What happens on site during a pre-shipment inspection

This article describes common industry practice, not official rules.

A pre-shipment inspection usually runs in a fixed order: the inspector arrives and opens a meeting with the factory, the packed quantity is checked against the purchase order, cartons are chosen at random, packing and markings are looked at, the product is checked against the approved sample and your specification, defects are recorded by type, the inspected cartons are sealed or marked as agreed, and the visit closes with a meeting and a written report.

What can change is the depth of each step, how the factory prepares, and what you agreed beforehand. Those details are what you settle before the visit — see what to agree before a pre-shipment inspection.

What the buyer usually sends before the visit

Inspectors work from documents the buyer provides. Sending them late usually means a shorter or narrower check on site. A common set is:

• An inspection checklist saying which points matter for this order, and which on-site tests you want run.
• The approved sample, or clear photos of it, so appearance, workmanship, measurements and functions can be compared against something fixed.
• The specification, with the tolerances written down rather than described in general terms.
• Packing instructions, including carton marks, labels, shipping marks, and how the cartons should be stacked or sealed.
• The purchase order and, where relevant, the bill of materials.

If the goods are a repeat order, a previous report can help the inspector focus, but it does not replace the current specification.

What the factory usually prepares

Factories that are used to inspections commonly arrange the goods to be accessible, keep the packing materials and labels on site, and have a person who can answer questions about the order. Where the buyer has asked for function tests, the factory will often have the equipment and the people to demonstrate them.

Whether a legal or certification requirement applies is for the regulator or an accredited laboratory to confirm.

Arrival and the opening meeting

The visit usually starts with a short meeting. The inspector states the scope of the check and the standard the parties agreed, and the factory explains the production situation, including anything finished later than planned or packed differently.

This is the point to raise anything unusual. A model change, a substitute material, or a last-minute packing change is easier to discuss here than at the closing meeting.

Checking the packed quantity

The inspector compares what is packed against the purchase order. In many cases this is a count of the lot against the packing list, plus a look at whether the cartons and their contents match what was ordered.

Quantity disagreements surface here more easily than later at the port, when the container has already been sealed.

Choosing cartons at random

Sampling decides which cartons get opened. The cartons the factory happens to bring out are chosen by the inspector rather than by the factory, which is the point — goods packed carefully on the outside and poorly in the middle would otherwise never be seen.

The size of the sample and how it is drawn are set in the agreement, not decided on the spot.

Packing and markings

Cartons are checked for the points you specified: material and strength, cushioning, carton marks, labels, shipping marks, and language on the documentation. If the factory has applied its own stickers or shipping marks, this is where differences show up.

Markings that a buyer asks for and the factory has not seen before can take longer to check, which is another reason to send packing instructions early.

Checking against the approved sample and the specification

Opened cartons are examined against the approved sample and the written specification. Depending on what you asked for, this covers appearance, workmanship, measurements, functions, and any on-site tests named in the inspection instructions.

Results are recorded as pass or fail against each point, with findings described rather than scored against a table you have not agreed.

Recording defects by type

Defects are usually logged by type — critical, major, minor — with a short description and the carton they came from. This matters because it tells you what the lot looks like as a whole, and it drives what happens next.

Whether the lot passes, is held, or is re-inspected comes from the acceptance criteria set in the agreement, not from the inspector's preference.

Sealing or marking the inspected cartons

If the parties agreed to it, the inspector applies a seal or marks the cartons that were opened, so they can be recognised at loading. Where the factory refuses and the buyer still wants it, that disagreement is usually noted in the report.

A container loading check on the same visit covers whether the right cartons are actually loaded. See how the inspection types compared.

The closing meeting

The inspector reports findings to the factory, and the factory responds. In many cases this is where a defect count gets disputed, or where the factory proposes sorting, rework, or replacement before loading.

It is a discussion, not a decision. What was agreed at the start is what the report is measured against.

The inspection report

The written report usually lists the scope, the cartons sampled, the findings by defect type, photographs, and the conclusion against the agreed acceptance criteria. A re-inspection clause in the agreement usually says who pays for it and what has to change first.

Reports vary a lot in format, so it helps to read one before you need it — how to read an inspection report covers what to look at and what is useful to ask the inspection company before booking.

Do I need to be on site?

Usually not. A common arrangement is that the factory receives the inspector, and the buyer gets the report. Buyers sometimes travel or ask a third party that is not the factory or the seller to be present, and either way the brief still has to reach the inspector in advance.

Can the factory choose which cartons get opened?

No. Sampling is usually left to the inspector for that reason. If the factory has a preference, a common approach is to agree it in writing in advance, in the same document as the acceptance criteria.

What happens if defects are found?

It depends on what you agreed. Options commonly include sorting or rework before loading, replacement, a hold pending your decision, or a re-inspection. The report records the finding; the resolution follows the agreement.

Does the report replace a lab test?

Usually not. On-site checks cover appearance, workmanship, measurements and the function tests you asked for. Whether a specific laboratory test applies to your product is for an accredited laboratory to confirm.

How do I brief an inspector?

Give them the checklist, the approved sample or photos, the specification with tolerances, the packing instructions, and the on-site tests you want. The inspection checklist generator on this site helps put that list together before booking.

Who pays for the inspection?

Buyers usually order and pay for a pre-shipment inspection themselves, which is why the scope and acceptance criteria are set in their own agreement rather than left to the factory. Costs and payment terms are usually confirmed in writing with the inspection company before the visit.