Quality and inspection
Five checkpoints between the purchase order and the container door, and a document pack that arrives with the goods. This page describes what actually happens, not what a brochure says happens.
Five checkpoints
Specification approval, before production
Nothing is ordered until the written specification is approved in writing by both sides. The specification names the standard and version, the performance levels, the materials, the dimensions, the marking, the labelling and the packing. It becomes the acceptance criteria for every later stage.
Incoming material check, during production
Yarn, fibre and fabric are verified against the specification at the start of the run, not only at the end. For gloves this means the yarn and coating chemistry; for slings, the webbing and the label stock. This is where a lot of problems are still cheap to fix.
In-line labelling and dimensional checks
Label accuracy is checked as cartons are packed — the cut level code, the standard reference, the size, the batch number, the WLL on a sling. A mislabelled carton is the fastest way to make a compliant product non-compliant, and it is invisible once the container is closed.
Pre-shipment inspection
A full inspection against the approved specification on the packed goods, with photographic evidence: carton marks, labels, product, packaging. AQL sampling plan is agreed in advance where you want one. If it fails, the goods are corrected or replaced before shipping — not after.
Document reconciliation before release
The document pack is checked against what was actually inspected: report references match batch numbers, declarations reference the right standard version, carton marks match the packing list. We release the shipment only when the paperwork and the goods describe the same object.
The document pack
Every shipment leaves with the same core set, tailored to the product and the destination market.
Commercial
- Proforma and commercial invoice
- Packing list with carton dimensions and weights
- Bill of lading or airway bill
- Certificate of origin where the destination requires it
- Insurance certificate on CIF terms
Technical & compliance
- EN 388 or EN 1492 test report on the production material
- EN ISO 20471 / ANSI/ISEA 107 report for hi-vis cooling vests, with the class stated
- Cooling curve report and pack material safety statement for cooling vests
- EU Declaration of Conformity with the standard version stated
- UKCA declaration for UK-bound shipments
- Technical file summary: materials, construction, shelf life, storage
Logistics & traceability
- Carton marks matching the packing list
- Batch and lot traceability to the test report
- Barcode or EAN / UPC data where supplied
- User instructions in the end-market language
- Inspection report with photographs
PPE placed on the EU market must comply with Regulation (EU) 2016/425, not the older 89/686/EEC directive. Category I products are self-certified by the manufacturer. Categories II and III require an EU type examination, and Category III additionally requires involvement of a notified body. Where a product is harmonised under EN 388 or EN 1492, the declaration of conformity must state the standard and its version date. If your supplier cannot tell you which category your product falls into, that is a conversation to have before the order, not after.
US and Canadian buyers usually specify ANSI/ISEA 105 for cut resistance and ANSI/ISEA 138 for impact, with the levels graded numerically rather than alphabetically. These are not the same scale as EN 388 and cannot be converted. Tell us the market at enquiry stage and we will quote the correct marking.
When we commission an independent lab
A factory's own test report is worth what it is worth. Where a performance claim carries contractual weight — a cut level you are guaranteeing to your customer, a WLL on a lifting sling — we commission the test on an independent laboratory's terms.
In practice this is applied to new suppliers, new materials, new factories and any product where the claim is unusually high relative to the price. It also covers the case where you want a report that your own technical department can accept without a second opinion.
- SGS, BV, TÜV, Intertek or an equivalent named laboratory
- Test report issued in the name of the buyer where required
- Report reference printed on the label so paperwork and goods are linked
- Re-testing after a material or process change, because the old report no longer covers the product
How the goods are packed
Packing is where a good product gets damaged, so it is specified rather than left to the factory's default.
- Gloves: 12 pairs per inner box, 4 or 6 inner boxes per carton, carton size chosen for your warehouse racking
- Slings: individual polybag with the label visible, cartons sized to keep slings from deforming in transit
- Cooling vests: individual polybag, carry bag included; ice packs packed separately as their own carton line with their own barcodes, so a reorder does not require re-ordering the vests
- All: your carton marks, your labels, your barcodes, and desiccant or protection where the product needs it
We load to a documented plan and take loading photos. Slings and cooling vests are light for their volume, so the practical constraint is usually cube rather than weight — and a plan that ignores that means paying freight on air.
Ask us for the document pack on a trial order.
We would rather you judge the paperwork on a small shipment than on a container. Send one product and one specification, and see what arrives with it.