Quality Inspection Agents in China

[lolliemcr]

Hi, I have ordered goods (furniture) from two different factories in China and would like to have them inspected before I pay the 70% balance. If you've used the services of a Quality Inspection Company, please could you share your experiences, good and bad? Is there a reputable company you'd be happy to recommend? Thanks

 

[ShippoUK]

There are many of these companies, a quick google search for 'quality inspection companies in ..... (area)' would throw up hundreds. it is always good to have an inspection carried out for peace of mind. Also, if you need a company to ship the furniture for you or if you have any other questions drop us a pm.

Daniel

 

[MOIC]

My advice is to use an inspection company in the province you have purchased the furniture, this should keep the costs down.

Also, you should ensure the following:

1. Make sure they have experience in the furniture you are buying, so they know EXACTLY what to look out for, not just count and look at the products.

2. Make sure the products are assembled when being checked. ( sometimes furniture comes flat packed, so they would need to erect 2 or 3 pcs to ensure they are correct and all components are included.

3. If any of the products require certification, ensure they are included AND ARE AUTHENTIC. This may be required for paints, varnishes etc which are used as well as wood may require an FSC certificate.

4. If goods are flat packed ensure all components are included, together with CLEAR AND PRECISE instructions in English.

5. Request at least 3 samples of previous reports the inspection company has done for THE SAME PRODUCTS as yours AND CHECK that the reports include all the areas you require to be examined.

6. Make a list of each different product you have ordered and request the inspection company pay attention to any SPECIFIC DETAILS you feel need special attention to when being examined and tested. These should include colour shades, finishes as well as any stress tests.

7. Ensure that the previous reports you see, as well as for your report , include comprehensive photos as well as a detailed written report on ALL THE ITEMS CHECKED, and this should be done to AQL standards, as a minimum. The photos should show all the shipment in detail and include EVERY CARTON IN THE SHIPMENT.

8. Defects should be clearly highlighted as well as showing detailed photographs of any problems and these should be repaired or replaced and rechecked.

9. You should consider the packaging covering the furniture, as many problems occur DURING shipping due to inadequate packing and packaging.

10. I would suggest using a company on ALIBABA, through their inspection services section, where you can see how many inspections they have made as well as compare costs, reports and ensure the reports they have prepared fit your requirements. Every report should have multiple photos of EACH product inspected and from different angles.

Generally, you should not pay any balance until you are satisfied that the goods are 100% perfect and packaged correctly for shipping, have all the required certificates and each carton has the correct details printed as well as any shipping mark you have requested.

You should also ask the inspection company to guarantee their work, should any problems come to light when you receive the shipment.

Good luck with your China purchases. a good inspection is VITAL.

 

[Directimport]

Hi, I have ordered goods (furniture) from two different factories in China and would like to have them inspected before I pay the 70% balance. If you've used the services of a Quality Inspection Company, please could you share your experiences, good and bad? Is there a reputable company you'd be happy to recommend? Thanks

Countless offers appear on forums from people in China who want to do quality assurance for importers. Some may be OK, but I would never try any that do not have a verifiable reputation.

For that reason I suggest that if you want a quality assurance inspection, it should be contracted to one of the old established European or US based inspection services operating in China, or ones accredited with the Hong Kong Accreditation Service, such as Sinotrust.

One US based service known to me is KRT Audit Corporation, operating for about 30 years in China. Intertek Group PLC is a UK based organization with impeccable credentials, established 130 years. SGS, originating in Switzerland is maybe 3 or 4 years older and is by far the biggest in the world. Both Intertek and SGS have massive worldwide operations.

 

[MOIC]

An inspection is only as good as the person carrying out the inspection, not the company that is employing the inspector.

What is important is that the inspector has expertise in the products he is inspecting and the content of the report is accurate, comprehensive in detail and can be discussed atterwards if need be.

International organisations in China are open to corruption as management are Chinese and the virtually all of the inspectors are Chinese.

In an ideal world, it's best to get a western inspector (not company) to carry out the inspection and be able to liaise with you directly.

This is in addition to my previous post.

 

[lolliemcr]

Thank you all for your advice, it is very much appreciated. I looked on Alibaba but after a quick look at the reviews, I wasn't convinced the ratings were genuine. Even so, I contacted the inspection company with the highest ratings. Their sample reports looked thorough enough but instead of answering my questions they only seemed interested in booking my inspection in. I have decided to use KRT Asia Inspect, a US based company with inspectors based in the same town as the factories I've ordered from. They are more expensive than the inspectors on Alibaba but I think it will be money well spent.

