Imagine if your factory made a serious error in the retail packaging and misspelled the name of your product. Not a good first impression, right? Worse still, imagine if your product was damaged during transit and didn’t even make it to the retail shelf because your supplier’s factory didn’t ship it with the proper protective packaging.

Damaged or defective products can be a major drain on your company’s profits when they’re unsellable. Packaging inspection before shipping is vital to catching defects related to packaging and ensuring your products reach their destination on time and in the best condition.

So, what issues should you or your inspector look for during packaging inspection? Let’s take a look at the three most common defects found during inspection, their consequences and what you can do to fix them.

1. Incorrect or missing shipping markings and barcodes

You probably have specific requirements for labeling your packaging with appropriate markings and barcodes. Logistics companies, customs officials and warehouse staff all use this information to efficiently ship your products from their country of origin to the hands of your end consumers. And you could face customs delays or outright refusal from distributors to stock your goods if your packaging is mislabeled.

How can you prevent and address incorrect or missing shipping markings?

Professional, third-party inspectors will typically check shipping marks against your provided requirements using a QC checklist. They’ll also carry a handheld barcode scanner to scan barcodes and check them against your specified barcode numbers. If you’re using AQL for inspection, your QC checklist might include the defect classifications related to shipping marks and barcodes.

2. Incorrect packing method

Imagine you’re importing delicate ceramic bowls from your factory in China and shipping them directly to an Amazon warehouse for distribution. One day you get a call from your distribution contact who tells you most of the bowls were cracked and chipped on delivery. You later discovered the bowls were damaged during shipping because factory workers packed them incorrectly in their cartons.

How can you address incorrect packaging assortment?

If you’re facing problems related to poor quality packaging materials, this might be your supplier’s attempt to cut costs. And your supplier might opt for a lower quality material if you haven’t clearly specified the packaging materials you’d like the factory to use for your product. Provide your suppliers with a detailed QC checklist before production that includes your requirements for packaging assortment and materials. You can also ask your supplier to provide a sample of packaging and photos of the packing method for your review.

As with verifying other requirements, insist on inspecting the product and packaging before shipping. If the factory didn’t have the correct packaging materials in the first place, it could take additional days to order these materials from their sub-suppliers. But this delay is often worthwhile if it means your products will be shipped in the correct packaging.

3. Incorrect spelling, wording or graphics on retail packaging

Many importers invest significant time and money to design retail packaging that customers will find appealing. Some would even argue that the quality of retail packaging is almost as important in making a sale as the quality of the product itself. High quality and customized packaging can make your product appeal to premium buyers. Customers today even share videos on social media of them unpacking, or “unboxing”, new products, especially high-tech consumer products or premium fashion products.

How can you avoid packaging defects related to wording or graphics?

Most retail packaging issues can be avoided by providing suppliers with clear requirements upfront. Any serious issues found during inspection of retail packaging might require reprinting of all or most of the affected retail packaging materials. The following steps can help you avoid a mistake in retail packaging from appearing in mass in your finished products:

Ask your supplier to send you the printing file for review before mass printing.

Ask your supplier to send you packaging samples for approval before mass printing (these will also be helpful later during inspection).

Check packaging against a golden sample during pre-shipment inspection.

Conclusion

These are the three most common defects you might find during packaging inspection, but there are others. And the defects you find will likely vary based on your product type. Small consumer products for retail are often packaged in blister packs, while bags are usually packaged in polybags. Some small industrial components may not be individually packaged at all, but rather packed together in boxes by the tens or hundreds.

Regardless of your product type, an inspection should be comprehensive enough to include checks of all applicable retail packaging, polybags, inner cartons and master cartons. Otherwise, you might find yourself in danger of product damage, shipment delays or even unsellable goods – an importer’s worst nightmare.

Shopify Tutorial

Elksourcing：Basic Tips About How to Avoid Product Recalls

Apr 10, 2021 Elksourcing by 露露

Over many years’ experience in China sourcing business, we’ve heard of stories about organizations seeking to resolve a recall situation. While many of these calls are reactive, a proactive approach is recommended to avoid the cost and overall impact to stakeholders.

