Custom Aluminium frame: How do I access the far east frame manufacturing factories?

As you may have seen my other half wants a lightweight step through frame [obligatory girlfriend bike build thread]. She is 6 foot tall and needs something lithe (due to an extremely narrow staircase to get to her top floor flat) and wants to be able to wear skirts.

Several have suggested that Alu isn't great in terms of failure and that steel can be fairly lightweight but given the geo of a step through frame I wonder about the noodliness [sic] in the the steel variant. I feel that the stiffness of alu and weight make it a winner - though I'm not against steel at all, it's just not the top preference. And I have some potential builders lined up if we go for steel.

Problem is finding anyone that does custom aluminium builds. It seems the heat treatment it needs for strengthening makes it a bit of ball buster for smaller builders; Supposedly Mielec can do them but they've a longer waiting list than her inside leg so I imagine we'll have to go via a factory in the far east. Does anyone know how to access the relevant people in such places/positions?
Do you have any advice for how to go about this?
Is there an obvious alternative that I've missed?

nada?

Rock Lobster do custom aluminium: http://www.rocklobstercycles.com/
6-8 months wait though.

You could try http://pactbikes.com/ for custom Ti at a fair price, but in my experience the wait will be about the same. :-(

Talk to sam at singular cycles. He can get one made from Duratec.

But I would to speak to someone with the capability to manufacture frames....

Kinda like the way you guys have do the cheap crabon wheelsets. I want the Monkey organist, not the grinder.

You mean you want the organ grinder, not the monkey.

Didn't @jammy have a Far-Eastern custom frame made whilst he was at Tokyo Fixed?

b&d in reply to @MultiGrooves
You mean you want the organ grinder, not the monkey.

Monkey's organ > Grndr...

Not sure you'll have much luck finding a frame builder on Grindr anyway...

Not entirely sure that 'Grooves has that app...

Don't bother, my mate sends me screengrabs of his matches, they have a different skill set to the one @MultiGrooves wants...

.

Mielec?

That was/is colossi. IIRC its predominately steel operation.

Proper alu is very specific e.g Allez smartweld, everything in that frame is made to spec in far east with hydroformed 'lugs'.

You can get standard/OEM catalogue tubing but its all cheap stuff.

Do you want to start a brand or something?

Would probably go scandium over alu.

Would magnesium work?

http://www.chargebikes.com/grater-mixte-0/

Pure Scandium? At $15,000 a kg, that's going to be one expensive frame.

Colossi do a lot of alu frames. Get in touch with them direct.
http://www.colossicycling.com/custom-build/

Not if the bike is orange.

8ball bikes deal with colossi so mag be go through them

7000 series aluminium doesn't need heat treating after welding. shouldnt be too hard to find a fabrication company (as opposed to a frame builder) who could knock something up for you if you have a cad drawing