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      12-06-2012, 03:53 AM   #37
annalisa_ferri
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Drives: E82 135i
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Netherlands

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Quote:
Originally Posted by techy1 View Post
question though. and this is where i think it might be ok, not big on but ok, manufactured in taiwan/china but tested in the states?
You catch a very good point, which is being missed by many readers.
Where is the quality control/test performed?
I think we cannot conclude about this, based on the answer we have had up to now.
My understanding is the following:
  • Engineering: ECS states it is done in the USA. I'm happy with it
  • Manufacturing of the rotor blank: ECS states it can be done in US, Italy, Brazil, China or Taiwan, depending on the application. Here we have the 1st problem: also Brembo has plants in China; the difference here is made by how you control what is done in the plant. Despite somebody said that to build a brake rotor "is not rocket science", believe me guys there is a lot to take care of when producing a metal alloy, when forming the piece of metal, when heat treating it, and working to the desired shape. As far as I know, this is not done by ECS people at the factory (wherever it is), they state the quality control is made once the blanks reach ECS for final reworking. Anybody with a minimum experience in production processes can understand that the amount and quality of checks that one can perform outside the production line is very limited. I have to assume that ECS relyes on the contracts with the suppliers and the certificates the chinese or taiwanese produce to ensure that the manufacturing and first part of machining is done properly, then supplementing this with some kind of check once the raws are shipped to the US
  • Final reworking: ECS states is it done in the US by qualified companies. This seems to include the drilling, the slotting, and the coating (if applicable). I'm happy with it,,but does it include coulpling of rotors and hats? Does it include testing of the final item? What are exactly the checks that are performed on the raws coming from Asia? I still don't know.

A final side note: I may understand that many vendors claim that nobody declares exactly who are the suppliers and where the brakes are actually produced. I may understand that it sounds stupid to be the only company to declare exactly the full origins. I don't have anything against ECS. I only know that I have 4 rotor still in the box with a "made in China" stamp on them. That's it. What the other companies in the tuning panorama do, I don't know and I don't care, it is not my business.
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