How can you avoid product recalls?

1. Know Product Safety Requirements – Avoiding recalls generally starts with product design and specification development. Due diligence is required to determine if any applicable testing is required depending on the market in which it will be sold. Contacting a testing lab for a general inquiry is worth the time and effort. Researching ANSI, ASTM, FDA, CE standards is also advised. A third party’s expertise can also be leveraged here and specifications development/testing can be outsourced.

2. Know Your Suppliers – Supplier selection is a critical component in the quality process. Verifying suppliers and performing an on-site evaluation adds an additional level of assurance. Considerations include:

A. Management—Is there a quality manual, and how are people trained?

B. Engineering—Are there control systems and a formal system of using updated drawings/specs?

C. Manufacturing—Is there documentation, a maintenance program, etc.?

D. Quality Control System—Is there a quality department, and how much ultimate responsibility do they have?

E. Incoming QC—Are raw materials inspected, and is inspection equipment calibrated?

E. In-process Control—Are all work stations and processes carefully monitored?

F. Final QC—Are all products well inspected before shipment?

G. Packaging—Are the products well packaged to prevent damaged and properly labeled?

H. Non-Conforming Materials—Is there a specific area for non-conforming materials and applicable training for handling/reporting?

I. Corrective Action—Is corrective action properly communicated, documented and follow-up on?

3. Enforce Quality Inspections – Even the most highly rated suppliers have been known to release a shipment or two with quality issues that somehow went unseen. Some of these quality concerns can end up being safety issues that can easily result in recalls or other rework/warranty situations. For an added level of assurance, incorporate pre-shipment inspections. These happen when the shipment is 100% produced and about 80% packaged. So, you’re able to confirm visual/workmanship issues, functionality and packaging integrity issues.

Use a verified 3rd party inspection company to visit the factory, and do a thorough quality inspection for every production lot, and not release final payment until you are satisfied with inspection results.

Shopify Tutorial

Elksourcing：How to Enforce Quality Standard for China Sourcing?

Apr 10, 2021 Elksourcing by 露露

How can importers establish a quality standard, and then enforce it for China sourcing? It’s always not easy. Below are 4 proven ways I learn from my experience about how to handle your suppliers in China.

1. Insist on getting a “perfect” sample

Whenever possible, you should have a perfect sample (i.e. a prototype that is conform in all points to what you want to receive) in your hands before production is launched. The best practice is to get at least two samples, and send one back to the factory with your signature/stamp on it.

This is the most basic way to establish your quality standard. The difficulty will be in the enforcement.

In China, factories know that sending nice samples is important for them to get orders. These perfect samples (prepared by experimented technicians who take their time) are usually better that what can be made in mass production.

Suppliers simply assume that the buyers know it. And in many case, a buyer who has wired a 30% deposit and is in a hurry to ship usually has to accept this situation. Many factories count on it.

2. Define tolerances wherever applicable

Sometimes it is not realistic to expect a very precise result. For example, garments are generally made by hand, so there has to be a tolerance for measurements (for example: +/-1cm). In this case, the objective is the comfort of the garment.

Once you have approved some tolerances, put all your specifications on paper and get your supplier’s signature on them. You have already done half the work to establish and enforce a relevant quality standard.

3. Set a limit on the proportion of defects

A defect is an issue that you cannot accept on all products.

In the aeronautics industry, manufacturers have to guarantee near-defect-free products. But for consumer goods such as hard goods or apparel, such a high-quality standard is neither realistic nor necessary.

The quality control industry uses the same statistics (ANSI Z1.4), when it comes to checking consumer goods.

All inspectors, and virtually all factories and traders, are familiar with the contact of AQL (Acceptance Quality Limits). In clear, the AQL is the highest proportion of defects that you can accept. Most comment AQL is 2.5 (Major) / 4.0 (Minor).

4. A quality standard suffers no exception

Let’s say a supplier is late, you negotiate a delay with your customers, and before shipment you notice that quality is less than desirable. You still prefer delivering the products, rather than cancelling the order. So, you tell your supplier that he can ship out and that next time should be better.

