Quality control
The approved sample is the standard. Inspection happens in China, before the container leaves.
Most quality complaints in importing are not caused by a bad factory. They are caused by nobody agreeing, in advance and in writing, what “correct” means. If the standard only exists in your head and in the supplier’s, a dispute is inevitable — and by the time it happens the goods are already on a ship.
Our position: the sample you approve in writing becomes the objective standard for the whole order — that approval is milestone 04 on how a project runs. Inspection measures the production against that standard, not against someone’s opinion on the day.
The sequence, and why each step exists.
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Seal the standard
Before production, your approved sample and its written specification are recorded, including material, dimensions, colour reference and any function the product has to perform.
Why: without this, “it looks different” is an argument. With it, it is a measurement.
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Confirm production start
We confirm production has started on your recorded specification. A common failure is production starting on a similar but different specification while everyone assumes otherwise.
Why: a problem caught here costs a phone call. A problem caught at the port costs a shipment.
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Pre-shipment inspection
Goods are inspected after production is complete and before they are packed for shipment. This is the last point at which a defect can still be corrected inside China, at the factory’s cost. What the report contains.
Why: inspection after loading is a description of a problem, not a remedy for one.
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Report, photographs, decision
You receive a written report and photographs. Shipment does not proceed until you have seen them and confirmed. Where an issue is found, you decide whether it is reworked, deducted, or accepted — with our recommendation but your decision.
Why: you are the one who owns the commercial consequence. The decision should be yours, and it should be informed.
What the inspection covers.
Written to be read by a buyer, not by an inspector.
Quantity & packing
Actual quantity against the order, carton count, units per carton, carton dimensions and gross weight.
Workmanship
Finish and construction measured against the approved sample — the exact reference, not a general impression.
Specification
Dimensions, weight and material against the recorded specification, with the measurement method stated.
Function
Where the product has a mechanism, seal, hinge or closure, it is operated rather than merely looked at.
Markings
Carton marks, shipping marks, labels and barcodes against what your destination requires — see which marks apply to which market.
Photographic evidence
Photographs of the goods, the defects where any are found, the packing and the sealed cartons, so you are looking at the goods rather than reading about them.
On inspection standards: the sampling plan and the accept/reject thresholds are agreed per order and stated in the inspection brief, because the appropriate level depends on the product and on the consequence of a defect to you. We will not quote you a standard here that we would then have to change for your actual order.
The questions buyers actually ask about quality.
Who carries out the inspection?
Depending on the order and on what you require, either our own follow-up team or an independent third-party inspection company. Third-party fees appear as their own line, separate from our fee. If you have your own preferred inspection firm, we will work with them.
What happens if the inspection fails?
Shipment does not proceed. The findings go back to the factory with the agreed standard attached, and the resolution options — rework, replacement, price adjustment, or rejection — are put to you. Your decision, not ours, but with our recommendation stated plainly.
Can I see a sample report?
Ask us and we will send you the current report template so you can see the structure and the level of detail before you place an order. We will not publish a filled-in example here, because a real report contains a real client’s product and a fabricated one would be a lie.
Do you guarantee the goods will be perfect?
No, and nobody honest does. Manufacturing has variance. What we guarantee is that the standard is written before production, that the goods are measured against it before shipment, and that you see the result before the container leaves. That is a process guarantee, and it is the only kind that can be kept.
What if a problem is only discovered after delivery?
Tell us. Where the problem is a deviation from the recorded standard, we have the inspection evidence and the factory conversation on file, which is what makes a claim arguable rather than a matter of opinion. Outcome depends on the factory and the nature of the defect, and we will not promise a resolution we have not secured.
Ask for the report template.
See the structure of what you will receive before you commit to anything.
Where inspection sits in the project · Which certificates apply to your market · What our fee covers