What a pre-shipment inspection report shows, and when to book one

At three points. A during-production inspection (DUPRO) happens when part of the order, often around a fifth, is made, early enough to fix a fault before the whole run repeats it. A pre-shipment inspection (PSI) happens when the order is fully made and mostly packed; it's the one most buyers mean. A container loading check (CLC) happens as the goods go into the container and confirms quantities, condition and loading.

The report's header says which one it was, and the quantities block shows whether the order really was at that stage.

An inspection only has leverage while you still hold money. Booked before the balance is due, a failed report is a reason to hold payment until rework is done and re-inspected. Booked after payment, the same report just records what you already own.

CBP's reasonable-care guidance asks importers whether they have reliable ways to make sure goods meet other agencies' requirements. An inspection is one way, for quality, quantity and specification. It doesn't answer the regulatory questions.

The template above shows the six blocks every report carries, whatever the company's format: the header with type, references and dates; the overall result; the quantities found against the order; the sampling plan; the defects found against the defects allowed, by class; and the checklists, tests, photos and inspector's remarks. Read the header and quantities first, because they tell you whether the result means what it seems to.

AQL stands for Acceptable Quality Limit. Inspectors don't check every piece; they draw a sample sized by a standard, most often ANSI/ASQ Z1.4, from the lot size. The AQL for each kind of defect then sets how many defects the sample may hold and still pass. Critical defects, the ones that could hurt someone or break a law, usually allow zero.

Say you set 2.5 for major defects and 4.0 for minor ones, common settings for consumer goods. Those numbers belong in the purchase order, agreed with the supplier before production, not first seen on inspection day.

You do. The inspector reports; the report itself says the client makes the final call. A FAIL is information: the answer may be rework and a re-inspection, sorting out the bad pieces, a price adjustment, or holding the balance. A PASS isn't a guarantee either; it says the sample met the agreed level that day. Read the defects against your own specification and approved sample.

It isn't lab testing. A drop test or function check on the factory floor is a quality check, not the third-party testing a Children's Product Certificate rests on; the rule requires periodic testing by a third-party lab. It isn't a supplier audit either: an inspection looks at goods, an audit at the factory. And it says nothing about whether the supplier is on a government list.

Whatever the report would otherwise say was missing: the approved sample, the specification, the purchase order with the AQL, the packing and marking requirements, and any test the goods should pass on site. A remark like "no approved sample provided" weakens every other line of the report.