Whether it’s for a trade show, a demonstration meeting or just a simple company showcase, this is a recurring question that we are asked every day when it comes to making a prototype and/or for production. The niche market we are in requires responsiveness and Toolless has always been working on improving its productivity towards meeting our customer’s deadlines.

In order to create a positive experience with new customers, we want to keep our prototype lead time under 3 weeks (depending on the complexity). We even try to keep it under 5 days when it comes to simple 2C enclosures, which are pre-programmed and adjustable to our customer’s custom PCB or custom parts. Our engineers have more than 15 years of experience in our specialized market and are used to going back and forth with our customers to discuss plans. This expertise helps to save time and prevent issues before making the physical prototype.

The specifications we receive are also a key factor in how fast we can turn around a product. If drawings come to us finalized and ready to be programmed, it’s possible to create a prototype in 2 to 3 days.

Due to the specificity of our process, the number of successive operations and intensive labor, our production lead time can vary depending on the schedule. Our niche market calls for responsiveness, so we want to keep our production lead time around 3 weeks. We adjust our capacity accordingly and always plan ahead and make sure a buffer of stocked material is available.

An expedite fee is also an option if our customer has a deadline they absolutely must meet. Depending on the situation and how busy we are, Toolless takes the liberty to decide whether or not we are going to charge for the expedite fee. Just ask us if you need your product faster than usual!

Brice Benard