| Product Safety Compliance High Priority | Compliance coverage for the destination market and the exact plush toy SKU. | The factory should identify all applicable requirements before production, including ASTM F963 for the United States or EN 71 for the European market where applicable. | Obtain current test reports showing the exact product description, materials, colors, age grading, factory details, and tested samples. | A report covers a different product, material, color, or production site. |
| Mechanical and Physical Safety High Priority | Security of eyes, noses, buttons, ribbons, seams, stuffing access points, and small detachable parts. | No detachable component should create an unacceptable hazard for the declared age group. Construction should withstand the applicable abuse and use tests. | Review laboratory results and conduct sample checks for seam strength, attachment security, accessible stuffing, sharp points, and loose components. | Loose facial features, open seams, exposed filling, or inconsistent attachment methods. |
| Chemical and Material Control High Priority | Control of dyes, fabrics, plastic components, adhesives, filling, and surface coatings. | Materials must meet the chemical restrictions applicable to the destination, such as U.S. requirements under CPSIA and relevant European REACH obligations. | Request a bill of materials, supplier declarations, material specifications, and third-party chemical test reports linked to the production batch. | Untraceable fabric sources, undocumented recycled content, or test reports without material identification. |
| Quality Management System Medium Priority | Documented procedures for incoming inspection, in-process control, final inspection, corrective action, and record retention. | A certified ISO 9001 system can support process consistency, but certification alone should not replace product-specific inspections. | Verify certificate validity, certification scope, site address, audit status, quality manual, inspection records, and corrective-action reports. | A certificate is expired, issued for another site, or presented without operational quality records. |
| Incoming Material Inspection Medium Priority | Inspection of fabric weight, color, accessories, filling, labels, packaging materials, and supplier batch records. | Every critical material should be traceable to a supplier lot or purchase record before it enters production. | Review receiving inspection forms, approved-material samples, color standards, fabric specifications, and lot traceability records. | Materials are accepted only by visual judgment with no lot number or documented specification. |
| In-Process Quality Control High Priority | Control points during cutting, sewing, stuffing, embroidery, assembly, labeling, and packing. | Critical defects should be prevented at the process stage rather than discovered only during final inspection. | Check work instructions, first-piece approval, line inspection records, defect logs, operator training, and corrective actions. | No first-piece approval, repeated defects, or inspection records completed after production. |
| Final Inspection and AQL High Priority | Defect classification, inspection sample size, acceptance criteria, and inspection timing. | Use a documented sampling plan such as ISO 2859-1 and define critical, major, and minor defect limits in the purchase agreement. | Review an independent pre-shipment inspection report, carton selection method, sample size, defect photographs, measurements, and pass/fail decision. | Undefined AQL limits, incomplete cartons, or inspection performed before most goods are finished. |
| Packaging and Label Accuracy High Priority | Accuracy of warning labels, age grading, care instructions, country-of-origin marking, carton marks, and barcode data. | Artwork and regulatory labels must match the destination market, approved product specification, and shipping documents. | Compare approved artwork with production samples, master cartons, inner packaging, barcode scans, and destination requirements. | Incorrect age grading, missing warnings, inconsistent carton quantities, or unapproved artwork changes. |
| Production Capacity and Lead-Time Control Medium Priority | Actual monthly capacity, active orders, production stages, and on-time delivery performance. | Capacity should be supported by production records and a realistic schedule covering sampling, materials, production, inspection, and packing. | Request a production plan, anonymized shipment history, line capacity calculation, overtime policy, and order-status reports. | Capacity claims are based only on sales statements and exclude material or inspection lead time. |
| Traceability and Change Control Medium Priority | Ability to trace raw materials, production dates, operators or lines, inspection results, and approved changes. | The factory should be able to identify which material lots and production records are linked to each finished-goods batch. | Review batch codes, production cards, packing records, sample retention policy, and written approval procedures for design or material changes. | Substitutions are made without written approval or finished goods cannot be linked to production records. |
| Export Documentation Readiness High Priority | Accuracy and consistency of commercial invoice, packing list, transport document, origin information, and product description. | All documents should show consistent quantities, carton counts, weights, dimensions, consignee information, and agreed trade terms. | Review a redacted document set from a previous shipment and compare it with the purchase order and packing configuration. | Different quantities or weights appear across documents, or the supplier cannot explain the document workflow. |
| Tariff Classification and Customs Data High Priority | Product description, country of origin, declared value, and destination-specific tariff classification. | Plush toys are generally associated with HS heading 9503, but the final tariff line must be confirmed against the importing country’s customs schedule. | Ask for the proposed tariff code, product description, origin documentation, and written confirmation from the customs broker or importer. | A vague description such as “gift” or “sample” is used for commercial shipments. |
| Carton Optimization and Load Planning Medium Priority | Carton dimensions, net weight, gross weight, carton quantity, palletization, and container utilization. | Final packing data should be measured from production cartons, not estimated from preliminary samples. Gross weight must include packaging. | Verify carton measurement sheets, loading plans, pallet dimensions, container photos, and a random carton weight check. | Large differences between estimated and final dimensions, causing freight or customs discrepancies. |
| Trade Terms and Freight Handover Medium Priority | Clear allocation of transport, insurance, export clearance, import clearance, and delivery responsibilities. | The purchase contract should state the selected Incoterms® 2020 rule, named place, transfer point, and responsibility for each logistics activity. | Review the purchase contract, freight quotation, booking confirmation, cargo handover procedure, and insurance arrangement where applicable. | The term is stated without a named place or both parties assume the other party handles customs or freight. |
| Supplier Verification and Audit Access High Priority | Legal entity, manufacturing location, ownership of production lines, subcontracting controls, and audit accessibility. | The buyer should verify the actual production site and receive written disclosure of any subcontracted process. | Conduct a site audit or live video verification, compare address and equipment with records, and check subcontractor approval controls. | The visited site differs from the production address or subcontracting is disclosed only after an issue occurs. |
