Manufacturing contract

About this document

This agreement covers a simple deal where you instruct a manufacturer in the UK to make a part or product to your exact specification.

The item might be made by one or more processes (such as vacuum forming, or water jet cutting and then bending). It may use materials or parts you supply. However, unlike in the longer version of this contract, you have no requirement for the manufacturer to carry out other services, such as design, material choice, finishing, or individual packaging. 

You may be a manufacturer yourself subcontracting for the production of a part for which you do not have the required facilities, or the item might be simple enough so that you simply do not need services other than production.

The product could be anything. What it is and what you want is to be set out in your specification.

Both parties must be based in the UK.

Despite its short length, the contract assumes your intellectual property is valuable, and protects it accordingly.

The law in this agreement

There is little statute law to regulate this type of agreement so it relies on common law: contract, tort, and so on.

Of course, there may be regulations affecting your product. We have provided that the manufacturer complies with the specific, exact requirements in respect of these that you set out in a schedule.

Contents

The agreement covers, as well as other standard and smaller legal points:

• manufacturer’s warranties - who is producing the products and what qualifications they have
• scope of the work - what exactly is the deal
• product testing
• delivery
• production price
• use of sub-contractors
• defective goods
• option to prevent change of control of their business
• confidential Information and intellectual property protection