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For importers, it’s important to have its own inspector or 3-rd party inspector to do quality inspection prior to shipment, however, the process and exact work details are daunting for most new importers.  Most product inspections follow a process with several specific steps. When an inspection goes wrong, it’s most often because steps weren’t clear, or inspectors otherwise didn’t follow them according to the buyer’s instructions. 1. Pulling random samples for inspection Most importers know the importance of pulling random samples during QC inspection using a statistically-significant acceptance sampling method. Without pulling samples randomly, you risk getting a report that doesn’t fairly represent the quality of the entire shipment. Factory staff can actually hinder inspection accuracy if permitted to choose which units will be checked. Some may “cherry pick” samples or direct inspectors to check units they know will meet requirements from a specific area of the warehouse. 2. Checking the product against…

A quality checklist refers to a document that outlines quality requirements and specifications in a clear and concise manner for your supplier. An effective quality control checklist template should cover the following technical areas. 1. Packaging requirements This first major section should contain details about the shipper carton, any inner carton and any retail carton or packaging. Packaging requirements are important for your supplier to reference here, regardless of whether you will verify packaging during inspection. The packaging section should typically contain the following:  A.    Packaging weight and dimensions B.    Shipper carton labeling and marking requirements C.   Shipper carton material requirements (e.g. single or double layer, binding method, white or brown cardboard) D.   Packaging method and assortment E.    Retail packaging printings, graphics and labeling Product requirements shown on the quality control sheet should include: A.    Product weight and dimensions B.    Material and construction C.   Product color (consider including Pantone color codes where applicable) D.   Markings and labeling (e.g. UL…

When a company purchases items from a vendor, a quality inspection is usually necessary. There are various quality inspections in supply chain such as inspections during the manufacturing process, inspection of the final finished product, and inspections while the items are stored in the warehouse. 1. Importance of Inspection of Purchased Items The quality inspection occurs so that a company can verify that the product is within certainly prescribed tolerances in order for the product to be useful. For example, a company may purchase a paint additive to be used in their manufacturing process, but before it can be used, it has to be inspected to see that the chemical and physical composition of the additive is within the tolerances to be used in the process. When a purchasing agreement is made with a vendor, it will define the characteristics of the product that are to be inspected and the tolerances that would be…

Successfully sourcing your products from China implies being careful and diligent about each step of the manufacturing process. QC (Quality Control) is one important step that responsible importers implement at some stages of their production, usually before shipment because it is believed to be the most cost-efficient stage for quality control. Pre-shipment inspections are best sellers in the 3rd party QC industry; they are performed when production is finished (or almost finished). But without earlier preparation and follow-up with the factory, these inspections might present a few risks that you need to consider: 1. Costly Rework: Identifying defects late during the production cycle involves higher costs of rework and repair. Unpacking all the finished goods, sorting the defective products, reworking or changing them and repacking them again is costly. 2. Negative impact on Time-to-Market: If problems are found, repairing them often delays the shipment of your goods, which might affect your time…

Successful sourcing from China is the result of a systematic approach and hard work. Shortcuts may seem smart, but most often, they result in delays or failure. I am always surprised by how often, even large organization, will be tempted by these shortcuts. Per our experience, below 7-step approach is required to succeed in sourcing products from China.  1. Initial preparation Many China sourcing initiatives run into trouble because of decisions made or not made at the outset. Unclear targets, unrealistic expectations, lack of resources and many similar aspects, if overlook, will cause project delays and waste of energy. Successful companies have thoroughly prepared their project. For example, they dedicate initial time in order to: Define specific ranges of products for sourcing, based on an analysis of volume, labor content, technical complexity and other technical, logistics and commercial aspects. Spell out clear objectives in terms of cost target, volume ramp-up, sourcing project budget and supplier…

For e-commerce sellers, it makes great sense to source directly from China. However, the whole process is complicated, there are many possibilities to cause quality issues. Following are the 5 main reasons I learned from my 20-year experience in sourcing business. 1. Miscommunication Miscommunication is the most important reason for most quality issues. Do not believe that your supplier understands your specifications and your expectations clearly after they’ve been told once. Usually, you are most likely communicating with someone who doesn’t speak English as their first language. Also, you’re most likely talking to the salesperson, who in turn has to communicate requirements to engineers and production staff. And it’s not uncommon for things to get lost in translation or for requirements to not be clearly communicated to the assembly line. 2. Unclear instructions from the buyer Many e-commerce sellers assume suppliers will know their requirements. They are not particular about their specifications….

Now Amazon is one of the world’s largest shopping online platform, so there will be more and more sellers join to Amazon. With the development of science and technology, people like to shop online. Sometimes it is difficult to understand how to import goods from China and sell on Amazon. Here is a step by step guide to help you: Step 1 – Find the best seller for the product It is very important to verify that you’re sourcing products from a known and reputed manufacturer, and a good way to find this out is by evaluating online supplier reviews. It is also important for you to find out before making any investment that the product you are importing from China is allowed into the country you are trying to import. Before initiating any step, you should find out if the product you are importing needs any special permit or is banned. Once,…

Whether you decide to try a sourcing agent, continue sourcing on your own, or to use an online sourcing platform, you should still understand how to properly determine if a supplier is the right match for your ecommerce store.   Here are 5 factors you should consider when determining if a supplier is right. 1. Margin  It seems obvious that the price per unit needs to be low enough that you have room to take a healthy profit. However, there are many factors beyond price per unit to consider when determining the actual price of your products: Get a shipping quote: Distance, country of origin, and available shipping methods all have a major impact on the overall shipping price. Before committing to production, make sure you get quotes from your own freight forwarding partner or their internal shipping managers. Calculate customs duties: When importing goods, you may be subject to additional fees…