Below is the structure of a real report, with the supplier's identity removed. The findings are real. So is the section at the end listing what the audit could not establish.
An audit report that finds no problems is either a very good factory or a very bad auditor. The useful part of a report is the part that says plainly what was examined, what was not, and what remains an open risk. If a report you receive has no such section, it was written to be shown to you, not to be used by you.
| Supplier | Withheld (Ningbo, Zhejiang) — injection moulding, housewares |
|---|---|
| Audit date | On-site, one full day, unannounced to the workshop floor |
| Auditor | One auditor, buyer's representative |
| Product under review | PP storage container, 3 SKUs |
| Order context | First order, 12,000 units, target market US |
| Evidence retained | 68 photographs, 11 minutes of video, licence and certificate scans |
| Group | What is checked | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Legal identity | Business licence scope, registered address vs actual site, import-export right, export records | 7 |
| Production capability | Machines owned, tonnage, lines, headcount, monthly capacity vs claimed capacity, outsourced processes | 8 |
| Quality system | QC headcount, in-line vs end-of-line, AQL standard in use, defect log, rework area | 6 |
| Certification | ISO / product certificates, number validity at the issuing body, scope covers this product | 4 |
| Workforce and site | Workshop conditions, safety, storage of materials, fire equipment, child-labour indicators | 4 |
| Commercial | Payment account name, main customers, export destinations, litigation and enforcement records | 3 |
| Finding | Severity | Effect on the order |
|---|---|---|
| ISO 9001 certificate expired four months ago; renewal in progress, no certificate number issued yet. | Major | Cannot be used as evidence of a quality system. QC assessed on observation instead. |
| Packaging is subcontracted to a neighbouring unit. Inner-carton printing quality is inconsistent. | Minor | Acceptable if the packaging spec is inspected separately at pre-shipment. |
| Two of six machines are idle at the time of visit; claimed monthly capacity appears overstated by roughly 30%. | Major | Lead time quoted for the order is probably optimistic. Agreed a revised schedule in writing. |
| Payment account name matches the business licence. | Pass | — |
| Factory gate, street sign and unit number confirmed on live video. | Pass | — |
Proceed, with three conditions: an agreed production schedule that accounts for the real capacity, a separate packaging inspection at pre-shipment, and a written undertaking that bulk runs on the same two machines that produced the approved sample.
Whether the defect rate on a full production run will match the sample. Whether the factory will subcontract part of the order to meet the deadline. Whether the certificate renewal will complete before shipment. Whether the material grade matches the specification — that requires a lab test on a production sample, which this audit did not include.
Any report you receive from me ends with this section. If it is empty, the audit did not happen.
You get the photographs, the video, and the written report. You keep them whether or not you continue.
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