Stock sizes that need cutting to fit
If a mass-produced part is close but not right, your crew cuts and refits it on site. Count those hours before you decide the stock part costs less.
British Columbia
British Columbia
EVERY COST ADDED TO AN IMPORTED METAL PART IN BC
A fair comparison adds every cost between the factory door and a part that's installed and working.
The overseas quote looked like half the price, and now the invoices are arriving one at a time. Landed cost is the factory price plus freight, brokerage, duty, any surtax, and the taxes due at import, up to your door. Installed cost adds the crew time to make each part fit, and it's the fair number to set against a local quote. Some steel parts also carry a 25% surtax, charged on the part's value. This guide covers each cost, a worked Canadian example, and when to split an order.
Every cost an imported part picks up has a published Canadian rate or fee, and none of them is a Duct Duct Goose quote. Duty and surtax are worked out on the part's value, usually the factory price. Crew time on site is what turns landed cost into installed cost.
| Cost | What it is | The Canadian rate or fee |
|---|---|---|
| Freight | Moving the parts from the factory to your site | Depends on size, route, and how it ships, so ask for a door-to-door price |
| Customs brokerage | A licensed broker clears the goods through customs for you | UPS Canada charges $141.30 on a value up to $2,500, plus $9.75 per $1,000 above that. These are published fees, not a Duct Duct Goose quote |
| Customs duty | A charge based on where the part was made and which Customs Tariff code it falls under, called its tariff item | Free on some steel items and 6.5% on others, for parts from most countries |
| Steel surtax | An extra charge on certain steel goods, from any country | 25% of the value for duty, or 50% on listed goods made in the United States |
| GST | Federal tax collected at import | 5% of the value plus duty and surtax. A GST-registered business can usually claim it back as an input tax credit |
| BC PST | Provincial tax on goods brought into BC for business use | 7% of the price, including delivery and customs charges. If the seller doesn't charge it, you report and pay it yourself |
| Fit-up on site | Crew time to make a stock or wrong-size part fit | $32.17 an hour is the Lower Mainland median wage for a sheet metal worker, and a crew hour costs your company more |
Rates and lists change, so check the current Customs Tariff and the Department of Finance surtax lists before you order. All figures are in Canadian dollars, not a Duct Duct Goose quote.
Every import falls under a tariff item, a code that sets its duty. Some steel items are also on Canada's list of steel derivative goods, which adds the 25% surtax. Whether a fabricated part carries it depends on its tariff item.
| Tariff item and what it covers | Duty on parts from most countries | On the steel derivative list? |
|---|---|---|
| 7308.90.00, structures and parts of structures of iron or steel | Free | Yes, so the 25% surtax applies |
| 7326.90.90, other articles of iron or steel, including hangers and supports for pipes | 6.5% | Yes, so the 25% surtax applies |
| 7616.99.90, other articles of aluminum | 6.5% | No |
| 8414.90 and 8415.90, parts of fans and air conditioning units | Free | No |
A duct or bracket can fall under more than one tariff item, so check which one applies to your part. Ask your broker before you order, or get an advance ruling from the Canada Border Services Agency. The ruling fixes the answer in writing.
Buying overseas makes your company the importer, and the paperwork comes with it. These are the steps the Canada Border Services Agency sets out.
If you import commercial goods, register with CARM, the agency's online system for duties and taxes. You need a business number and an import-export account first.
To get goods released before you pay, you post a deposit or bond with the agency. The agency calls this financial security.
You can hire a licensed customs broker or file the release and accounting documents yourself. Either way, the duties and taxes stay your responsibility.
Parcels sent by a delivery service from the United States or Mexico pay no duty or tax up to CAD 40. From anywhere else, the cutoff is CAD 20. A parts order rarely comes in under either.
A contractor imports $10,500 of steel pipe hangers and supports under 7326.90.90. They're made outside North America, so the 6.5% duty and the 25% surtax both apply. This is an illustration in Canadian dollars, not a Duct Duct Goose quote.
| Cost | How it's worked out | Amount, not a Duct Duct Goose quote |
|---|---|---|
| Factory price | The value for duty | $10,500.00 |
| Customs duty | 6.5% of the value | $682.50 |
| Steel surtax | 25% of the value | $2,625.00 |
| GST | 5% of $13,807.50, the value plus duty and surtax | $690.38 |
| Brokerage entry fee | $141.30 plus 8 times $9.75 on UPS Canada's scale | $219.30 |
| BC PST | 7% of $13,807.50, before freight is added | $966.53 |
| Fit-up on site | 8 crew hours at the $32.17 median wage | $257.36 |
| Installed cost before freight | Every cost above, added up, as an illustration and not a Duct Duct Goose quote | $15,941.07 |
Before any freight, the order costs about one and a half times its factory price. Even with the GST claimed back, it comes to $15,250.69, about 45% more than the factory price. Freight adds its own 7% PST on top. These figures are not a Duct Duct Goose quote.
