CKD, SKD or CBU: what the shipping form changes

The same machine can leave a factory in three forms, and the form changes more than the packing list: it changes the tariff line, the labour at destination, the space you need and who carries the risk if something is missing from the crate.

One line each

CBU — completely built unit. Assembled, tested, crated, shipped. You unload it and sell it. This is what most first orders are.

SKD — semi-knocked down. The machine travels as major assemblies: frame with front end, engine, wheels, body panels, wiring loom. Bolted together at destination with hand tools and a small workshop.

CKD — completely knocked down. Parts, sub-assemblies and often unpainted weldments. Assembly means welding, painting and setting up the drivetrain, not bolting.

What actually changes

Which form fits which buyer

CBU is right when the buyer has no workshop and needs to sell within weeks. It costs the most per unit in freight, and it is the form that requires the least of you.

SKD suits a distributor who already services what he sells. The workshop he has for repairs is enough for assembly, and the tariff treatment is often — not always — more favourable than a complete vehicle.

CKD only makes sense with volume and a real assembly operation. Below a few containers a year, the welding and painting you have to set up costs more than the duty it saves.

What we need from you before quoting CKD

An SKD price is close to a CBU price with a different packing plan. A CKD quote is a different exercise, and four answers decide it:

• Units per month you expect to assemble, not order.
• What the assembly site can already do — welding, painting, testing, or only bolting.
• Whether your market requires a local content percentage, and how it is calculated.
• Which parts you want sourced locally instead of shipped (tyres, batteries and glass are the usual ones).

What we do not decide for you

Tariff classification, the duty rate that applies to your shipment, and the approval of a locally assembled unit are decisions made in your market, by your broker and your authority. We can tell you what a model is made of and how it is packed. We cannot tell you what your customs will charge for it, and any supplier who quotes you a duty rate without seeing your tariff schedule is guessing.

Short answers

Can the same model ship as CBU and CKD?

Usually yes, with different packing and a different parts list. The frame, engine and body are the same; what changes is how far the machine is taken apart and what is painted before packing.

Is CKD cheaper per unit?

Per unit in freight, often. Per unit delivered and assembled, not necessarily — welding, painting, labour and the space to do it are real costs, and they are yours.

Can we start with CBU and move to SKD later?

That is the usual path. The first container proves the model sells; the second or third is where a workshop and a different packing plan start to pay.

Ask for a CBU and SKD quote on one model Browse the catalogue