Last week, the new ISO 26000 standard was officially published. Here is its brief overview: It is intended to promote common understanding in the field of social responsibility, and to complement other instruments and initiatives for … [Read more...]
Hidden commissions between China factories and sourcing agents
Five years ago, when I was working in Hong Kong, one of my friends (who imports from France) asked me for help. I found a few potential suppliers for her, I arranged some meetings on a Saturday, and I accompanied her in the suppliers' … [Read more...]
China’s village community system
About 6 months ago, I wrote an article entitled Are Chinese Suppliers Trying To Screw The Foreigners? My point was that foreigners were an easy target because of their typical unpreparedness, but not more desirable as a target than other … [Read more...]
Training of in-house inspectors in China: too often neglected
This summer, we helped an importer understand why their in-house inspectors were regularly failing to signal quality problems. The purchasing manager was suspecting complacency, not to mention bribes. I sent one of my best inspectors to … [Read more...]
A guide for successful production in China
Dan Harris, from the China Law Blog, just published the text of a speech he gave about outsourcing issues in emerging markets (including China, Vietnam, India...). It is FULL of insights for importers. I think it makes for an excellent … [Read more...]
When a China factory invokes IP ownership
Intellectual property (IP) ownership is a frequent cause of dispute between importers and Chinese suppliers. If you bring your own design or your own tooling, they might use it for other customers or share it with other factories. But … [Read more...]
Best blogs about sourcing in China
Some readers ask me about other blogs providing advice about China sourcing or China business in general. I listed a few good blogs below (in no particular order--they are all good). Silk Road International blog: David lives in Shenzhen … [Read more...]
How to use quality inspectors to define specifications for your China factory
Until recently, I was thinking quality inspectors could only intervene during or after production. After all, it takes an engineer (or someone with deep product knowledge) to define what the factory should make, right? There are two … [Read more...]
China production: keeping your quality standard up
I got an interesting question from a reader. One aspect of the products he received from his Chinese supplier is not up to his quality standard, but his sales team insisted to place the goods on the market anyway. How to push the factory to … [Read more...]
How does a random quality inspection work? [infographic]
![How does a random quality inspection work? [infographic]](https://qualityinspection.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/shutterstock71358019.jpg)
On the last trade show I attended, I noticed that I explained over and over again how we perform random quality inspections. There must be a better way to pass this message. A graphic designer helped me render it visually, and here is … [Read more...]
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