From factory price to installed cost, one steel order
An illustration in Canadian dollars, before freight. This is not a Duct Duct Goose quote.
Installed cost before freight
$15,941.07
About one and a half times the factory price of $10,500.00. This is not a Duct Duct Goose quote.
Illustration only. This is not a Duct Duct Goose quote.
Landed cost ends at your door. Installed cost keeps going until the part is up and working, and these are the costs in between.
If a mass-produced part is close but not right, your crew cuts and refits it on site. Count those hours before you decide the stock part costs less.
Duct that arrives dented or out of round can't go up as it is. Check every piece on arrival, and report damage before you sign for the delivery.
A reorder from the factory means another production run and shipment, so line up a local source for replacements. What happens when a fabricated part arrives wrong covers the options.
If the factory's minimum order is bigger than your job, you pay for the extras and store them. Ask what the minimum is before you compare prices.
Parts that arrive early need a dry, safe place until the site is ready. Count the space and the handling if the parts land weeks ahead.
If one fitting is short, the trades behind it wait. Spares in the same shipment keep a short count from stopping the install.
Imported or stock ductwork can win on standard, high-volume packages with final drawings and room in the schedule. It gets more expensive as the job gets more custom.
| Your package | Usually the lower-cost buy | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Hundreds of standard straight runs, drawings final, room in the schedule | Stock or imported can come out ahead | The saving on each part is big enough to cover the added costs |
| Standard runs with a handful of odd fittings | Splitting the order | Standard parts are bought, and the odd ones are made to fit |
| Fittings around existing equipment or a tight ceiling | Local custom work | Stock sizes need fitting on site, and replacing a wrong one takes weeks |
| A small order needed this week | Local custom work | The fixed import costs are spread over very few parts |
Importing has a fair case too, and it's worth knowing before you rule it out. When imported sheet metal parts make sense sets out the jobs where it's the right buy.
Yes, if it meets the project specification and passes the same inspection as any other duct. These are the checks that decide it.
| Check | Why it matters | What to ask the supplier for |
|---|---|---|
| Gauge and construction | The engineer's spec sets them, usually by pointing to SMACNA, the duct construction standards most specs follow | A written match to the spec, part by part |
| Joints and sealing | The duct has to connect to what's on site and be sealed the way the spec says | The joint and seal type on every part |
| Inspection | The local inspector, the authority having jurisdiction, has the final say on the installed system | Paperwork that shows what the parts were built to |
Buy the standard parts, and have the odd ones made to fit. Most packages don't have to be all one or the other, and splitting keeps the saving where it holds up.
If the sizes are standard and won't change, buy them from a distributor, a factory run, or price them instantly on WebDuct. These are commonly the bulk of a duct package.
Transitions, offsets, and equipment connections are made to the site's sizes. These are commonly the few parts that decide whether the run fits.
Keep a local source for the part that arrives short or the change that comes late. Then the install rarely waits on a shipment.
Mark which parts are bought and which are made on the same drawing set. Then neither supplier prices a part the other is making.
Ask every supplier the same questions, local or overseas. The answers turn two quotes into two prices you can compare.
Once the answers settle the price, the next step is deciding which to buy. Custom fabrication vs prefab and imported parts walks through it side by side.
A comparison only works when both prices cover the same parts. When you're comparing, we price the same parts the other quote covers.
We price what you send. The quote covers the parts on your drawing, with the typical lead time and what starts it.
We price the custom pieces on their own. If you're splitting the order, the made-to-fit parts are quoted separately.
We price standard ductwork instantly. A company account on WebDuct prices stock duct and fittings for you to compare.
We tell you where the import wins. If the overseas price holds up after landed cost, we'll say so.
We make custom replacements. If an imported fitting arrives wrong, we can make one to fit. Custom fittings are typically ready in 1 to 2 days, depending on order size. That count starts once drawings are approved and the deposit is in.
Every custom piece is made in Pitt Meadows. The pages for custom duct fittings, HVAC ductwork, and custom metal supports show what we make.
If your imported price still wins once every cost is added, we'll tell you to take it. We'd rather lose that order and be the first call for the pieces that have to fit.
Send the drawing and the overseas quote, or just the drawing and a quantity. We'll price the local side and point out any landed cost the other quote leaves out.
Standard ductwork and fittings price instantly on WebDuct, the online pricing and ordering portal, with a company account. Stainless, grease duct, installs, and other custom work start with a request or a call.
At Duct Duct Goose, we specialize in sheet metal fabrication and stainless steel services for commercial and industrial applications, including HVAC systems, ducts, and custom metalwork. Please note that we do not offer services for automotive-related projects, such as vehicle parts, repairs, or modifications.
