This article introduces the different AQL inspection levels available to buyers. Those levels are mentioned in the ISO 2859-1 standard (or its American equivalent, ANSI/ASQC Z1.4). Let’s explore the different levels of random inspections, and how they affect the size of the samples your inspector will pull out of each batch during an inspection. … [Read more...]
Free Samples from Potential Chinese Suppliers: A Positive Sign?
If you find 30 potential suppliers that all seem capable of making the product you want, how to pick the best one? With B2B platforms like Alibaba and Global Sources, many buyers ask themselves that question. And an easy answer is "I will ask for free samples and see who says yes and makes good-looking samples". … [Read more...]
What is the “AQL” (Acceptance Quality Limit) in simple terms?
What Does AQL Mean? 'AQL' stands for 'Acceptance Quality Limit', and is defined as the "quality level that is the worst tolerable" in ISO 2859-1. It represents the maximum number of defective units, beyond which a batch is rejected. Importers usually set different AQLs for critical, major, and minor defects. Most Asian exporters are familiar with this type of setting. For example: "AQL is 1.5%" means "I want no more than 1.5% defective items in the whole order quantity, on average over … [Read more...]
The Different Sampling Plans Contained in the ISO 2859 Series
The vast majority of inspectors follow the ISO 2859-1 standard. But about ISO 2859-2, -3, and so on? The relationship between these parts is explained in ISO 2859-10:2006 (introduction to the ISO 2859 series of standards for sampling for inspection by attributes): ⎯ Part 1: Sampling schemes indexed by acceptance quality limit (AQL) for lot-by-lot inspection ⎯ Part 2: Sampling plans indexed by limiting quality (LQ) for isolated lot inspection ⎯ Part 3: Skip-lot sampling procedures ⎯ … [Read more...]