Custom Medal Manufacturer
A Medal Manufacturer, Not a Trading Company
SinoAwards is a custom medal manufacturer in Dongguan, Guangdong, making medals, challenge coins and lapel pins for event organisers, sports clubs, schools, corporate recognition programmes, distributors and promotional companies worldwide. The factory has been running for more than 18 years and employs around 100 people across die design, engraving, die casting, polishing, plating, color filling, assembly and packing.
That matters because almost every failure in a custom medal order happens between two suppliers: the tooling house that cut the die blames the plater, the plater blames the enamel shop, and nobody can inspect the piece that actually went wrong. Here every stage is in the same building and under the same inspection sheet, so the metal, the plating, the Pantone color and the finished medal are one order with one answer.
Manufacturing Capabilities
The table covers what the factory runs day to day: the processes, the metals and finishes, the sizes, and the timings that decide when a medal can be in a customer's hands.
| Processes | Die casting, die striking, printing (offset and UV), 3D relief, cut-out, side-carved, epoxy dome |
|---|---|
| Metals | Zinc alloy as standard; brass, copper, stainless steel and iron for struck and laser-cut work |
| Plating | Gold, silver, bronze, copper, antique gold, antique silver, antique bronze, black nickel, dual plating |
| Color | Soft enamel, hard enamel (cloisonné), imitation hard enamel, UV print, offset print; Pantone matched and baked |
| Sizes | 25 mm to 120 mm typical; larger pieces on request, any shape within the die |
| Thickness | 2 mm to 5 mm depending on the process and the relief depth |
| Attachments | Ribbon and clip, jump ring, safety pin, butterfly clutch, magnet, stand, keyring, bottle opener |
| Mold making | 5–7 days after proof approval; CNC, EDM or etching depending on the detail |
| Production | 10–20 days depending on quantity, plating and enamel complexity |
| Minimum order | No minimum order; pricing improves from 100 pcs |
| Quality control | Seven checkpoints from incoming material to final inspection; every piece inspected before packing |
| Packing | Poly bag, velvet pouch, gift box, blister card or custom printed packaging, with barcodes and carton marks |
| Shipping | Air express or sea freight worldwide; export documents and carton marking handled in-house |
How a Custom Medal Is Made
Seven stages from artwork to a sealed carton. The two that decide the quality of everything after them are the mold and the plating, which is why both are checked before the run continues. Each stage is described in full on the medal production process page.
- Mold design and engraving — 2D and 3D models are built from the approved artwork, checked by the design and technical departments, then engraved by CNC, EDM or etching and trial-cast for adjustment.
- Die casting — zinc alloy is injected at a temperature and pressure set for that mold, with water-flow cooling where the wall thickness varies, so detail stays sharp and the piece does not distort.
- Deburring and polishing — parting lines and burrs are removed by hand tools and semi-automatic polishing machines, bringing every piece to the same surface before plating.
- Plating — rack plated so pieces never touch each other: a copper base, a nickel layer, then the final finish, in eco-friendly plating solutions for adhesion and corrosion resistance.
- Color filling — Pantone-matched enamel or paint is filled into the recesses by trained workers, then baked to harden. Hard enamel is fired and polished flat instead of air-dried.
- Assembly — ribbon, clip, ring, magnet or stand fitted, with the ribbon dyed to the same Pantone reference as the enamel when the two ship together.
- Final inspection and packing — visual and dimensional check against the approved proof, then bagging, boxing, carton marking and export documents.
Factory-Direct vs. Buying Through a Trading Company
Both routes can deliver a good medal. The difference shows up when something goes wrong, and in how many margins are stacked on the unit price.
| Question | Factory-direct (Sinoawards) | Trading company |
|---|---|---|
| Who cuts the tooling? | The engraving department in the same building, from the proof you approved | A third-party tool shop, usually with the spec relayed by email |
| Who answers a plating question? | The plating line supervisor, the same day | An account manager relaying the question to a factory |
| Price layers | Metal, tooling, plating, labor and freight | The same, plus the trader's margin |
| A change mid-order | Walked to the department that has to make it | Negotiated with a factory that may already be running |
| Color matching | The enamel and the ribbon dyed against one Pantone reference in the same order | Two suppliers, two references, reconciled after the fact |
| Inspection | Seven checkpoints inside one building, one inspection sheet | Depends on how much the trader inspects, and how it is reported |
| Best for | Orders where detail, deadlines and repeatability matter | Very small or very mixed orders across unrelated product types |
Medal Manufacturers, Suppliers and Vendors: What the Words Mean
Buyers use "medal manufacturers", "medal suppliers", "medal vendors" and "medal makers" as if they mean the same thing, and on a search results page they mostly look alike. They are not the same business, and the difference shows up in what you can change after the order starts.
