cooking ingredients for the factory workers.

The collection point is where factories would collect the raw materials and drop off the empty containers. Usually, there will be 2 workers in charge to sit at the collection point for the entire day to manage all those that come for raw materials collection or drop off.

China Factory - Raw Materials Collection Point

China Factory – Raw Materials Collection Point

 

China Factory - Recycled Materials

China Factory – Recycled Materials

 

The different types of raw materials

Charcoal

First of all, as explained in China Factory Visit – Buyer Diary #8 Technical Issues, the rotational molding machine requires a high temperature to operate and relies on charcoal for energy.

China Factory - Charcoal

China Factory – Charcoal

 

PVC

PVC is a type of plastic. In addition to the explanations in PVC Org, PVC (Polyvinyl chloride) is basically the core material to produce plastic goods, take for example a plastic toy.  There are many different types of PVC, for example SB 100, M-1000 and so on. The different PVCs have different physical properties such as density and yield strength. You can understand more about the different types of PVCs here. It is important to understand which PVC is most suitable for the goods that are being manufactured to ensure quality.

 

China Factory - PVC Plastic

China Factory – PVC Plastic

 

Plasticizer

Plasticizer always comes with PVC. Plasticizers, also known as dispersants are additives that increase the plasticity and fluidity of plastic. It is commonly used for plastics, especially PVC. Read more at Wikipedia for the usage of plasticizer on PVC.

China Factory - Plasticizer Cans

China Factory – Plasticizer Cans

 

China Factory - Plasticizer

China Factory – Plasticizer

 

What’s next?

With all these materials, what’s next? With the PVC and plasticizer, we are able to generate the right material to manufacture the plastic toy by mixing it in the powder mixing machine. Read more at China Factory Visit – Buyer Diary #8 Technical Issues!

China Factory Visit - Material Making

China Factory Visit – Material Making