The problem is, the “exceptional tolerance” will become the actual standard for the factory. Count on them to remember that you can accept less-than-perfect products.

Chinese manufacturers tend to have a “can’t do” attitude after an order production has started. Two of their favorite expressions are “almost good” (it’s off, but not by much, so you should accept it as is) and “no solutions” (there is nothing we can do about it now, no need to keep pressing this issue).

You should fight their natural inclination. Ask for re-work and re-inspections, even if it costs you 10 days. This type of efforts pay off handsomely in the long term, as long as the factory can reasonable achieve your quality standard — you will have clarified this if you follow the steps I listed above.

This should be a general rule, except when you are about to stop giving business to a supplier.

Shopify Tutorial

Elksourcing：Mistakes You Should Avoid When Sourcing Suppliers

Apr 10, 2021 Elksourcing, sourcing in China by 露露

China today is full of incredible business opportunities for American entrepreneurs and business owners, but like any country in the West, it is not a perfect paradise. You must accept the risks of sourcing goods in China while embracing the opportunities that come with it. The good news is that you can manage and reduce these risks with a methodical approach to sourcing in China.

1. Lack of a Well-Defined Strategy

When sourcing goods in China, you must have a well-defined sourcing strategy or “road map,” including locating the best supplier for your particular needs. Too few small companies do the proper due diligence when shopping for goods in China. As a result, they may not get the best deal in terms of price, quality, functionality, or timely delivery.

2. No Well-Defined Standards for Suppliers

Before searching for suppliers, it is important to have defined standards. Well-defined standards can determine whether sourcing efforts are successful. For example, a company might initially purchase a small order of electronic parts from a Chinese supplier and be happy with the product quality only to learn that delivery on larger follow-up orders would be delayed due to the supplier’s limited production capacity. If the company needs the parts delivered on time to capitalize on the holiday season sales rush, it runs the risk of losing profits, all because it did not eliminate potential suppliers with limited production capacity.

3. Inadequate Due Diligence Performed on Suppliers

Due diligence is perhaps the most important step when sourcing in China, yet many companies fail to perform adequate due diligence and end up being scammed. Some fail to perform due diligence at all.

4. Lack of Protection for Payment and Quality Issues

Sourcing in China is, after all, an international transaction. Before you make a payment, you need to think about how you are going to get your money back if there is any dispute over product quality or delivery. Otherwise, you are at the risk of losing your money.

5. No Written Contracts

To adequately protect your interest, you must have a detailed written contract. Any oral agreements or invoices may not adequately protect you, especially when different cultures and languages are involved. You should understand that the legal structure and enforcement options in China are different than in the U.S.

6. Written Contracts Not Reviewed by Attorneys

Some people download a copy of a form contract from the Internet or simply use a form they used in the past. Sure, most provisions are similar for a typical sales transaction, but the devil is in the details, so it is likely in your best interest to consult an attorney to help draft and perhaps negotiate the contract for you.

A good cross-border transaction attorney can draft a contract with more favorable provisions to buyers (namely, you) and better protect your interests. For example, your attorney may explain to you the pros and cons of contract provisions that dictate what law applies to contractual disputes between you and the supplier, or the method in which such disputes are to be resolved, like arbitration. Each of these decisions will have its own ramification if an actual dispute occurs, so there is real value in having the options explained to you clearly, not to mention the peace of mind that comes from having a well-written contract in place.

7. Ignorance of the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA)

It is also useful to consult an attorney about what laws will impact your business in China. Both Chinese and American laws need to be considered and depending on your business dealings, many legal issues can be involved, including labor law, trademark law, IP law, anti-monopoly law, and commercial law.

8. No Mandarin Speaker on the Team

The importance of having a Mandarin Chinese speaker on your team is second only to due diligence on Chinese suppliers. In cross-border transactions, you cannot afford to settle for “maybe” or “probably” by saying that you and your supplier kind of understand each other’s expectations, which can lead to failure, to say the least. No guessing games, period!

