FAQ
FAQ
Questions we are asked about product data, documents, samples and ordering.
Product and specification
Product and specification questions
Naming, identity, what a document can prove, and what has to be tested on your own line.
Two suppliers offer a product with the same name. Is it the same product?
Not necessarily. A commercial name is not unique: the same name can describe different chemical forms, different ligands, different mineral contents and different specifications, and the words salt, complex, chelate and mixture are used loosely across the industry. Compare the chemical name, the product code, the CAS number where one applies to the grade, and the specification the material is supplied against.
What identifies a product here?
The specification, read as one document: the chemical name, the product code, the mineral and its form or ligand, the CAS number where one applies to the grade, and the parameter list with the test methods beside it. Two offers that share a name but differ in any of those are different materials, however similar the label looks.
Does a COA prove that a product is a chelate?
No. A certificate of analysis reports the results of the product or the batch it covers, against the specification and the methods named on it. It does not by itself demonstrate a molecular structure, a chelated state or a behaviour in your formulation. No product is described here as a true chelate on the strength of a name or a certificate alone.
Will the ingredient work in our formulation?
A document review cannot answer that. Solubility, colour, flow, moisture pick-up, caking and pH sensitivity behave differently in every matrix and process, so a specification that reads correctly can still fail on your line. The documents narrow the candidates; the decision follows your own sample and your own trial.
Can you supply a non-standard specification or a custom blend?
A requirement that is not standard is evaluated on the technical question first. Where it can be met, the specification is quoted, sampled and produced as its own line; where it cannot, the closest standard specification is recommended and the differences are stated one by one.
Documents
Document questions
Which documents exist, when each one is issued, and what a certificate covers.
Which documents come with a product?
Available at the first enquiry: the standard specification, a representative COA, the technical data sheet (TDS), the safety data sheet (SDS) and the existing public certificates. Issued once the product and the batch are fixed: the batch COA, the stability report, the raw test data and the other batch documents.
Is a representative COA the COA of my batch?
No. A representative COA shows the results a specification is tested against. It is not the COA of a future supply batch: the batch documents are issued against the batch that is shipped, and they belong in your incoming-goods file rather than the representative copy.
Does every batch carry its own COA, and is every batch tested on every line of the specification?
That is confirmed per product and per order rather than published as one rule for the whole catalogue. Ask with the product and the order in hand and the answer states which documents that batch carries and which parameters are tested on it.
What does a certificate cover?
A certificate covers the site, the scope and the period it was issued for, and nothing beyond them. It does not replace product admission, labelling, claims or a licence to market a medicine. ISO 22000 is held; ask for the current copy with its scope and validity before it goes into your supplier file.
Certificate copies, scopes and validity: on request.
Samples and supply
Sample and supply questions
What a sample costs, when one is arranged, and which terms are confirmed for the order in hand.
What does a sample cost?
A standard small sample is free of charge, and a new customer covers the international courier. Free shipping may be granted for long-term or key projects. A custom, unusual or high-cost sample is costed separately.
When is a sample arranged?
The specification is usually confirmed before a sample is arranged, so the material your team tests is the material you asked about. Where only the closest standard grade can be sent, the difference from your target is stated with the sample.
What are the MOQ, the payment terms and the lead time?
They are confirmed per product, per customer and per order rather than published as one rule for the catalogue. EXW, FOB and CIF/CFR are supported as standard, and DDP is confirmed per order. Send the product, the quantity and the destination, and the quotation states them.
What happens if something is wrong with a delivery?
Complaint handling is not published as a general policy here: it is confirmed per product and per order. Send the product, the batch, the documents concerned and the point in question, and the answer deals with that supply.
Market and application
Market and application questions
Why a market answer does not travel, and why the application changes the specification.
Is a product acceptable in one market also acceptable in another?
No. Suitability is checked per market, per product, per use and per specification level. A mineral ingredient accepted in one country, or in one application, is not automatically acceptable in another, so state the destination market and the intended use with your enquiry.
Does the application change the specification?
Yes. The same mineral is specified differently for each application, because what the finished product declares, how the material behaves in the process and which rules apply where it is sold all change which parameters are checked first.
Supply and quality
Supply and quality questions
Who makes the material, and how consistency between batches is answered.
Are the products made by Santa Minerals?
Yes: the products in the catalogue are made and shipped by Santa Minerals, so the material, the documents and the shipping terms come from one source rather than from a chain of intermediaries.
How is consistency between batches answered?
From the records that exist for the product: the material is inspected before shipment, the specification it is supplied against, and the batch documents issued with the order. Whether every batch is tested on every line of a specification is confirmed per product and per order rather than published as a general figure.
A question about a specific product, batch or market is answered for that combination. Send the product name, the document you need and the destination market with it.
Start a request
Ask for the data behind an answer
Send the mineral, the form or ligand and the application you are working with, and the reply names the closest product, its specification and the documents behind it.
Rules that differ by product, batch or order — testing scope, batch documents, payment terms and complaint handling — are confirmed for the case in hand.