Quality Control in China and Asia: The Complete Guide

Why quality control matters when you buy in China

When you import into the EU, you are responsible for the product: if it is unsafe or non-compliant, the authorities can block it, pull it from shelves or order a recall at your cost. A defect caught at the factory costs a rework; found at destination, it costs the whole lot.

When you import a product into the European Union, you take responsibility for it on the European market. If it is unsafe or non-compliant, the authorities can block it at the border, withdraw it from shelves or order a recall from consumers, at your cost and in front of your customers. The EU General Product Safety Regulation also requires every lot to be identifiable: our guide quality control and traceability details what to document.

These figures come from Safety Gate, the EU rapid alert system for dangerous non-food products. Every alert is a product that reached Europe with a defect that a factory inspection or a lab test could have caught: small parts that detach from a toy, a charger that fails the dielectric strength test, a chair that tips over, a banned phthalate in a plastic. They are part of our Quality Observatory, alongside product recalls in France and imports from China, updated every week. For your own product, the Product Defects Monitor brings together the alerts and recalls of equivalent products and shows the defects that come back most often.

Distance is the other risk. The “sales manager” you met at a trade show or on an online platform is often not employed by the factory and has little control over production. Specifications get lost in translation, raw materials are changed to save costs, and problems are discovered only when the container is opened. A defect found at the factory costs a rework. The same defect found at destination costs the whole shipment.

Third-party quality control puts independent eyes in the factory, at the moments that matter. That is the job of LPI Quality. Should you rather inspect yourself or outsource? It depends on the product and how often you order. To compare providers, see how to choose an inspection company in China.

The five stages of product inspection

A production inspection plan has five stages: initial production check, during-production inspection, production monitoring, pre-shipment inspection and container loading check. Pre-shipment is the most common; the right mix depends on the product, the supplier’s track record and the shipment value.

An inspection plan follows the life of your order. You do not need every stage on every order: the right mix depends on the product, the supplier’s track record and the value of the shipment. See all our inspection services.

For a new product, a first article inspection (FAI) can come before these five stages: the very first pieces from the series tooling are checked against the drawings and the approved sample before production starts.

AQL sampling: how many pieces are checked?

For a 5,000-piece lot at inspection level II, the inspector checks 200 pieces under AQL (ISO 2859-1). The lot is rejected at 1 critical defect, 11 major defects (AQL 2.5) or 15 minor defects (AQL 4.0).

Inspecting 100% of a production is rarely possible. Inspections therefore use the AQL (Acceptable Quality Level) sampling method defined by ISO 2859-1 (formerly MIL-STD-105E). It tells the inspector how many pieces to check and how many defects are acceptable, depending on three settings:

• Lot size: the quantity ordered.
• Inspection level: level II is the normal level; level I checks fewer pieces, level III more. Lower the level when a supplier has been reliable, raise it after a failed inspection.
• AQL per type of defect: critical defects make the product unsafe or illegal, major defects affect its use or saleability, minor defects do not compromise the sale but must be limited. For consumer products the usual settings are 0 critical, 2.5 major and 4.0 minor.

Example for an order of 5,000 pieces at inspection level II (code letter L):

Agree on the AQL levels with your factory before placing the order and write them into the purchase order: when an inspection fails, you can then legitimately ask the supplier to rework the goods and pay for the re-inspection. Our AQL calculator gives the sample size and limits for any order, our AQL guide explains inspection levels and the ANSI Z1.4 equivalent, and our glossary explains the vocabulary.

Assessing a supplier before you order: factory audits

Before your first order, check that the supplier is a real manufacturer and can deliver: desk-based due diligence, an initial factory evaluation or a full technical audit, depending on the stakes. Social and environmental audits add to this for exposed brands.

Most quality problems start with the choice of supplier. Before placing an order, especially a first one, you need to know who you are dealing with and whether the factory can actually deliver: that is the role of quality assurance, which complements the control of each order (see quality assurance vs quality control).

A first check is free and can be done from your desk, in China’s public registers: company licence, court records, product alerts and location. Our guide how to verify a Chinese supplier walks you through them, and the one on the Canton Fair applies them to exhibitors you meet at the show. It does not replace a visit to the factory.