If your supplier speaks fluent English and can understand your English well, you may get away without a Mandarin speaker’s help. Otherwise, you should consider engaging a Mandarin speaker, preferably a native speaker who also knows the business culture to help make sure your suppliers understand your expectations clearly and completely. At minimum, you need a fluent Mandarin speaker on your team, at least at the crucial stages of the transaction, like clearly setting product quality expectations. Finally, it is generally preferable to find your own Mandarin speaking team member, rather than relying on your supplier’s interpreters.

Shopify Tutorial

Elksourcing：How to Address Product Defects Found During QC Inspection?

Apr 10, 2021 Elksourcing, QC inspection by 露露

What can you do when you find product defects during QC inspection? Do you ask your supplier to rework the affected goods? Is corrective action going to delay shipping the order? What other options do you have for addressing quality issues?

If you’re like most importers, you’ve probably asked yourself some or all of these questions at one time or another. That’s because defects are an unavoidable part of mass production. Even if you’re cautious about limiting quality defects in your order, chances are pre-shipment inspection will still reveal some in the finished goods. And the question of how best to address unacceptable quality issues is nearly universal among importers.

Maybe you’re concerned about balancing the benefits of fixing defects with the risk of damaging the product in the process. Or maybe you’re in a rush to ship an order and just want to know how to prevent defects found this time from recurring in future orders. Whatever your concerns, there are a number of ways to address quality defects now and in the future.

1. Corrective action through product rework

If product defects identified in QC inspection are correctable, one of the most common actions importers take is to ask their supplier to rework or repair the defective goods. By having factory workers remedy any unacceptable defects in your products, you can limit the number of unsellable units. Product rework is most suitable for defects that workers can easily fix in a short amount of time following product inspection.

For example, perhaps the wrong barcodes were printed on retail packaging. In this case, it’s relatively easy for the factory to print out a new sticker and apply it over wrong one. Another example is excess glue on the sole of a shoe. Sometimes factory workers can wipe away the residue with little risk of damaging the product.

Rework is often appropriate for these sorts of defects that require minimal time and effort for the factory to fix. It improves the quality of the order to an acceptable level for you and your customers, typically without causing more quality problems, increasing your costs or delaying shipment.

2. Re-inspection for reworked products

Importers choosing to have defective products reworked or replaced will typically request a re-inspection of the products after rework is completed, sometimes at the supplier’s expense. Re-inspection helps confirm that the factory has actually taken corrective action and the reworked products now meet your quality standards.

3. Product destruction for unsellable goods

For serious defects that render your goods unsellable and can’t be corrected, you may have to resort to destroying the defective goods. You’ll definitely want to consider all of your options before resorting to product destruction, but sometimes it’s a necessary step to take. Usually importers decide to destroy defective goods when they’re concerned about: protecting their brand from substandard, counterfeit goods, or preventing competitors and resellers from buying and selling their inventory.

4. Updating your QC checklist to prevent recurrence of product defects

You can generally address product defects almost immediately after they’re found during QC inspection. But you can also use inspection results to prevent recurrence of the same types of defects in the future. You should always update your QC checklist and product specifications following every inspection with any new and relevant information, such as:

New or updated inspection criteria, especially newly known quality defects to report, adjustments to product dimensions, changes to product components or materials required.

Conclusion

Every importer wants to receive an order of perfect goods at their warehouse. But when you discover unacceptable product defects during QC inspection, it’s up to you to take action to address them and prevent their recurrence. And how you choose to address defects will depend on the type of defects found, your product type and your customers’ expectations.

Shopify Tutorial

Elksourcing：Common QC Inspection Types and Their Purpose

Apr 10, 2021 Elksourcing, QC inspection by 露露

When importing from China, it’s very important to try to detect defects at earlier stage as possible. It’s way too late if you find out the defects when the products arrive at your premises. Managing product quality with QC inspection lowers your risk of product returns, unhappy customers and many other costly and avoidable problems.

How to do it? Following are the common QC inspection types and their purpose. Let’s discover what value inspection offers at various times to determine when it’s best for you.

1. Where quality control inspections offer value at different production stages

Every inspection type aims to detect any product defects or other issues before the factory ships the finished goods. But QC inspection provides different insight into your product when performed at different points in production. The greatest value in finding problems early is being able to address them with your supplier before it becomes difficult or expensive to do so, such as after you or your customers have received the shipment.