- A manufacturer owns the tooling, the plating line and the assembly. Sizes, thickness, plating, enamel and edge changes are engineering decisions it can make in-house — which is why a factory can take a custom shape rather than only a catalog item.
- A supplier may simply hold stock or quote from a catalog. Useful when you need 200 pieces of a standard medal this week; limited when the design is yours.
- A vendor and a maker are looser labels. Plenty of trading companies in Dongguan and Yiwu call themselves medal manufacturers while sub-contracting every process; ask who runs the mold and who does the plating.
- The practical test — ask for the mold photo, the plating line, and a video of the piece being inspected. A trading company will send a catalog; a manufacturer will send the line.
We are the first kind: the coins and medals are struck, cast, plated and assembled in our own Dongguan workshop, which is also why we can quote a reorder against the original mold rather than starting from new artwork.
Quality Control on the Line
Incoming metal
Zinc alloy is verified on arrival for fluidity and finish. A batch that casts badly will not hold fine relief, so it is rejected before it reaches a mold.
First article
Every new mold is trial-cast and checked against the proof for shape, relief depth and cut-outs before the production run is released.
Plating and color
Rack plating keeps pieces apart so nothing is scratched; plating shade and thickness are checked, then enamel color is matched to the Pantone references and baked.
Final inspection
Every piece is checked visually and dimensionally before packing — an enamel gap or a plating fault is re-made rather than shipped, because it cannot be repaired after firing.
Who We Manufacture For
Race and event organisers
Marathon, triathlon, obstacle race and cycling medals with ribbons and bibs made to the same event colors and shipped to the venue on deadline.
Sports clubs and schools
Season awards, house medals and participation pieces in small runs, with the club crest reproduced from artwork or rebuilt by the art department.
Corporate recognition
Service awards, recognition coins and branded pins for employee programmes, matched to corporate Pantone colors and packed for presentation.
Distributors and OEM
Private-label medals and coins for promotional companies and distributors, packed in their packaging and shipped under their name.
Related Products
Frequently Asked Questions
Are you a medal manufacturer or a trading company?
A manufacturer. The factory is in Xiegang, Dongguan, Guangdong, with die design and engraving, die casting, polishing, plating, color filling, assembly and packing on site. There is no intermediary between the order and the people who run the machines, which is why a question about a mold, a plating shade or a color fill is answered by the department that owns it.
What is the minimum order for custom medals?
There is no minimum order — a single piece can be made, and the mold cost is the same whether one medal or ten thousand are run. Pricing improves from roughly 100 pieces because the set-up is spread over more units, so the quotation normally shows two or three quantity breaks to make that visible.
How long does manufacturing take?
Mold making takes 5–7 days after the artwork is approved, then production runs 10–20 days depending on quantity, plating and enamel complexity. Hard enamel is slower than soft enamel because every color is hand-filled, fired and polished. Freight time is added on top: air express is a few days, sea freight several weeks.
Can you manufacture from our artwork?
Yes. Send vector artwork (AI, PDF, EPS, SVG or CDR with fonts outlined) or a high-resolution image, and the art department returns a digital proof showing the shape, the enamel colors and the plating. The mold is cut from the approved proof, so the proof is the last point at which the design can change without re-tooling.
Do you produce OEM and private-label medals?
Yes — OEM and ODM work is routine. Medals can be made to another company's design, packed in their packaging with their labels, and shipped directly to their customers, with the factory remaining invisible in the chain. Distributors, event agencies and promotional companies use this route to supply medals under their own name.
What metals and plating finishes do you work with?
Zinc alloy is the standard for die-cast medals, with brass, copper, stainless steel and iron used for struck and laser-cut work. Plating options are gold, silver, bronze, copper, antique gold, antique silver, antique bronze, black nickel and dual plating. A copper base and nickel layer are applied under the final finish for adhesion and corrosion resistance.
How is quality controlled during production?
Seven checkpoints: incoming material verification, first-article approval after the mold trial, in-line inspection after die casting, surface inspection after polishing, plating thickness and color check, color-fill inspection against the Pantone references, and a full visual and dimensional inspection before packing. Every piece is checked; a plating fault or an enamel gap found at the last stage is re-made rather than shipped.
Can you ship worldwide and handle the freight?
Yes. Air express is the default for event deadlines, sea freight for large volumes where time allows, and the factory handles export documents, packing lists and carton marking. Orders are quoted either ex-works or delivered, so the landed cost is visible before the order is placed.
Get a Factory Quote for Your Medals
Send the artwork, the quantity and the deadline. You get a quote with the tooling, the unit price at two or three quantities, and the production schedule — from the factory that will make them.
Request a Quote See Custom Medals