Due diligence

A desk check of the company: business licences and declared activity, shareholders, lawsuits and reputation issues in official local databases, and a short interview in Chinese to check the facts. It reveals whether you are dealing with a real manufacturer or a trading company, and who the decision maker is. Supplier due diligence.

Initial factory evaluation (IFE)

A lighter on-site visit, well suited before a one-off order, to check that the factory has the capacity to meet your requirements. Initial factory evaluation.

Technical quality audit

The full factory audit, recommended for a long-term relationship, based on ISO 9000 principles: factory profile and licences, workforce and QC staff, production lines and equipment, clients and experience, quality management system (purchasing, design control, storage, incoming inspection, in-process control, testing, continual improvement), product and process control, and a corrective actions plan. Factory audit.

Social audit

An audit of working conditions based on the SA 8000 standard: no child labour, working hours, wages, health and safety. It protects your brand and supports your ethical sourcing commitments. Social audit.

Environmental audit

From a basic evaluation to a full ISO 14001 management system audit: environmental policy and permits, energy, water, chemicals, waste and gas emissions, with a corrective actions plan and CSR consulting. Environmental audit.

Lab testing and compliance with European standards

An inspection checks the product against your specification, but only a laboratory can prove compliance with European regulations: EN 71 for toys, EN standards for childcare articles and furniture, REACH and phthalate limits for all products.

An on-site inspection checks the product against your specifications. It cannot prove that the product complies with a regulation: compliance can only be verified in a laboratory equipped for the tests. For the European market that means, depending on the product:

• Toys: EN 71-1 (mechanical and physical properties), EN 71-2 (flammability), EN 71-3 (migration of heavy metals), EN 62115 for electric toys.
• Childcare articles: EN 1130 (cribs), EN 716 (travel cots), EN 14988 (high chairs), EN 1273 (baby walkers) and more.
• Furniture: EN 12520, EN 1022 and EN 1728 (seating), EN 12521 and EN 1730 (tables), EN 14749 and EN 16122 (storage), EN 581 (outdoor furniture).
• Electrical products: electrical safety, CE marking, and chemical restrictions such as RoHS.
• Chemicals in all products: REACH restrictions, phthalates, lead and cadmium.

LPI is part of the Laboratoires Pourquery group. Its affiliated laboratories in Asia (LPHK, Hong Kong) and in Europe (Laboratoires Pourquery) are notified by the European Union for a wide range of standards and have recognised expertise in toys, childcare articles, furniture, sports equipment and electrical appliances. We combine both worlds: the inspector picks the samples in the factory, the lab tests them. Lab testing. Beware of CE logos with squeezed letters: see our guide CE marking or “China Export”.

Project management and supplier quality management

For projects that go beyond one-off inspections, LPI becomes your team on the ground: feasibility study, supplier selection, supply chain coordination and a dedicated supplier quality manager, with a project manager who speaks your language.

Some projects need more than one-off inspections. LPI can act as your team on the ground:

• Feasibility study: how and where your product can be manufactured in Asia, combining knowledge of destination-market regulations and local manufacturing clusters.
• Supplier selection: shortlisting and visiting factories, comparing them on objective criteria.
• Supply chain coordination: the local presence of an office without the cost of setting one up, to communicate with suppliers and forwarders.
• Dedicated supplier quality manager: root cause analysis with factory staff, follow-up of countermeasures, regular process audits.

Each customer works with a dedicated project manager who speaks your language and knows the local context. Project management.

Quality control by industry

LPI inspects six product families with specialised inspectors: toys and juvenile products, furniture, household goods, electrical and electronic products, industrial and automotive parts, and sports equipment. Only food and chemicals are excluded.

Every product family has its own risks and standards. Our inspectors are specialised by product type:

• Toys and juvenile products: a highly regulated industry; small parts, sharp edges, tension tests, EN 71 and childcare standards.
• Furniture: moisture checks on wood and rattan, assembly, stability, loading, fatigue and pull tests, indoor and outdoor furniture standards.
• Household and houseware: from mats and candleholders to cleaning products, document review, inspections and lab tests.
• Electrical and electronic products: functions and performance, power consumption, hi-pot and earth continuity tests, cord pull test, construction check.
• Industrial and automotive parts: production monitoring, quality management system audits and dedicated supplier quality engineers.
• Sports equipment: bicycles, protective equipment, trampolines, skateboards and fitness equipment.

