Most of what makes a generator “right for your market” is decided before it is built, not after it lands. Frequency, voltage, socket standard, the language on the panel and the manual, and the starting aids for a cold or hot site are all destination choices. Get them wrong and the set still works — somewhere else.
This is the question a distributor has to answer for a market, not just for one customer. If you are still deciding single-phase against three-phase for a particular site, that decision comes first; this guide is about everything that follows it.
What varies by destination, and what does not
| Varies by destination | Fixed when the model is chosen |
|---|---|
| Frequency — 50 Hz or 60 Hz, and the engine speed that goes with it | Engine displacement and power class |
| Voltage configuration | Alternator frame size |
| Socket and connector standard | Cooling type (air or water) |
| Panel, label and manual language | Enclosure type (open, silent, welding) |
| Cold or high-temperature starting aids | Control architecture (manual, electric start, ATS-ready) |
| The document set that travels with the shipment |
The right-hand column is what you pick from a catalogue. The left-hand column is what you specify in the order. Suppliers who only discuss the right-hand column leave the buyer to discover the rest at the port.
50 Hz or 60 Hz changes more than the number
Frequency is not a setting. On a conventional set it is engine speed:
| Frequency | Engine speed on our published range |
|---|---|
| 50 Hz | 3,000 rpm (single-cylinder air-cooled) · 1,500 rpm (four-pole water-cooled) |
| 60 Hz | 3,600 rpm (single-cylinder air-cooled) · 1,800 rpm (four-pole water-cooled) |
Two consequences buyers often miss:
- The output rating differs between the two. A set is rated at a stated frequency; quoting one figure without saying which frequency it belongs to is meaningless.
- The higher speed is not free. A 3,600 rpm set runs louder and accumulates wear faster per hour than the same machine at 3,000 rpm.
Every genset in our published range lists both a 50 Hz and a 60 Hz configuration, but a given unit is built for one of them. It is not a switch on the panel.
Voltage: read the plate, not the country
Country-level voltage tables are a starting point, not an answer. Industrial sites often have a different supply from nearby homes, and older installations drift from the national standard.
Our published sets state their voltage configuration explicitly — for example 115/230 V for single-phase models and 400/230 V for three-phase ones. Match that against the actual measured voltage at the site, and against the plates on the equipment the set will run.
If a market needs a configuration outside what a model publishes, that is an order-time question, not a catalogue question — see the last section.
Sockets, panel language and the manual
These three are easy to forget and expensive to discover late:
- Socket and connector standard. A set can be electrically correct and still arrive with outlets nobody on site can plug into. Adapters at the destination are a poor substitute for the right outlet fitted before shipment.
- Panel and label language. Operators read the panel every day. An unfamiliar alphabet on a start button is a training and safety problem, not a cosmetic one.
- Manual and documentation language. Also what your customs broker may need to clear the shipment.
We do not publish these three as standard specifications, because they are not one fixed answer across a range — they are confirmed per order. Ask for them explicitly, in writing, before a deposit.
Climate: the site decides, not the catalogue
Two conditions change what a set needs at start-up:
- Cold. Below roughly freezing, diesel sets need help starting — block or coolant heating, battery sizing for cold cranking, and the correct fuel grade for the season.
- Altitude and heat. Thin or hot air reduces output, which is a sizing question rather than a configuration one. The rule and the arithmetic are in high-altitude derating.
Cold-start aids are again an order-time confirmation, not a catalogue item.
The one page to send your supplier
Send these six lines and a competent supplier can configure the order without a second round:
- Frequency required in the destination market — 50 Hz or 60 Hz
- Voltage and phase measured at the site, plus the plates of the main loads
- Socket or connector standard expected on the unit
- Language for the panel, labels and manual
- Climate extremes at the site — lowest temperature, highest temperature, altitude
- Documents your customs process requires with the shipment
For a distributor placing a market order rather than a single-site order, item 2 becomes “the standard supply in the territory” and item 5 becomes “the range of conditions across the territory”. The list does not change.
Where HTX fits
Our published range covers 2.8 to 55 kVA, with 50 Hz and 60 Hz configurations listed for every set, voltage configurations of 115/230 V and 400/230 V, and AVR voltage regulation throughout. OEM and ODM configuration is available for distributors.
Anything beyond what a model publishes — a different voltage configuration, a specific socket standard, panel and manual language, cold-start aids — is confirmed per order rather than promised from a catalogue. Send the six lines above and we will come back with what is and is not possible for that market, in writing. Where the answer is no, we would rather say so before a deposit than after.
Shipping is from China, CIF to your port; pricing follows order volume. If you also need the calendar, how long it takes to import a diesel generator breaks the total into its four blocks.
Specifying for a market rather than a single site? Send us the frequency, the standard supply voltage, the socket standard and the climate range of your territory — or message us on WhatsApp — and our engineers will confirm within 24 business hours which configurations we can supply for it.