Our quality control services check your supplier and your goods before problems can cost you money. Quality problems discovered after goods arrive are the most expensive kind. By then the factory has been paid, the leverage is gone, and the cost lands on you.
Each service below can be used on its own or combined, depending on your order value, product risk, and how well you know the supplier.
The Four Services at a Glance
| Service | What It Checks | Use It When |
|---|---|---|
| Supplier Verification | Company is real and legitimate | Before paying a new supplier |
| Factory Audit | Real production capability on site | Before large or custom orders |
| Manufacturing Control | Quality during production | While the batch is being made |
| Quality Inspection | Finished goods against your sample | Before balance payment and shipping |
What Each Service Covers
Supplier Verification: We check that the company behind the quotation is real, registered, and legitimate before your deposit moves. We review business registration, legal status, export records, and warning signs that do not show up on an Alibaba profile.
Factory Audit: We visit the factory and verify production capability with our own eyes: equipment, production lines, workforce, quality systems, and whether the factory you are buying from is the factory that actually makes the goods.
Manufacturing Control: We check quality while the batch is still being made, when problems are still cheap to fix. Early-production checks catch material substitutions, specification drift, and workmanship issues before they multiply across the whole order.
Quality Inspection: We inspect finished goods against your approved sample and specification before the balance is paid and the goods leave the factory. You get a detailed report with photos, so you decide whether to release the shipment.
How the Services Connect
The four services map to the life of an order. Before you pay a new supplier, verification confirms who you are dealing with. Before you commit to a large or custom order, an audit confirms the factory can actually produce it. During production, manufacturing control catches problems while there is still time to fix them. Before shipment, inspection confirms the finished goods match what you ordered.
Few orders need all four. A small trial order with a screened supplier may only justify a pre-shipment inspection. A large custom order with a new factory deserves the full chain. We recommend the right level of checking for your order value and risk, not the maximum.
Who This Is For
First-time importers who have never met their supplier and want independent eyes on the company, the factory, or the goods before money moves.
Amazon FBA sellers whose inventory goes straight into fulfillment warehouses, where a quality problem means returns, bad reviews, and account risk instead of a simple exchange.
Buyers who have been burned before and want structured checks built into every order rather than trusting supplier photos and promises.
Established importers who need a reliable China-side inspection partner across multiple suppliers and orders, with consistent standards and reporting.
Why Use Maple Sourcing
We check with our own team. Quality checks are carried out by our own inspectors, most of whom have more than 10 years of industry experience. They work to consistent standards and report in plain English with photos and clear conclusions.
We know what factories show and what they hide. Since 2012 we have seen how problems get buried: the good samples shown first, the rework corner kept out of sight, the subcontracted order the buyer never hears about. We know where to look.
We report facts, you make the call. Our reports document what we found, clearly separated into what passed, what failed, and what needs your decision. We do not soften findings to keep a factory comfortable.
We connect checking to fixing. A failed check is a starting point, not a dead end. Because we work with the factory in Chinese, we can push corrective action and follow the problem through to a resolution you approve.
How Fees Work
Our standard rate is $300 per man-day, all inclusive. A man-day is one inspector on site for one day, and it covers a factory audit or a quality inspection. For factories in main industrial cities in Guangdong there is no extra travel charge; remote areas are quoted before you book.
Industry rates typically run $200 to $400 per man-day, with travel expenses often added on top. Our rate sits in the middle of that range, with local travel already included for main industrial cities in Guangdong. Every assignment is handled by a senior inspector with deep experience in the product categories we focus on, including consumer electronics, beauty and healthcare, household goods, and tools and hardware.
FAQ
Q1. Can I use quality control services without your sourcing service?
Yes. Many buyers source on their own and use us only for verification, audits, or inspections. You tell us the supplier and the order details, and we run the check independently.
Q2. Do you cover factories anywhere in China?
Our team is based in Shenzhen, and checks can be arranged across China’s main manufacturing regions. Location affects travel cost and lead time, which we confirm before you book.
Q3. How quickly can an inspection or audit be arranged?
For most factory locations, a visit can often be arranged within 2 working days of your booking. Peak seasons and remote locations may need more lead time, so book as soon as your production date is confirmed.
Q4. Will an inspection delay my shipment?
A standard inspection takes about one day on site, and the report follows quickly so your release decision is not the bottleneck. Booking early keeps the inspection off your critical path entirely.
Q5. When is the best time to check quality during production?
Earlier than most buyers think. An in-process check at around 5% to 20% of production completion means most of the batch is still unmade, so the factory can correct the process instead of reworking finished goods.
Q6. What is AQL and which level do you use?
AQL is a widely used sampling standard that helps decide how many pieces are checked and how many defects are acceptable before a batch fails. We typically use AQL 1.5 for major defects and 4.0 for minor ones, unless your product or market requires a different level. We agree the AQL level with you before the inspection.
Q7. Do factories resist third-party inspections?
Reputable factories are used to them and cooperate as a matter of routine. A factory that refuses outside checking is telling you something important, and we treat that refusal itself as a finding worth reporting.
Q8. What happens if the goods fail inspection?
You decide the next step before the balance is paid, which is exactly the leverage the inspection exists to protect. Typical paths are factory rework followed by re-inspection, sorting out defective units, or negotiating a settlement on the affected quantity.
Ready to Protect Your Order?
Tell us where your order stands: evaluating a new supplier, about to pay a deposit, mid-production, or approaching shipment. We will recommend the right check for your risk level and confirm the arrangements.
Still choosing a supplier or building the order itself? Our Product Sourcing services cover supplier search, product development, purchasing, and order management.
