How To Make Sure Your Needs Are Met

When deciding which company you should work with, the question to consider is: Which company will be able to meet ALL of your needs? Furthermore, are your products going to serve your customers exactly the way you intend them to?

These are important questions to ask yourself because your products represent your brand and your company. If your products are shipped incorrectly or damaged, for example, that reflects negatively upon your business.

Another big question to consider: Is your product really as good as you advertise it to be? Utilizing during production inspections and post-production inspections ensures the quality of your company’s products. Rather than merely crossing your fingers and hoping for the best, you need to monitor that everything is under perfect control.

That’s exactly where third party quality assurance services come into play. Inspections are crucial to your company's success – as are Lab Testing Services, where it is determined whether or not the product meets international standards, to ensuring that your vendor follows requirements, to training and consulting services. Executing these quality assurance services on a regular basis is a key component of any successful company. 

How Needs Are Changing & Growing

Are you happy with how your needs are being met by your current provider but not sure if their services are robust enough to support your growth? As your company grows, your service needs may expand as well.

In the early stages of a company, an inspector may only be needed once or twice every month. Additional services can become necessary when your company gains traction in it’s specified field. Have you found that your company needs full time inspection resources? If this is true, you might consider training an internal employee full time on quality inspection services. You will find that hiring a full time inspector will help you achieve efficiency, timeliness, and better quality products within your expanding company.

What Are Your Needs?

Third party companies offer a variety of services. That being said, you should focus on the specific services that best apply to your business. How do you know if you need pre-shipment inspections or assistance with C-TPAT? Are there environmental factors that need to be taken into account? There are many important details to keep in mind.

Key Considerations for Inspection Before Delivery:

1. It is crucial that you know what is being shipped from your suppliers. Testing your products before the inspection process will help minimize the risk of importing unsuitable merchandise.
2. Do you need Social Accountability Audits, Security/C-TPAT Assessments, Factory Quality, or Capability and Capacity Assessments? If you want to minimize product recalls, ensure quality production, and a stable workforce, the answer is yes
3. If your company has safety requirements for its products, there is increased risk. You need to make sure these requirements are met before the products are shipped.
4. Knowing that your products are shipped exactly the way they were intended is the last step in guaranteeing a successful product shipment.

Not every third party service provider assists companies with everything from A to Z. Some ONLY perform product inspections, some ONLY assist with logistics. You may need the full package as opposed to specific services. Truly understanding your company's needs is key to choosing a service provider that meets your requirements.

The safety of a customer who is receiving products is always on the minds of suppliers, manufacturers and producers. Within the last couple of years, safety regulations were put in place not to just reduce the potential for injury to consumers, but also to protect retailers. Does your product have a liability associated with it? If so, you need to take precautions to minimize those potential liabilities. Not just safety requirements. Training and consulting your own staff may also help address potential problems. 

What Could Go Wrong? A Lot.

Needs are growing and changing every day. This requires businesses to maintain flexibility and adapt to these changes as well.

If your products fail to meet federal labeling requirements, they are required to be permanently labeled with a safety statement. Also, if death or harm occurs to your consumer, lawsuits can arise.

In today’s marketplace it is vital to consider social and ethical compliance. It’s all about the people who contribute to your company’s success. That is why it is necessary to inspect workplace health and safety, wages, working hours, and possible discrimination. Corporate social responsibility is increasingly playing a role in consumer decisions. 

Quality Fade: When companies start out supplying high quality products, but start cutting corners in alarming ways.