The Document Pack That Ships With a Machine Base
Commercial invoice, packing list, certificate of origin, bill of lading and the technical records that must travel with an exported machine base or heavy weldment.
A machine base leaving Vietnam carries two document sets: the commercial and customs paperwork that gets it through ports, and the technical records that prove it meets the drawing. Both are the exporter’s responsibility and both get shops into trouble.
The commercial and customs set
Commercial invoice. Seller and buyer details, a clear goods description, HS code, quantity, unit and total value, currency, Incoterm with named place, and payment terms. The description must match what is actually in the crate; a vague description invites inspection.
Packing list. Contents, number of packages, net and gross weight, and crated dimensions. Weigh and measure the crated unit rather than calculating it. Weight and dimension discrepancies are a common cause of clearance delay on heavy machinery, and the cost lands on your buyer.
Bill of lading or air waybill. Issued by the carrier or forwarder. Check the consignee details against the buyer’s instructions before it is issued; correcting a B/L afterwards is slow and chargeable.
Certificate of origin. This is the one worth attention. Vietnam has an extensive free trade agreement network including the EVFTA with the European Union and the CPTPP, and a buyer claiming preferential duty needs the correct form for the agreement they are claiming under.
The form is the buyer’s decision, not yours. Ask which one they want named on the order. Issuing the form you normally use can cost the buyer the duty benefit entirely, and they will remember it.
Export declaration. Filed through the customs system, normally by your forwarder.
Insurance certificate, where the Incoterm puts insurance on you. Under CIF it does; under FOB or EXW it does not.
Fumigation or heat treatment certificate for the timber, where the buyer asks for the documentary evidence rather than relying on the ISPM 15 mark.
The technical set
This is what distinguishes a machine base from a box of parts, and it is the set most often incomplete.
- Material certificates. To the type the drawing specified. EN 10204 3.1 means specific test results validated by the material manufacturer; a 2.2 test report is a different document and will be rejected if 3.1 was called for.
- Welding records. WPS, the WPQR behind it, and current welder qualification certificates covering the joints in the part.
- NDT reports. Visual inspection as a minimum, plus magnetic particle or ultrasonic to the scope specified.
- Stress relief record. The furnace chart with time and temperature, or the vibratory treatment certificate.
- Dimensional and geometric inspection report. Against the drawing’s tolerances, stating the support condition and the temperature at which it was measured. Without those conditions the report is not checkable: see measuring flatness.
- Coating report. Surface preparation grade, paint system, number of coats and dry film thickness.
- Photographic record. The part before crating, machined faces protected, and the closed crate with lifting points and centre of gravity marked.
- Concessions. Any deviation accepted during manufacture, with the buyer’s written agreement attached. Never ship an undeclared deviation; it will be found.
How to deliver it
Electronically, as soon as each document exists. Do not hold the pack until dispatch. Buyers need the dimensional report and material certificates in advance to plan their own inspection, and a document that arrives with the goods arrives too late to be useful.
A hard copy inside the crate, in a weatherproof envelope fixed to an inside face, clearly marked.
Named and numbered consistently. [PO number] - [part] - dimensional report.pdf beats scan001.pdf. On a buyer’s side this pack goes into a file that may be audited years later, and a shop whose documents are easy to file is a shop that is easy to reorder from.
The mistakes that cost the most
- Wrong certificate of origin form, so the buyer loses their duty preference.
- Packing list weight not matching the actual crate, causing a customs hold.
- Material certificate of the wrong type, 2.2 where 3.1 was specified.
- Dimensional report with no support condition or temperature stated, making it unusable as evidence.
- Undeclared concession, discovered at the buyer’s inspection.
- Documents held until dispatch, so the buyer cannot plan.
- Goods description on the invoice that does not match the crate, inviting inspection.
None of these are technical failures. All of them are avoidable with a checklist and one person who owns it.
Agree the pack at order stage
The cheapest moment to settle this is before manufacture starts. Confirm in writing:
- Which certificate of origin form.
- Which material certificate type.
- Which NDT reports and to what scope.
- What the dimensional report must state, including support and temperature.
- Whether photographs before crating are required.
- Where documents are sent and to whom.
Six lines on the order acknowledgement. They remove the entire category of dispute described above, and they signal to the buyer that you have exported before. Related: what an inspection and test plan contains.
Register your shop to receive matched enquiries from overseas machine builders.
Common questions
Which certificate of origin form does a European buyer need?
It depends on which agreement they intend to claim preference under, and it is the buyer's call rather than yours. EVFTA and CPTPP have different documentation routes. Ask the buyer which form they want named on the order rather than issuing the one you usually use, because the wrong form means they lose the duty benefit.
Do the technical documents have to travel with the shipment?
Send them electronically as soon as they exist, and include a hard copy in a weatherproof envelope fixed inside the crate. Buyers frequently need the dimensional report and material certificates before the goods arrive, for their own inspection planning, and a pack that only exists inside a sealed crate is no use to anyone.
What happens if the packing list does not match the actual crate?
Customs delays at best, and at worst the container is held and inspected at your buyer's cost. Weight and dimension discrepancies are among the most common causes of clearance problems on heavy machinery. Weigh and measure the crated unit; do not calculate it.
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