The Brief Before the Quote: What to Send a Cookstove Manufacturer

Cookstove orders are won or lost in a single message. Long before a purchase order exists, a developer sends a manufacturer a description of a project — and how complete that description is decides how useful the reply can be. Separate the specification from the households who will live with the stove, from the programme that will count it, or from the logistics that must carry it, and quotations arrive looking thorough while deliveries arrive underperforming.

This article sets out what to include, in the order these questions tend to arise.

One habit underpins everything that follows. Label each requirement as mandatory, preferred, or still to be confirmed. Treat an estimate as usable once it is clearly flagged as one. And keep unknowns on an open list, rather than letting a working assumption quietly turn into a specification.

01 Start with the household, not the hardware

No supplier can recommend a stove without knowing how food is actually cooked. Describe the population the units will reach: household sizes, local climate, altitude where it matters, and how a typical kitchen is arranged. Inventory the appliances already in use and the fuels they burn, note which tasks each one covers, and say which stoves families expect to keep once new ones arrive.

Then describe the cooking itself — the dishes that dominate, how many meals are prepared each day, the size of a typical batch, how long a session runs, how finely the cook must control heat, and whether people work seated or standing. Warming a room and cooking at institutional scale are different questions, and belong in their own sections.

Vessel sizes deserve more attention than they usually receive. Record the diameter of each pot's base and rim, its depth, its capacity, whether the bottom is flat or rounded, whether griddles are in play, and which vessel is the largest. Give the heaviest load the stove must hold — food or water included, not the empty pot — and state whether more than one vessel is heated at a time.

Fuel needs the same precision. For wood, note species where it is known, plus log length, diameter and moisture. For charcoal, record lump size and how widely quality varies. For pellets, report feedstock, diameter, length and any grade specification available. Add how fuel is stored, what it costs today, and whether households can realistically split, dry or otherwise prepare it themselves.

Words describe poorly what images show well. Photographs of the stoves, kitchens, fuel and cookware beside a ruler or scale, plus short clips of lighting, refuelling and cooking, tell a supplier more about design constraints than several pages of prose.

02 Make requirements measurable, and ask for proof

A requirement that cannot be measured cannot be quoted against. State the efficiency, fuel use, cooking power and emissions you need, including the units and the conditions under which they must be demonstrated. Name the test protocol and its version, the laboratory evidence you will accept, and any in-country testing you expect. Where tiered targets apply, specify the tier needed for each metric rather than one headline number.

Controlled laboratory conditions and real local conditions answer different questions. Decide which evidence you require, and which findings the pilot is expected to confirm.

Safety and installation deserve the same discipline. Describe ventilation, whether a chimney can be fitted, the clearances available, the floor surface, and how close children will be. Ask for evidence on stability with a full pot, surface temperatures, fuel containment and any relevant safety testing. Confirm whether the unit is installed indoors or outdoors, what instructions must accompany it, and how it should be handled once it has cooled.

On durability, state daily operating hours, the service life you expect, exposure to corrosion and the rigours of transport. Share failures already seen in the field, such as liners that crack, pot supports that bend or handles that break — and keep warranty terms distinct from expected lifespan.

Then agree who repairs units in the market. Request drawings of replaceable parts, the tools required, spare-part pricing, how long parts remain available and the instructions a technician will follow. For pellet models, add fans, batteries, chargers and power supply requirements to the list.

For every model, the reply should cover dimensions, weight, materials, fuel range, supported pot sizes and loaded weight, accessories, operating limits, test reports, warranty terms and a spare-part plan — together with an explicit list of anything that departs from your mandatory requirements.

03 Put the carbon programme in writing

The developer defines what the programme demands; the manufacturer supports it. Fix that support scope in writing before the specification is locked, so both sides work from the same expectations.

Spell out the carbon standard, the methodology by title, its exact version, the stage the project has reached, and the validation or verification obligations that apply. Identify the evidence the supplier is responsible for and the person who signs it off. Because rules move, confirm them before finalising anything — Gold Standard revised four clean cooking and thermal energy methodologies in May 2026.

Traceability belongs in the brief as well. Explain how units are identified, whether serial numbers or QR codes are permanent, how batches are recorded, and how delivered stoves are tied back to beneficiary records. Ask for the test evidence and any material, component or manufacturing data the methodology requires, and describe how replacement units keep their traceability.

Where sensors form part of the design, describe the sensor model, its dimensions and temperature range, the mounting location, the attachment method and the data it must produce. Say whether every stove is instrumented or only a sample, who buys the device, who maintains it, and require a prototype integration test before production scales.

Assign responsibilities by name and by date. The developer holds the baseline assessment, the monitoring design, household records and continued-use checks — including for older stoves kept alongside the new ones. The manufacturer supplies the agreed product documentation, unit identification and hardware integration.

04 Design the pilot and the commercial terms side by side

Prove the fit locally before committing to scale, and give suppliers enough commercial detail to tell a confirmed order apart from a forecast.

For the pilot, set out sample quantities, field locations, the user groups involved and the evaluation window. Agree pass and fail criteria across cooking tasks, pot stability, ease of use, fuel preparation, durability and repair. Capture reactions from the people who actually cook, name who may approve changes, and state when the model is frozen.

On volumes, provide pilot orders, the first commercial batch, expected batch sizes and an annual forecast, and flag anything that depends on funding or approvals. Give dates for samples, testing, production sign-off, shipment and arrival, and ask for production capacity and lead time.

For commercial terms, state the currency, the budget target, and whether that budget covers the stove alone or the delivered programme cost. Request itemised pricing for accessories, sensors, spares, packaging, tooling and testing, along with quantity price bands, payment expectations and how long a quotation stands. Agree Incoterms with the named place and edition.

Logistics follow the same logic: destination port or airport, the final delivery address, and who acts as importer. Describe the last mile — rough roads, manual carrying, or both — and specify carton protection, handling limits, label languages, manuals, branding and packing lists. Name the local partners who will handle distribution, training and repairs.

Finally, agree an approved reference sample, the final specification, inspection criteria and the paperwork required. Any later change to materials, dimensions or components that could touch performance, safety, testing or monitoring should require written agreement in advance.

05 A checklist to send with your enquiry

Copy the fields below into your first message, attach the supporting evidence, and label every item as mandatory, preferred or to be confirmed.