Big-name brands are adept at performing receiving inspections where they check incoming components, materials, or services for quality as they come in. This helps them to control their sub-suppliers and reduce risks because sub-standard inputs won't get to production. But you don't need to be a large company to run receiving inspections, in fact, they're useful to any organisation. There are 5 things you need to consider as you set yours up: 1. A set of requirements (checklists, approved samples for comparison, examples of common defects…) 2. A way to focus on the most important criteria 3. A procedure to follow, step by step 4. A way to report findings and help with traceability 5. A way to drive improvement in the supplier base, when needed This presentation shows you the answers to each of these 5 considerations which you can follow to start implementing your own incoming quality inspections. Watch the video here: https://youtu.be/tWf96BHN_2E Read the blog post here: https://qualityinspection.org/setting-up-receiving-inspection/

1. How to set up a receiving inspection:
Checklist, procedure, reporting form

2. Why receiving inspections?
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It’s very common for importers to conduct pre-shipment inspections,
such as DUPRO or FRI. These are great, but how about inspections at an
even earlier stage?
Receiving inspections (or incoming quality inspections) let you inspect
the quality of inputs (materials or components) before production
starts.
This makes sense and is well-used by ‘large companies.’

3. What considerations are needed to
assure a solid receiving inspection setup?
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The important considerations are as follows:
1. A set of requirements (checklists, approved samples for comparison,
examples of common defects…)
2. A way to focus on the most important criteria
3. A procedure to follow, step by step
4. A way to report findings and help with traceability
5. A way to drive improvement in the supplier base, when needed

4. Aren’t they quite similar to final pre-
shipment inspections?
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The closer the pre-shipment inspection is to the receiving/incoming
inspection, the better.
As a buyer, you really want them to be aligned, so that issues are
caught before shipment!

5. 1. How to define receiving inspection
requirements?
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6. 6
You need a checklist that is based on the product specifications and
other elements.
It is good if you have an approved sample of each item you inspect, too.
Certain aspects of the requirements can’t be communicated in written
specifications: exact color, touch & feel, etc.

7. 2. How to identify the most critical parts &
the highest risk?
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8. 8
This is extremely important since you don’t want an inspector to spend
a lot of time checking low-risk batches and unimportant criteria.
Based on the risk you see, there are different ways to spend less time
on the lower-risk batches:
Based on the product risk: reduce the inspection level
Based on the supplier risk: reduce the inspection severity

9. 9
When it comes to the product risk, you probably need to look at the
overall risk to your business. Talk to customer-facing staff, talk to your
quality manager, talk to some production people, and you should have
an idea.
Sometimes, it is actually a regulatory requirement. For example,
inspection is required on brake systems in an American automotive
factory, but more trivial elements are usually not checked.
Ideally, the designers have identified what is ‘critical to quality’ for each
product.

10. 10
When it comes to supplier risk, it is often more difficult to assess.
Typical KPIs to follow, when it comes to supplier quality performance, would be:
% passed inspections
% defectives
Number of corrective action plans requested in the past
% of corrective action plans that were not closed fully
Based on the suppliers’ past performance, overall attitude, and so forth, you will
decide that some can’t be trusted (which means you should check all their
deliveries), while others can be given more rope (the most efficient approach is
often letting your best suppliers do self-inspection and be accountable for it).

11. 3. What procedure to follow in your
incoming inspection?
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12. 12
When it comes to the procedure for picking samples at random, the basic steps will probably
be:
1. Get the delivery plan/notes, indicate what needs to be checked
2. Get the “not checked yet” parts in one area
3. Count quantity (if needed)
4. Pick samples randomly
5. Conduct the inspection (e.g. visual check, dimensional check, special testing…)
6. Set aside defectives, classify them and count them
7. If the batch is accepted, have it moved into the “checked and OK” area. If it is accepted
but there is a special note for production (e.g. ‘must do 100% check on point XYZ’), make
sure it will be seen and followed. If it is refused, trigger the appropriate response (e.g.
send back to the supplier, invite the supplier to come and do a sorting, etc.).

13. 4. How to report the findings.
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14. 14
If you end up inspecting the same product type over and over, you
might want to prepare a report template that includes the checklist.
And this can be automated with dedicated software, too.
Your reporting will become part of traceability records, so don’t forget
to produce some type of record…

15. 5. How to drive improvement in the
supplier base?
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16. 16
You are collecting data. Make sure you pass these data in a way your
colleagues in procurement can use. They should have some form of a
dashboard for each supplier — at least for each key supplier.
By showing those suppliers that your company tracks important data (e.g. %
defectives, % late deliveries, cost reductions…), you will be more likely to get
better performance out of them.
And, when you see a very serious issue, and if the supplier is not
disproportionately large, you can probably raise a Corrective Action Request,
which might be in the form of an 8D.

17. How to set up a receiving inspection:
Checklist, procedure, reporting form

18. Do you need help with your own quality inspections?
Sofeast provides Quality Assurance solutions to clients across China and SE Asia who
are both buyers and manufacturers – follow the links to learn more and get a
quotation if you’d like:
• Product Inspection Solutions - https://www.sofeast.com/quality-assurance/product-
inspection-solutions/
• 100% inspection, repacking, and shipping - https://www.sofeast.com/quality-
assurance/100-inspection-repacking-and-shipping/
• Quality assurance consulting - https://www.sofeast.com/quality-assurance/quality-
assurance-consulting/
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