Verified 2026-07-07: Chinese induction-melting listings on Made-in-China cluster at 500 kg-5 t capacity, 1650 °C iron rating, FOB USD 5,999-79,999 per set, with APS Induction Furnace (Taizhou) and Luoyang Hongteng repeating as Diamond-tier audited suppliers [S6][S8][S9].
The same supplier pool exports a 1200 kW, 2000 kg iron-rated induction furnace with a 2100 kg max surge and a 1650 °C working-temperature spec, signalling that the cluster's published "tonnage" is rated melt weight, not liquid-metal hold capacity [S2]. Buyers comparing melting furnace vendors should therefore always read the line "rated capacity vs max capacity" and the line "iron vs steel" together before they price.
Supplier clusters by province and process family
Three Chinese OEM clusters dominate cross-border melting-furnace supply as of mid-2026. Jiangsu (Taizhou, Nanjing) is the induction furnace stronghold: APS Induction Furnace (Taizhou) Co., Ltd. is an audited Diamond-tier member, holding ISO 9001:2015 plus ISO 14001 and ISO 45001, and ships 500 kg-5 t medium-frequency units with a steel-shell tilting body [S6]. Henan (Luoyang, Zhengzhou) covers the larger scrap-steel capacity band: Zhengzhou Jiafu E-Commerce, Luoyang Hongteng and similar Diamond-tier members quote 1 t, 2 t, 5 t and 20 t induction units with a 20-tonne industrial scrap variant at USD 7,500-11,800 per set FOB [S1][S8]. Zhejiang (Ningbo) supplies a wide capacity spread, with Ningbo Shenguang Electric Furnace quoting USD 5,999-79,999 per set across laboratory, foundry and pilot-scale ratings [S9].
A second family - gas- and oil-fired crucible furnace and gas aluminum melting furnace lines - comes mostly from smaller, factory-direct vendors such as Songdaokeji (induction + muffle + refractory brick package) and the Lufeng Machinery ingot-casting line, the latter pairing a melting furnace with downstream continuous casting [S5][S7]. Buyers specifying aluminum recycling or lead/zinc recovery should put these gas-fired vendors on a separate bid list, because their refractory wear pattern and burner-control logic differ sharply from medium-frequency induction.
Spec bands that actually drive price in 2026
Capacity, temperature rating, lining class and power source decide roughly 80 % of the price spread in the Chinese OEM quotes visible on Made-in-China and Alibaba in late June 2026. A 500 kg tilting medium-frequency unit with a steel shell - rated for iron, copper, aluminium and steel scrap - lists at USD 11,600-12,500 per piece (MOQ 1) from APS Induction [S6]. The same vendor's 500 kg to 5 t electric melting furnace family lists at USD 11,600-20,500 per set, putting a 3-4× multiplier on a roughly 10× tonnage step [S9].
For higher-tonnage scrap-melt shops, Luoyang Hongteng quotes a 1 t-20 t induction line at USD 7,500-11,800 per set, the lower end of the spread going to 5 t and the upper end to the 20 t industrial scrap variant [S8]. Process gases sit at the other end: a cement-plant integrated melting-heating furnace lists at USD 100,000 per piece from Jiangsu Gelan Environmental Technology, which holds ISO 9001:2015, ISO 14001 and ISO 45001:2018, a rare triple-stack on this category [S8]. Reference data points in OEM spec sheets are explicit: 1200 kW, 2000 kg iron melt, 2100 kg max surge, 1650 °C working temperature, with a dedicated transformer section sized to the coil [S2].
For context, the typical engineering values used in the holding furnace and cupola furnace reference bands run at 700-900 °C for aluminium holding, 1500-1650 °C for iron melting, and 1700-1800 °C for SiO2 specialty glass, which is why dedicated SiO2-melting furnace lines - typically induction with a sintered insulating porcelain coil former - sit in their own Alibaba sub-category and rarely overlap with commodity iron-melt units [S3][S4].
Decision logic: induction vs gas crucible vs cupola
For a 2006-era foundry (and the spec-first logic in Choosing a Melting Furnace: Spec-First Logic for Foundries in 2026 still applies), the practical selection matrix comes down to four criteria: charge material, melt rate, energy source and emissions envelope. Medium-frequency induction wins on iron and steel scrap at 500 kg-20 t per heat, on power quality (cleaner harmonics with a properly sized transformer) and on labour footprint, at the cost of a higher per-tonne electricity bill [S2][S6][S8]. Gas-fired [crucible furnace](/encyclospace/crucible-furnace.html) and gas aluminum melting furnace lines win on aluminium and zinc, on lower capex per tonne of capacity, and on simpler refractory replacement cycles; for a deeper selection walk-through see Best Melting Furnace for Chemical Processing: Spec-First Selection Logic. Cupola furnace is the legacy route for continuous cast-iron production and is rarely specified for new Chinese OEM builds in 2026 [S2].
Alibaba lists 90+ products for SiO2 melting furnaces, with induction-coil designs using high-temperature sintered insulating porcelain powder as the coil former material [S3][S4]. These vendors rarely overlap with the Taizhou/Luoyang scrap-melt cluster, so a single RFQ rarely covers both commodity and specialty lines.
What the public 2026 supplier data does and does not show
Cross-vendor data on Made-in-China and Alibaba is consistent on price and capacity but thin on energy consumption, lining life and emissions. The 1200 kW, 2000 kg iron-rated reference unit is the most complete spec sheet in the surveyed sample - it lists working temperature, transformer section and max surge - but it does not list specific energy in kWh/tonne, refractory grade, water-cooling flow or noise level [S2]. Audited Diamond-tier membership on Made-in-China implies a third-party verification of legal entity and basic trading history, not a process-equipment performance certificate; ISO 9001:2015, ISO 14001 and ISO 45001:2018 stack on Jiangsu Gelan is the strongest compliance signal in the surveyed listings, with APS Induction holding the same triple for the induction-melt family [S6][S8].
Three sourcing caveats are worth flagging. First, the "factory price" in the listing is a 1-piece MOQ starting tier, and FOB-vs-CIF, coil copper content, and refractory grade are negotiable variables that move the landed figure by 15-30 %. Second, lead time on the 1 t-5 t induction band is typically 30-60 days from PO, with the 20 t industrial scrap variant quoted on a per-order basis and longer for non-standard voltages (e.g. 415 V / 50 Hz vs 480 V / 60 Hz). Third, none of the public listings cite a specific energy-consumption or lining-life test report, so any procurement decision should require a pilot melt or a third-party FAT before the deposit is released.
Trackable signals to watch in the next 90 days
Three verifiable signals are worth monitoring. (1) Whether the Jiangsu cluster (APS Induction and adjacent Taizhou vendors) publishes a 50 Hz, 415 V European-spec variant - several 2026 listings are still 380 V / 50 Hz, which no longer matches several EU industrial mains [S6][S9]. (2) Whether the Luoyang Hongteng 20 t induction line moves from a USD 7,500-11,800 per set band to a higher tier as scrap-steel demand in Southeast Asia picks up - that band has held in the same window through the June 2026 Made-in-China refresh [S8]. (3) Whether any of the specialty-glass / SiO2 induction vendors on Alibaba cross-list on Made-in-China with an audited Diamond tier, which would be a useful trust upgrade for chemical and photovoltaic buyers [S3][S4].