 

[Directimport]

Thank you all for your advice, it is very much appreciated. I looked on Alibaba but after a quick look at the reviews, I wasn't convinced the ratings were genuine. Even so, I contacted the inspection company with the highest ratings. Their sample reports looked thorough enough but instead of answering my questions they only seemed interested in booking my inspection in. I have decided to use KRT Asia Inspect, a US based company with inspectors based in the same town as the factories I've ordered from. They are more expensive than the inspectors on Alibaba but I think it will be money well spent.

Glad to have been of help.

The point made by MYOFFICINCHINA is very important. There is a great deal of corruption in China, and that includes the use of fake certificates and fake reviews. There is a big business in selling reviews.

From what I know of KRT, I expect that you will be very satisfied.

 

[Maple Sourcing]

I've been experienced in furniture, and learned it's a lot more complicated than regular hard-goods.

Besides of the good points provided by MYOFFICINCHINA, I'd like to add a few reminders:

1) Pay much attention to packing, if you do not specially mention before you place order, suppliers will always use the cheapest and most convenient packing way --- convenient for them not for you, usually not safe enough for international shipping; even it's safe for container shipping, after you unload from container, you may need to ship to your stores, the packing may be not safe. In a few cases, the cartons were so thin and soft that I can easily penetrate it with one finger.

2) When there's glass, you better pack it with extra protection. If it's flat glass, you may put polyfoam on top & bottom and ALL EDGES to secure the glass. Most important is to make sure the glass will not move during transportation. If it's not flat glass, you may have to use wooden crate to secure & protect.

3) When real wood packages (such as wood crates, wood pallets) are used, you have to officially do fumigation, ask your forwarder how to apply for it, will cost around 100GBP. A government accredited fumigation organization will send someone to container loading site, check all packages, and chop on wood packages. The fumigation guy will not allow any humid wood, wood skin, moulded or degenerative wood. Make sure you check them by your QC beforehand, or it'll be too late to correct if problems are detected by the fumigation guy. After container is fully loaded, it will be sent to fumigation organization's location then someone will put a special smog inside container and seal the container, and detain the container for a few hours. --- Hopefully any insects/worms would be killed by the smog.

4) It's very important to tell your QC to assemble a few furniture onsite (as more as possible but it takes lots of time). A professional QC should insist to assemble by himself not by factory worker, then he would stand at customer's point of view to know if the instructions are clear, if all parts are complete, and if any special tools are needed.

5) But in most cases, I doubt there will be an English manual with clear instructions at all! Better check it before you place order.

 

[scribe0101]

Hello all,

First time poster.

I've found this thread very useful indeed. The issue that's giving me a headache at the moment is the CE certification.

I am (or maybe was), thinking of importing small electrical items like LED lamps, low voltage power supplies etc..., and even looked at small fridges (drinks cooler type things). Reading into certification, it seems I not only need to be sure of certification of any sample I receive, but also of individual production runs. I can't import a batch and have it tested myself as I believe certification is required for customs clearance (not to mention the risk of being left with crates of junk if they fail).

A lot of producers on Alibaba would claim their product was CE certified, but I am suspicious, especially when the items would only manufactured when I order them.

Do these inspection companies offer CE certification services? I'm finding information on this sketchy at best, or it could be I've lost my ability to accurately search the internet)

Thanks in advance

Chris

 

[scribe0101]

Hello all,

Do these inspection companies offer CE certification services? I

I've just looked at KRT Asia Inspect and it seems they do indeed offer this service. They have a very good clear website.

Any other examples of companies who do this, especially if you have used them successfully would be much appreciated.

Regards

Chris

 

[MOIC]

We offer a Supplier Evaluation service, which would cover CE verification.

http://myofficeinchina.com/buy-in-china/china-supplier-evaluation-investigation-audit/

Feel free to email me directly or call for a chat.

Contact details are in the website in the link in my signature.

 

[Directimport]

I recently checked out the listings for Inspection Services on Alibaba and found that most if not all of them are obsolete. There was no information more recent than 2013.

Rates shown are no longer relevant. One of the larger services quotes $103 for a certain service, but their current rate is $180.

