Please send the technical drawing.

“请发技术图纸” is the request that moves the conversation from sales talk to engineering reality. A price quote is a promise. A technical drawing is a specification. The drawing is what the factory’s production team will actually work from — not your description, not the reference photo, not the WeChat conversation. If it’s not on the drawing, it’s not in the product. This is why getting the drawing and checking it carefully is the most important quality control step that happens before production starts.

Chinese factories use several different terms for technical documents, and knowing the distinctions helps you ask for the right thing. 技术图纸 (jì shù tú zhǐ) is the formal term for a technical/engineering drawing — the dimensioned reference document. 工程图 (gōng chéng tú) is the engineering drawing specifically. CAD文件 (CAD wén jiàn) is the digital CAD file in editable format. 尺寸图 (chǐ cùn tú) is a dimension drawing — focuses on measurements rather than materials or finishes. 效果图 (xiào guǒ tú) is a rendering or visualization — what the product will look like, not a production reference. A common mistake: approving the 效果图 (pretty rendering) and assuming it’s the same as approving the 技术图纸 (production drawing). It isn’t. The rendering shows intent. The drawing shows reality.

When you receive a production drawing from a Chinese factory, expect it to include manufacturing adaptations. The factory’s engineers may have added draft angles for mold release, adjusted tolerances to match their equipment capabilities, or substituted a material that’s functionally equivalent but more available locally. These changes may be perfectly acceptable — but you need to see them and approve them. The factory won’t always flag every change; they’ll assume that if you reviewed the drawing, you saw them. This is why 请把你们的生产图发我确认 (please send your production drawing for my confirmation) is a non-negotiable step. Review it. Compare it to your original spec. Ask about anything that changed. Then — and only then — confirm it.