Importers commonly perform product inspection at various stages of production or shipping, including:

1) Quality control inspection helps identify product defects.

2) Inspecting semi-finished products and finished products during production.

3) Inspecting finished products (with or without packaging) after production.

4) Monitoring the loading of shipping containers.

2. Incoming quality control (IQC)

Inspecting parts and materials chosen for a product, a process called incoming quality control (IQC), is an important first step in identifying any quality problems. Importers typically leave IQC to their supplier’s own staff to perform, rather than visiting the factory themselves or hiring a third-party QC inspector for this purpose. If you’ve bargained your order price too low when negotiating with suppliers, don’t be surprised if factories attempt to recoup lost margin on your order by using cheaper, substandard materials or parts.

3. First article inspection (FAI)

For some importers, the next prudent step in identifying product defects after IQC is checking some of the first mass-produced units. During first article inspection (FAI), an inspector will check one or a few of the first units of an order off the production line, or a unit from the first production lot.

Reviewing a golden sample is similar to FAI in that it aims to establish a quality standard for production. But the insight gained from FAI will typically vary greatly from that obtained by reviewing a pre-production sample.

4. In-process quality control (IPQC) and during production inspection (DUPRO)

The next logical stage to consider quality control inspection after FAI is when production is well underway. The two types of inspections commonly performed here are in-process quality control (IPQC) and during production inspection (DUPRO). The difference between these is that inspectors generally perform IPQC on semi-finished goods, while they conduct DUPRO on finished goods. DUPRO typically occurs when the factory has manufactured 15-80 percent of the total order quantity.

5. Final inspection

The most common time importers choose to perform quality control inspection is when most of the goods are finished—typically 80 percent or more. Usually called final inspection, this represents your last opportunity to see the quality and condition of your shipment while it’s still in the factory. Many experienced importers and QC professionals consider final inspection to be the bare minimum required level of product oversight.

Like DUPRO and some other earlier inspections, QC staff typically use AQL sampling or an alternative sampling method for final inspection. But final inspection typically offers a look at a more representative sample than inspections conducted earlier because more of the units will be finished.

6. Monitoring container loading

Some importers require inspection while workers load their goods into a container for shipping. During the process of monitoring container loading, inspectors check the packed cartons and loading method and verify workers have properly sealed the shipping container before transit.

Inspectors might open one or two cartons to check a small sample of product and verify packing method. But most factory managers want to load the containers and get them out of the way as quickly as possible. So, it’s not practical to inspect a larger sample as you might with DUPRO or final inspection. The main points of monitoring container loading usually include:

1) Checking the internal condition of the container for moisture, leakage, contamination and other issues;

2) Monitoring loading by the factory workers and recording quantities of cartons loaded;

3) Verifying the sealing of containers and recording details of the seal placed on the containers.

Shopify Tutorial

Elksourcing：3 Tips About How to Get Good Price from Suppliers

Apr 10, 2021 Elksourcing, supplier by 露露

One question nearly every importer will ask at some point is, “Is this the best price I can get?”

Like most importers, you’ve probably questioned whether the price quoted by your supplier is “fair” and “reasonable”. You might have wondered if you could get a lower price from another supplier. And maybe you’ve had the foresight to balance other important factors against price, such as quality and supplier relationships.

1. Get quotes from multiple suppliers

Anyone who’s bothered to shop around at multiple stores knows it’s not always wise to accept the first price you see for an item, especially if that item is costly. The same logic applies when it comes to suppliers.

It’s essential to obtain quotes from different suppliers before purchasing an order. You’ll gain a better understanding of the overall market rate for certain items. If you accept the first quote a supplier offers, you might be disappointed later when you discover there were better options available.

2. Ask suppliers for the breakdown pricing

You can learn a lot about how a supplier has priced a product just by looking at its bill of materials, or BOM. The BOM is a list of raw materials, sub-components, and parts (and quantities of each) that are used in manufacturing an end product. This information can reveal why an item is priced a certain way, helping you understand the breakdown pricing.

