How to request custom glassware: drawings, samples and details we need

Custom glassware exists because catalogues stop where the process is odd. A jacketed vessel that must drop onto an existing stirrer, a pipeline spool that must clear a column, a condenser that has to match an old joint, or a prototype a chemist wants to try once — these are drawing- and sample-based jobs. This note is the practical checklist Aethex Industries uses. It matches the custom glassware page and the five-step workflow on quality. Expert review; not a contract.

The five steps, in buyer language

1. Share drawing or sample. 2. Technical review. 3. Manufacturing. 4. Quality check. 5. Delivery. Review is where we say whether glass is suitable and what is missing. Quality check compares the finished piece with the agreed reference. If you change the duty after review, send a new drawing so inspection still has one target.

Drawings

A dimensioned drawing beats a marketing sketch. Overall sizes, nozzle coordinates, joint or flange standards, and the view that shows the odd feature (a side arm, a jacket inlet, a non-standard reducer) are the minimum. Revision letters matter; “latest WhatsApp photo of a whiteboard” is a start, not a revision.

CAD files help when they include units. PDF with a scale bar is enough for many lab pieces. If the file is large, say so in the enquiry and agree how to send it. Intellectual property in customer drawings remains the customer’s; we use them to manufacture the requested items.

Samples and existing equipment

A broken piece is still useful if the sealing faces survive. Mark what is damaged so we do not copy a crack as a feature. Photographs with a ruler, from two angles, help when the sample cannot travel. Existing equipment notes — “must clamp to this bath”, “must clear this motor” — belong in the same pack as dimensions.

Replacement components for running plants should include piece marks and the line they come from. Pipeline replacements without a bore and face description get queried in review, which looks like delay but prevents a second shipment.

Application and special process needs

Solvent class if you can share it, heat, vacuum, cleaning (including autoclave), and whether the item is a prototype. Prototype means the geometry may change after the first run; say that so nobody treats the first article as a frozen production standard.

Offerings this checklist applies to

Custom laboratory glassware, custom reactor assemblies, special glass components, custom process glassware, glass pipeline assemblies, replacement glass components, prototype glassware, and drawing- or sample-based manufacturing. Brochure examples include jacketed reactor assemblies for API pilot plants, pipeline installations for chemical process units, and distillation assemblies for R&D scale-up. Those examples are not templates for your file.

What we will not do from a thin enquiry

We will not guess a flange table, invent a pressure rating, or promise a catalogue lead time on the website. We will not publish list prices for custom work. After review we can indicate manufacturing and dispatch against an agreed scope.

Send the pack via the enquiry form, email or WhatsApp. Related reading: glass reactors, laboratory glassware, about. Name whether the buyer is lab, pilot or process so packing matches the receiving store.