How do I confirm a Chinese supplier really has a factory?

Check two public items first: the company name and Unified Social Credit Code on the business licence, verifiable for status, registered capital and business scope on the national credit information system (gsxt.gov.cn); then compare the registered address with the actual production address. A live video walk-through of the line producing your model is far more useful than a catalogue.

Can the lithium batteries inside robots be shipped by air or sea?

Not without checking. Lithium batteries normally require a UN38.3 test report, MSDS and transport classification documents; air freight has watt-hour limits and the rules differ between sea and air. Ask the supplier for battery specifications and document lists before ordering, then confirm destination-country import rules with your forwarder — cargo stuck at port is a common failure.

What should buyers in 110V countries watch out for?

Three things: whether the equipment power supply supports 110V or wide-range input; the input standard for chargers and adapters; and the plug type. Much equipment ships as 220V by default, and if you do not specify otherwise you will need transformers on arrival — which for high-current equipment like robots is not cheap.

How do I make warranty and spare parts concrete?

Put three things in the contract: when the warranty starts (shipment date or acceptance date), a list of wear parts with unit prices, and the lead time for spare-part shipment. A contract that only says "one-year warranty" usually stalls on "what counts as a wear part" and "spare parts take three months".

Sourcing

Buying Robots and Equipment from China: A Buyer's Checklist

Updated 2026-10-10All figures from public sources

When sourcing robots, stage equipment or education technology from China, the biggest risk is not counterfeits — it is information asymmetry. You do not know whether the company in front of you is a factory, a trading house or an integrator, and you do not know who is responsible once the equipment reaches you. This checklist follows the real purchasing sequence, with an executable verification step at each stage.

Step one: are you buying goods, or goods plus deployment?

Supplier type	Strengths	Typical risk
Trading company / exporter	Fast response, wide catalogue, knows the paperwork	Does not control production or spares; problems get passed back to the factory
Factory / manufacturer	Price and capacity advantage, customisation	Sells hardware only — no installation, commissioning, content or operations
Integrator / full-case provider	Equipment plus solution, content and operations delivered together	Needs you to define the scenario and goal up front; more communication work early

If you are restocking and have a local technical team, a trading house or factory is fine. If you need it running on site, you need someone who carries deployment — otherwise the project only really starts the day the container arrives.

Step two: verify the supplier (public information is enough)

Business licence: check the company name, Unified Social Credit Code, operating status, registered capital and business scope. Chinese company records are publicly searchable on the national credit information system at gsxt.gov.cn.
Registered address vs production address: if they differ, confirm where the manufacturing actually happens and ask for a live video walk-through.
Export and compliance experience: prior customs clearance in your market and the certification files to match are worth more than the sentence "we export to many countries".
Same-model references: ask for delivered photos or video of the exact model (not the brand), ideally with timestamps.

Step three: samples, first article, acceptance criteria

Get a sample or a live demonstration. For robotics, a video demonstration beats a specification sheet.
Approve a first article before mass production. Confirm the first unit, then run the batch — it avoids reworking everything.
Write acceptance criteria into the contract. "Functions normally" is not a criterion; specify test items, pass conditions, sampling rate and how failures are handled.
Consider third-party inspection. On larger orders an independent inspection report costs far less than scrapping a batch.

Step four: certification, batteries and freight (where shipments get stuck)

Product certification: confirm CE, FCC, RoHS, UKCA or other documents required by your market, and check that the certified model number matches what you are buying.
Lithium batteries: expect UN38.3 test reports and MSDS; air freight has watt-hour limits and sea and air rules differ.
Voltage and plugs: in 110V markets confirm wide-range input in advance, or budget for transformers — expensive on high-current equipment.
Manuals and software: confirm English (or target-language) manuals, interfaces and admin consoles, and whether software licences renew.

Step five: Incoterms, logistics and payment

Terms: EXW, FOB, CIF and DDP assign cost and responsibility very differently — fix who insures, who clears customs and who pays door delivery before signing.
Logistics: bulky equipment goes by LCL or FCL sea freight; urgent items by air. Ask about destination port charges and the customs document list in advance.
Payment: deposit plus balance before shipment or on arrival is common; use a letter of credit or platform escrow for larger sums. Avoid paying 100% up front.

Step six: after-sales and spares (decides whether year two still works)

When the warranty starts: shipment date or acceptance date.
Wear-part list with unit prices, and whether you can replace them on site.
Remote support: time zone, response time, languages.
Software and content updates: ongoing, and at what cost.

Four classic traps

Prices that are far too low: usually means refurbished parts, reduced specification or later add-ons.
Inflated specifications: especially runtime, payload and accuracy — demand third-party or on-site measurement.
Models with no spare parts: cheap to buy, expensive to have parked.
Chinese-only manuals and back office: your local team cannot use it, so it becomes a display piece.

Why many overseas buyers end up with a full-case provider

Hardware is only the first half. What decides a project is who installs and commissions it, who builds the content, and who responds when something breaks. Hengyu delivers full cases: equipment integration (7 major categories, 25 leading brands supplied direct, never locked to a single brand), content development and operational support across cultural tourism, education and custom enterprise deployment. Send us your scenario, target language and delivery date and we will return a plan covering equipment, installation, content and after-sales. Working as a reseller or integrator? See Partner & distribution.

FAQ

How do I confirm a Chinese supplier really has a factory?: Check two public items first: the company name and Unified Social Credit Code on the business licence, verifiable for status, registered capital and business scope on the national credit information system (gsxt.gov.cn); then compare the registered address with the actual production address. A live video walk-through of the line producing your model is far more useful than a catalogue.
Can the lithium batteries inside robots be shipped by air or sea?: Not without checking. Lithium batteries normally require a UN38.3 test report, MSDS and transport classification documents; air freight has watt-hour limits and the rules differ between sea and air. Ask the supplier for battery specifications and document lists before ordering, then confirm destination-country import rules with your forwarder — cargo stuck at port is a common failure.
What should buyers in 110V countries watch out for?: Three things: whether the equipment power supply supports 110V or wide-range input; the input standard for chargers and adapters; and the plug type. Much equipment ships as 220V by default, and if you do not specify otherwise you will need transformers on arrival — which for high-current equipment like robots is not cheap.
How do I make warranty and spare parts concrete?: Put three things in the contract: when the warranty starts (shipment date or acceptance date), a list of wear parts with unit prices, and the lead time for spare-part shipment. A contract that only says "one-year warranty" usually stalls on "what counts as a wear part" and "spare parts take three months".