3. Don’t negotiate pricing too low with suppliers

Some importers mistakenly think that getting the best price from suppliers means getting the lowest price possible. But the age-old proverb, “you get what you pay for” is as true here as anywhere else.

Experienced importers know that a lower price often comes with an equal or greater decrease in product quality. This is especially true for suppliers that work on very tight margins. Some suppliers will often try to recover margins lost in negotiations by using cheaper, sub-standard parts and materials, often without your approval. Others may simply refuse your order altogether.

Shopify Tutorial

Elksourcing：Advantages of Using AQL Sampling for QC Inspection

Apr 10, 2021 Elksourcing, quality by 露露

Can you imagine trying to determine the quality of a shipment of bullets by firing them one after another? How would you know what quantity to test in the total order if the method destroys each bullet you test?

The U.S. military faced this exact problem during World War II. They wanted to check the quality of their munitions so that they could be confident the bullets would function properly in the field. But they didn’t want to test so many that there were none left to actually ship to the warfront. The solution they developed was MIL-STD-105, an important standard using acceptable quality levels (AQL). Later on, ANSI Z1.4 was developed from that original military standard, it became the most popular standard inspectors use today.

Why AQL sampling is widely used for QC inspection?

1. Sampling saves time during inspection

Inspecting every unit in an order of goods offers the greatest transparency and oversight. But 100% inspection takes long time. And if you’re like most importers, you’ve probably agreed with your customers to meet certain deadlines. The time needed to inspect every unit can require longer production and shipping lead times, especially when a team outside the factory will be conducting inspection.

Factory managers, in particular, often prefer inspection of a sample because of the time and human resources needed to check 100 percent. Inspection occurring after the packaging stage requires factory workers to repack every unit before shipping. Factory staff see inspection of certain samples to be less disruptive because they need to commit less time to assisting with the process.

2. 100% inspection is not practical for low-cost items

International sporting goods companies like Nike and Adidas, for example, produce millions of garments per year through contract manufacturers in Asia. It’s difficult for them to justify inspecting every unit coming off production lines while still meeting shipping deadlines. Inspecting certain samples takes relatively less time while still offering valuable insight into the average quality and conformance of an order.

3. Inspecting certain samples is cost effective

The cost of inspection is typically directly related to the time needed to inspect. For example, third-party inspection companies usually bill services in “man-days”, a daily rate for an inspector to remain at a factory checking and testing an order. A longer or more thorough inspection may require you to send more QC staff to a factory for longer time. The more days, or inspectors, needed on-site, the higher the cost of inspection.

Another cost consideration is the inspection and testing methods themselves. Just as inspecting bullets can include destructive testing, so too can inspecting other types of products. Accurately checking fabric density in a garment, for example, requires inspectors to cut a piece of fabric from a unit to measure. It’s usually best to conduct destructive testing on one unit of an order, because the testing destroys the sample.

AQL sampling, coupled with a carton pulling procedure that selects a truly representative sample from a production lot, offers a statistically significant result showing the average order quality. Most importers rely on sampling for inspection because they can get a reasonable idea of how closely an order meets their expectations without paying to inspect every unit.

4. AQL sampling offers clear inspection results

Since acceptance sampling is based on statistics, it produces inspection results that are relatively clear and easy to interpret. AQL sets specific limits for the number of defects found in a particular sample size. The inspection result is “fail” when the number of defects found exceeds a particular limit. And you can make a relatively easy decision to accept or reject based on this result.

5. AQL standards are highly flexible

AQL is highly flexible because it allows you to customize your quality tolerance for your product and for the three types of quality defects: critical, major and minor. Consumer products often use AQLs of 0, 2.5 and 4.0 for critical, major and minor defects, respectively. You might require stricter AQLs for high-value items, such as luxury watches. You might also have customers with strict standards that require you to use lower AQLs. AQL sampling allows you to choose the quality tolerances that are best for you.

Conclusion

By inspecting certain samples of an order with AQL, you can apply black and white standards to a production lot without inspecting every unit. AQL provides you with statistically significant insight into your order in a clear, cost-effective and efficient manner so that you can make shipping decision quickly.

Category: Shopify Tutorial