Why you can't rely on factory QCs to do final inspection?

How do you know your products are up to the quality level?

• ·         How can furniture importers ensure their products don’t have chipping issues?
• ·         How do cookware importers verify the quality and the thickness of the Teflon coating on their pans?
• ·         And how do garment importers confirm that product dimensions meet their sizing tolerances?

The answer is most often product quality inspection – the final quality check.

Pre-shipment inspection of the product is one of the common ways to ensure that an importer’s expectations and the product’s quality are well met.

Sometimes the buyers will rely on factory QC inspectors to conduct inspection before shipment. These staff work independently as production workers. They typically test and inspect the product at various stages/ process during production, assembly, and packing. And they can help the production staff improve the quality, avoid quality problems, and they have the power to directly affect production schedules by stopping production lines if a serious issue is found.

However, for some small workshops, small factories, they don’t have Quality Control Dept, and they will let the production workers make their own decisions.

Relying on the factory’s own QCs to conduct inspection can be a solution for some importers. But for many others, factory staff alone don’t provide the clarity and insight they need. Let’s look at some of the popular reasons why some importers continue to let the factory handle inspections, and why most others insist on having someone else to do QC check.

Why some importers count on the factory in QC inspection?

Relying on factory QC inspections may be a reasonable option for an importer that consistently receives high-quality products with few or no serious defect issues. For importers and suppliers who share this kind of relationship, it’s no surprise that it’s often built on a solid foundation made up of several factors including, but not limited to:

•      The factory have stable workers.

•      A detailed QC checklist to clearly note how the goods should be evaluated and what tolerance the importer has for particular defects and other issues.

•      Approved samples, or golden samples, available for comparison against mass-produced units at the factory; and

•      Clear communication between the importer and supplier ensuring that expectations are understood and no questions are left unanswered

But the problem with this relationship is that it doesn’t happen instantly. Suppliers and importers need time to develop a mutual understanding of product quality needs and issues. An importer typically needs repeated success and consistency with a particular supplier before they can confidently rely on the factory’s own QC staff for inspection.

Higher tolerance for quality issues in lower cost products

Often an importer of low-cost products will feel they don’t need outside inspection help because they don’t have strict quality requirements. For example, an importer of promotional sunglasses might assume that end-consumers won’t expect high quality. So they might simply clarify specifications for the product to the supplier and allow QC staff at the factory to check before shipping.

Fear of shipping or production delays

Importers that have promised their customers to deliver goods within a certain deadline may feel compelled to forgo outside inspection and take the risk. Arranging final inspection could delay the order, especially when the factory is working on a tight schedule already. So some importers may decide to let the factory handle QC in an effort to avoid delays.

But quite often, importers can use final random inspection, if arranged in advance of a deadline, to keep production on-time. By seeing a report of their order, they can estimate issues and address them with the factory to prevent delays.

Cost Issues:

Budgetary constraints account for another reason why some importers rely on the factory alone to carry out preshipment inspection. Many importers working with a low-margin product may feel they can’t afford the extra expense of paying for a third party inspection.

The potential problem is that these importers can end up paying more to repair or rework goods when they receive them defective. And there are several simple ways that importers can cut inspections costs to meet their budget.

Supplier resistance to outside inspection

Another reason why importers may rely on the factory to carry out inspection is pressure from their supplier. Occasionally, an importer might want to bring in 3^rd party inspection but is convinced otherwise by the supplier. And in cases where an importer has already sent their own inspectors, the supplier might complain about the inspection staff. They may suggest the inspectors were “rude” or “unprofessional” during their time in the factory.

The supplier may also complain about not having time for inspection. But regardless of your choice to use outside 3rd party inspection, resistance from the supplier is a red flag. It often indicates the supplier may be trying to hide something, like substandard working conditions or poor quality.

Risks of relying solely on factory QC inspectors

Despite the reasons for buyers choosing to let the factory make their goods also check their quality, there are several risks by doing so. As we’ll see here, most importers don’t rely on factory QC staff for preshipment inspection due to several reasons.

Bias of self-assessment:

Inspections are most based on the inspectors’ experiences, judgments, and opinions. A third pair of eyes would help in all inspections;

Some of the defects might be neglected during the in-house inspection;

Manufacturing cost:

The higher quality for the products, the costly for the factory, More QC processes and more inspectors mean more cost for the factory.

The stricter the standards during the inspection, the more defective products would be pick out, the more time the manufacturing would take.

Diligence:

People sometimes would let themselves down, and would be vigilant as they supposed to be;

Information lost or twisted, or misinterpretations:

Requirements, drawings, artworks, instructions might get lost, misunderstood, outdated etc.

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