QualityInspection.org

Quality Assurance, Product Development, and Purchasing Strategies in China

The Biggest Manufacturing Risk These Days: Short Term Focus

Back in February (which seems to be a long time ago), I wrote that that number 1 manufacturing risk for importers was quality issues and the number 2 was delivery delays. (I also mentioned "lower demand on your market" because we were "getting to the end of a long cycle of economic expansion". That proved to be number 1 risk, actually!) But, let's get back to the suppliers' quality & delivery performance and why short term focus has continued to impact them and their reliability... … [Read more...]

Supply Chain Risk Management, Part 2: The Business Continuity Plan

In this post, let's focus on disaster recovery, and more specifically on the business continuity plan, with a simple example. We will also provide you with a free template. This is the second post in our series of Supply Chain Risk Management, which will come out gradually over the next few months. … [Read more...]

Requirements To Import PPE: You Need To Go Beyond Certificates

There is a serious emergency right now to procure and import PPE. I know. Manufacturers are overloaded with requests from buyers, and they can't (won't) spend much time responding to requests. I know! Nearly all the importers I talked to were concerned about the manufacturers' formal authorization to sell PPE and medical gear on their market. But very few wanted to go deeper than that. However, as you buy products that are actually intended to save lives, should you throw all proper due … [Read more...]

Verifying Certificates for Masks, Gloves, and Other PPE from China

These days, it seems everybody has jumped on the same 'PPE' bandwagon. In China, hundreds (maybe thousands) of manufacturers have seized this opportunity. Many of them have zero experience in the medical field, or in any regulated industry for that matter. And, all over the world, buyers are looking for personal protective equipment (PPE) and related medical products. Again, a minority of them have a full understanding of the implications of what they are getting into. The … [Read more...]

Supply Chain Risk Management, Part 1: What are VUCA and Black Swans?

We seem to be at a pretty low point right now: Billions of people are confined at home. Economists are predicting a disaster and seem to think 2020 will probably be worse than what most of us can remember. The behavior and effects of this novel coronavirus are still partly unknown. It could still mutate and become more dangerous, for example. And, most amazing of all: the situation has been changing dramatically every 1 or 2 weeks. I am starting this new series on supply chain … [Read more...]