Oct 15, 2026Buying Guides
Aluminum Electrolytic Capacitor Sample Qualification: From Request to Production Approval
What to send for a COREVIA sample request, why preparation takes 1–2 weeks, how sample fees are credited to your first order, and what to confirm before production approval.
Before any industrial buyer commits to a capacitor supplier, the parts have to survive the real application — not just a datasheet comparison. Here is how sampling works at COREVIA: you send the part requirement and your test plan, samples are produced in 1–2 weeks, the sample fee is credited back against your first production order, and the samples come off the same production line as the mass-production parts. That last point is the one that makes an approval meaningful.
What to Put in a Sample Request
A sample request needs enough information to pin the exact part. The minimum:
- The part number — or, if you are specifying from scratch: rated voltage, capacitance, maximum case size and terminal style (screw terminal, snap-in, radial leaded or SMD).
- The application and load conditions: ripple current, ambient temperature inside your equipment, and the service life you expect. This decides which series fits — and if a different series in our range would do the job at a better size or price, we will say so at this stage rather than after you have tested the wrong part.
- The quantity you need and the date you need it.
Sample Preparation Takes 1–2 Weeks
COREVIA capacitors are produced to order — there is no finished-goods warehouse, and that applies to samples too. Confirmation to packed-and-ready takes 1–2 weeks; courier transit comes on top depending on destination. If your qualification schedule has a hard deadline, tell us the date and we confirm upfront whether it is realistic.
Sample Quantity Follows Your Test Plan
There is no fixed sample quantity — you tell us how many pieces your plan needs. A typical industrial qualification consumes parts in three places: a baseline electrical check, the application test itself (where parts are soldered, stressed and sometimes sectioned), and retained reference samples kept for later comparison. If you are unsure how many to request, tell us what you intend to test and we will suggest a workable number — ordering two spare pieces per position is cheaper than restarting the qualification because one part was destroyed during testing.
Samples and Production Come From the Same Line
This is the core of the arrangement: sample capacitors and mass-production capacitors are made on the same production line, with the same materials, the same process and the same inspection. There is no "golden sample" hand-built in a pilot shop that production then fails to reproduce. What you qualified is what ships — and the specification revision you tested against is the one pinned on the production order.
Sample Fees and Credit Against the Order
Samples are charged. When the evaluation concludes and you place a production order, the sample fee you paid is credited against that order — in normal cooperation, the samples end up costing nothing. Sample freight is quoted per case depending on weight, speed and destination. The commercial frame around orders — MOQ, FOB terms and quotation validity — is covered in MOQ and volume pricing.
What to Confirm Before Approving Production
Between "samples look good" and "release the order", three confirmations protect both sides:
- Baseline electrical results within datasheet limits — capacitance, dissipation factor/ESR, and leakage current measured under the datasheet conditions. How the leakage limit is defined and measured is explained in leakage current testing: conditions, limits and acceptance.
- Application test under your real operating conditions — the load profile, thermal environment and mounting your product will actually use, not only a bench substitute.
- Agreement on incoming-inspection criteria — which parameters you will check on delivered lots and against which limits, in writing, before the first shipment. This is what turns a sample approval into a stable long-term supply relationship.
Once those three are in place, the production order runs on the pinned specification revision, with a schedule confirmed per our lead-time rules.
Sample Qualification FAQ
Are the samples free?
Samples are charged, and the fee is credited back against your first production order — so for projects that go to order, the samples are effectively free.
How many samples can I get?
As many as your test plan requires — the quantity follows your request, not a fixed catalogue rule.
How long do samples take?
1–2 weeks to produce and pack, plus courier transit to your address.
Will production parts match the samples I tested?
Yes — same production line, same materials and process. The specification revision you qualified is pinned on the order.
What if a sample fails in my application?
Send us the test data, the conditions and the failed parts' details. A failed sample is engineering information, not a dead end — it usually points to a series or rating adjustment rather than a dead supplier.
Ready to start? Send the part number or electrical requirement, your application conditions and the quantity, and we will confirm the sample schedule and cost.
