Large machine frames, weldments and machined bases, sourced from Vietnam
Heavy fabrication is rarely a one-shop job. We match your drawing to vetted Vietnamese fabricators that handle 6-metre weldments, stress relief and precision finish-machining, and we run the project from drawing review to container. One point of contact, one purchase order. Every enquiry answered within 24 business hours.
Looking for the right machine frame supplier?
Tell us what you need made. We know the fabricators that make machine frames and heavy weldments, and we will advise the way that fits your part.
Matched by specialisation
We talk to makers of machine frames one to one, so we know who fits your material, size and volume.
Professional suppliers
We introduce fabricators that quote to your drawing and communicate clearly.
Advice that fits your case
Contact us first. We advise the approach that suits your part, quantity and timeline.
Or email .
Why one CNC shop cannot deliver a four-metre machine base
A large frame needs three separate capabilities: heavy plate fabrication, post-weld stress relief, and rigid large-envelope machining. Few shops do all three well, and those claiming to often subcontract anyway, without telling you and without oversight.
Capability mismatch
A precision CNC shop can finish-machine a frame to ±0.02 mm and cannot weld a 12 mm steel base. A weld shop cannot hold that tolerance on a milled face. The job needs both, in sequence, on one schedule.
Stress relief quietly skipped
Welded frames relax over months without proper relief or aging. It is the cheapest step to leave out and the hardest to detect until geometry drifts and a warranty claim arrives eighteen months later.
Nobody owns the handover
Coordinating a fabricator, a machinist and a forwarder across a language barrier consumes your week. One point of contact turns three relationships into one purchase order.
From rough fabrication to inspection-ready machined frame
The network quotes the large-format work most precision shops turn away on size, weight or process complexity. If your part is too big for a standard VMC envelope and too precise for a structural steel yard, it belongs here.
Specifications below are network-wide maxima rather than any single shop's equipment list. Send the drawing and we will tell you which shops are a real match, and where your callouts are doing more harm than good.
- CNC machine bases and columns: welded steel, cast iron, granite-epoxy filled
- Welded weldments in Q235, Q345, S355 and A36 carbon steel
- Machine tool castings, finish-machined to OEM tolerances
- Gantry beams, crossrails, ways and slide bases
- Full heavy-fab route: cutting → welding → stress relief → machining → paint
- NDT to certificate: UT, MT, PT with reports shipped against the part
Frames by application: machine tools, automation, packaging, test rigs, semiconductor
Frame materials: steel grades, plate, tube, cast iron, aluminium
What the partner network can build
Limits vary shop by shop; these are the typical maxima across the heavy-fabrication network. A drawing sent today gets a match and a feasibility note within 24 business hours.
| Max length | 6,000 mm single piece, no splice |
|---|---|
| Max weight | 15,000 kg / 33,000 lbs |
| Plate thickness | 6 mm – 200 mm steel plate |
| Welding standards | AWS D1.1, ISO 3834-2, EN 15085 |
| Stress relief | Vibratory + thermal, furnace to 8 × 3 × 3 m |
| Machining tolerance | ±0.02 mm flatness on critical surfaces |
| Surface finish | Ra 1.6 μm machined, Ra 3.2 μm turned |
| NDT inspection | UT, MT, PT, RT, third-party certified |
| Materials | Q235, Q345, S355, A36, A572, ASTM A516, cast iron HT250 / HT300 |
| Surface treatment | Sandblast Sa 2.5, primer + 2K polyurethane |
| Incoterms | EXW, FOB Cat Lai / Haiphong, or door-to-door |
How a frame gets sourced, in five steps
The same sequence on every project. From the drawing arriving to the container leaving, you deal with one project manager and you see what each shop quoted.
- 01
Drawing review
Send STEP, PDF or DWG. We review it for manufacturability and flag the risks (splice lines, unmachinable datums, plate availability) and reply within 24 business hours.
- 02
Partner match
Two or three shops are shortlisted from the vetted network on the criteria that actually decide the job: part envelope, material, welding certification and realistic lead time.
- 03
Quoting and PO
You get a side-by-side comparison within five business days. We negotiate; you sign one purchase order with us instead of three with strangers.
- 04
QC oversight
Inspection is booked at fit-up, after welding and before shipment, with dimensional reports and photographs against each hold point, not a certificate that arrives with the crate.
- 05
Logistics
EXW, FOB Cat Lai or Haiphong, or door-to-door through our forwarder. Heavy-lift handling, crating and the export paperwork are arranged as part of the job.
Everything we check on a drawing, written down
The review that runs on every enquiry here is not a trade secret. It is 45 chapters and five calculators, free and open, with no form in front of them. Use them whether or not you ever send us a drawing.
The machine frame handbook
Design and materials, drawings and specification, fabrication and quality, sourcing and logistics, organised the way the decisions actually arrive. Roughly 28,600 words.
Five calculators
Fillet weld metal, plate weight and nesting yield, stress-relief cycle, steel grade equivalents and whether your frame fits a container. They run in your browser; nothing you type is sent anywhere.
What buyers ask first
Why source machine frames from Vietnam instead of China?
Two reasons. First, China+1 diversification: most large OEMs now need a non-China option for tariff and continuity reasons. Second, Vietnamese heavy-fabrication capacity has matured since 2020; several shops in the network previously supplied Japanese and Korean machine tool builders. Expect pricing roughly 8–15% above China, with stable lead times and English-capable engineering contacts.
Is a single frame too small an order?
No. The heavy-fab shops we work with accept one-off pieces for legitimate machine builders; there is no minimum-order policy. Per-piece cost is naturally higher at quantity 1; from about 5–20 frames the economics improve sharply.
How is weld quality and stress relief verified?
In three layers. Shops are shortlisted on welder qualification records and a welding standard they already work to (AWS D1.1, ISO 3834-2 or EN 15085). In-process inspection covers fit-up before welding, root-pass review and a post-weld dimensional check. Third-party NDT (UT or MT on critical welds) is written into the PO, and stress relief is documented with furnace charts delivered alongside the part.
What is a typical lead time for a 4-metre machine base?
For a stress-relieved, finish-machined 4 m base in Q345 or S355: 8–10 weeks from PO, including raw material procurement. Stress relief alone takes about two weeks because of the slow cool. Six weeks is possible at premium pricing when plate is already in stock. Sea freight adds 25–30 days to the US West Coast, 35–40 days to the East Coast.
How are drawings and IP protected?
A mutual NDA is signed before any drawing is shared. Drawings that go out to shops are watermarked and tracked, and customer identity is not disclosed to them: the shops have a relationship with us, not with you. For ITAR-controlled or defence-related parts we decline at the enquiry stage rather than risk a compliance problem.
What exactly does a sourcing agent do that a trading company does not?
A trading company buys from a shop and resells to you at its own margin, which it has every reason to hide. We work on a disclosed fee: you see which shops quoted, what they quoted, and why one was recommended. The quality plan, inspection points and shipping terms are part of the same document, so nothing sits in a gap between two suppliers.
Send a drawing, get matched within 24 business hours
One drawing, one quote comparison, one project manager. A rough sketch is enough for a first conversation; STEP or DWG is better for a real number.
Direct contact:
Response time: within 24 business hours.
If your part is export-controlled (defence, ITAR, dual-use), email first rather than uploading. We decline those at enquiry stage.
Become a sourcing partner
The heavy-fabrication network is open to new shops. If you build large weldments, machine frames or precision-machined bases and you have export experience, send a capability profile. We reply within 24 business hours.