Let’s face it, inspection companies really justify their fees when they notice and signal quality problems. If there is never a problem, no need to send inspectors.

So, what to do when an inspection report shows an issue, and the buyer is not happy about it? It is amazing how many importers have no idea what to do in this case.

I found that some buyers let the supplier ship the goods out, whatever the inspector found, and then complain to the inspection firm after delivery. They somehow imagine that paying a quality control agency is enough to prevent the risks.

But QC is only a tool at their disposal, and they need to learn how to use this tool. It helps catch problems when they are still manageable, to avoid much greater damage down the supply chain. Inspections are regularly refused by buyers–it is part of the game.

What makes a difference is what happens after the refusal. What to do when a QC inspection fails – 6 steps, the latest article written by Andrew Reich on the Quality Wars blog, provides such a roadmap.

In January I wrote Re-inspections: the key is to manage corrective actions. I went into all the details of what a buyer should do to increase chances that the products pass a re-inspection. On the opposite, Andrew’s post boils his approach down to 6 steps, and makes it much more simple to follow for importers.

I suggest you go check it up.