It should also be noted that forging of certificates is endemic in China. Even if you are provided with an up to date CE Certificate, it might be a forgery. The big certification services have a search facility on their websites that will allow you to check the validity of a certificate.

I checked on out recently and this warning came up: "Fake CE conformance certificates are a growing menace in the safety industry. An increasing number of products are being sold, which have never been properly tested and are accompanied by fake CE certificates. This is putting lives at risk and exposing employers to possible prosecution. The certificate shown on the right is a fake, supposedly issued by a Anbotek test house, but in reality this product was never tested by them. The product does not perform to the strict requirements of EN xxxxx"

TUV Rheinland publishes a blacklist of companies in countries everywhere who have improperly claimed that they have been certified by TUV.

Take care. KRT will look after you, as will the other big operators I mentioned in my post of Jan 5. They will provide correct certificates.

Hello all,

First time poster.

I've found this thread very useful indeed. The issue that's giving me a headache at the moment is the CE certification.

I am (or maybe was), thinking of importing small electrical items like LED lamps, low voltage power supplies etc..., and even looked at small fridges (drinks cooler type things). Reading into certification, it seems I not only need to be sure of certification of any sample I receive, but also of individual production runs. I can't import a batch and have it tested myself as I believe certification is required for customs clearance (not to mention the risk of being left with crates of junk if they fail).

A lot of producers on Alibaba would claim their product was CE certified, but I am suspicious, especially when the items would only manufactured when I order them.

Do these inspection companies offer CE certification services? I'm finding information on this sketchy at best, or it could be I've lost my ability to accurately search the internet)

Thanks in advance

Chris

 

[brandy11112]

I think if you cooperate with the factory for the first time you'd better inspect the products yourself

 

[BillWong]

The factory visiting might be a good Choice.

 

[IKA]

What kind of inspector do you want to hire in China? (hope this article will help you)

We have done a lot of trial-and-error over the years, and here are the types of inspectors that we have come across. I have listed the profiles in my order of preference.

1. The employee with experience in a trading company

He used to be a purchaser, a salesperson, a merchandiser (as they are called in the garment industry)… in some kind of office role, but he often travelled to factories.

We’ve had great success with this profile.

Pros: he might be able to speak good English and to prepare a nice report on a computer; she knows a product category relatively well; he understands the “big picture” and can evolve later in the company.

Cons: he needs training in the QC procedure; he might have high salary expectations in the mid-to-long run.

2. The inspector with experience in a factory

If you need to set up a QC team, this is an excellent complement to the No. 1 profile.

My ideal candidate is young, he still remembers the basics of English, and is willing to learn something new.

Pros: low cost, very motivated to “make it out of the factory”, Cons: long learning curve (he needs to be coached by an experienced inspector for several months until he can write a professional report).

3. The inspector with experience in a trading company

he was trained as a QC inspector by a trading company (or the buying office of an importer).

Pro: he is not used to gaming a system, and he was usually followed closely by her manager.

Cons: she might not be able to read English specifications or write a report in English; he probably never had a clear procedure to do her job.

4. The inspector coming from the QC industry

he has previous experience in a third-party QC firm.

Pros: ready to hit the ground running; good at explaining general concepts about QC.

Con: sometimes displays a “mercenary” attitude (doesn’t stay in the long run, and is not particularly trustworthy).

Once they have a good resume (after working for 5 years for a famous company like SGS, for example), they know they will find a new job easily after you fire them. So they don’t have much of an incentive to work hard and to be honest.

Remember, in China very few employers conduct reference checks on their new hires.

5. The fresh graduate

This candidate will need heavy training, and a mentorship program at the beginning. It will work only if the senior inspectors have a good mentality, respect their work, and show a good behavior. If they are a bad example, it will be duplicated on the new hires.P.S. they will work with low price, because it’s their first step to business, so they need experience.

The fundamental trait you must be looking for

The most important trait to look for is rigor.

If a candidate doesn’t like to follow rules and does not give attention to details, he will be a bad inspector.

 

[IKA]

if your product isn't so specific , find some native English speaker who's studying in China and is able to speak Chinese well , no need any Quality checking company , it's too expensive.

 

[Maple Sourcing]

You may find quite a few recommended by Global Sources: http://www.globalsources.com/NEWS/SIC-verified-sourcing-QC-inspection-agencies-China.HTM