We inspect all kinds of finished products, including gifts, garments and bags. The only productions we do not inspect are food and chemicals.

Where we work in Asia

LPI works in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan, Southeast Asia (Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia) and South Asia (India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka), can reach your supplier within 48 hours and charges the same all-inclusive rate across Asia.

Our inspectors and auditors cover China, Hong Kong and Taiwan, Southeast Asia (Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia) and South Asia (India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka). We can be at your supplier’s factory within 48 hours, and we work on all-in pricing everywhere in Asia, so your budget does not depend on where the factory is: see our inspection prices per inspector-day.

Our clients mainly come from Europe and the United States. The team speaks English, French, Chinese, Spanish and Italian: you talk to us in your language, we talk to the factory in theirs.

How much does an inspection in China cost?

An LPI inspection costs from US$250 per inspector-day, excluding tax, with travel anywhere in Asia and an illustrated report within 24 hours included. The number of days depends on quantity, AQL level and number of references, and is stated in the quotation before anything is booked.

The same day rate applies to initial production checks, during production inspections, pre-shipment inspections and container loading checks, everywhere in Asia. Factory audits, lab testing and project management are quoted case by case.

What is included, what changes the quote, a worked example and cancellation terms: see our inspection pricing page. To estimate the sample size, and therefore the time spent at the factory, use the AQL calculator.

How to book an inspection with LPI

Book in six steps: describe your order, send your requirements, let LPI schedule with the factory (48 hours minimum, the earlier the better), receive the illustrated report within 24 hours, then decide whether to ship, rework, sort or re-inspect.

1. Tell us about your order: product, supplier location, quantity and expected inspection date, through the contact form or by creating an account on our online platform.
2. Send your requirements: specifications, purchase order, product pictures, technical drawings, a checklist of potential defects and the tests you want. Ideally, send us a sample you have approved. We add our know-how to your checklist.
3. We plan with your supplier: our minimum notice is 48 hours, but book as early as possible. Our planning team coordinates the date with the factory and confirms it to you. See how far ahead to book and how to plan orders and inspections around Chinese New Year.
4. The inspection takes place, carried out by an inspector specialised in your product, with at least five years of QC experience.
5. You receive the report within 24 hours, fully illustrated, on our online platform.
6. You decide: ship, rework, sort or re-inspect, with the facts in hand.

To prevent bribery, inspectors never take decisions on the production, the factory manager signs a disclaimer on our anti-corruption policy at every inspection, inspectors rotate between factories and are paid above the market average.

Free resources to download

Three practical PDF documents to prepare your inspections, print and keep next to your purchase orders.

Free PDF

Pre-shipment inspection checklist

The points to prepare and check before you pay the balance: quantities, packing, workmanship, measurements and tests.

Download the PDF

Free PDF

AQL table (ISO 2859-1)

Sample size and accept / reject numbers for every lot size, single sampling, normal inspection. Ready to print.

Download the PDF

Free PDF

Safety Gate report: dangerous products in the EU

The year’s alerts in figures: product categories, hazards, countries of origin, and what an inspection checks.

Download the PDF

Why importers work with LPI

Founded in 2012, LPI Quality joined the Laboratoires Pourquery group in 2016, which adds laboratory testing to our inspections and audits. Here is what our clients say.

We have been working with LPI for over 2 years now and we are impressed by their professionalism and quality of the inspection reports. The way our requirements are handled and the level of attention we get helps us a lot in our business. I won't change QC partner at any price.

Buying from suppliers that are at a very far distance has often been a source of stress and anxiety. Since we work with LPI we buy with much more confidence. Their expertise is also adding an undeniable value to our company and a key to our success.

We use LPI to inspect our hand sanitizing billboards, and then send them across the 50 states of USA. Our products have been used by 100 million + people in America, thanks to their effort. Their expertise in hardware inspecting is exceptional - not only the checkpoints we specified but also things we didn't notice. We highly recommend

Frequently asked questions