What you actually receive

Factory Evaluation Summary

What you receive after a factory visit: the scorecard, the findings that matter, and the conditions attached to an approval.

Evaluation reference	FE-2026-0311
Date of visit	11 March 2026
Factory	Factory A — Dongguan, Guangdong
Category assessed	Hardside carry-on, 20in, 4-wheel
Visit type	Announced, full-day floor walk
Evaluated by	LuggagePro programme team

Executive summary

• Capability matches the brief: hardside moulding, wheel assembly and lining are in-house, with capacity headroom for the planned first run.
• Quality system is present but uneven — incoming material inspection is documented, in-process checks are not.
• Gauge calibration was 15 days overdue at the time of the visit; a corrective action was agreed with a date.
• Compliance documents are current for the destination market, but wheel assembly subcontracting was confirmed verbally on site rather than declared in the questionnaire.
• Two of the three lines that would run this product were at high load during the visit. Peak-season planning required.

Scorecard

Category	Finding	Status
Production capacity	Moulding and assembly in-house; 2 of 3 lines at high load during the visit	Acceptable with peak-season planning
Quality system	Incoming and final inspection in place; in-process checks not recorded	Conditional — corrective action required
Compliance & documentation	Licence, export record and test reports available; subcontracting not fully declared	Further verification required
Supply chain stability	Wheel assembly partially subcontracted; two hardware items single-sourced	Monitor — dual-source before second run

Findings and disposition

Finding	Severity	Disposition
Gauge calibration overdue by 15 days	Major	Corrective action agreed with a date; to be verified before sampling
Wheel assembly subcontracting not declared in advance	Major	Declared on site; written confirmation requested
In-process inspection not recorded	Minor	Record format agreed; first-article check to include written record

Recommendation: approved with conditions. Sampling may proceed once the calibration corrective action is verified. The two single-sourced hardware items should be dual-sourced before the second production run.

Pre-Shipment Inspection Report

The report that stands between a finished lot and your payment. Sampled to a stated AQL, with every finding photographed and counted.

Report number	PSI-2026-0417
Brand / programme	Brand X — carry-on range, first run
Supplier / factory	Factory A — Dongguan, Guangdong
Purchase order	PO-2026-0417
Product	20in hardside carry-on, 4-wheel, 4 colourways
Order quantity (lot size)	2,400 units
Inspection date	17 April 2026
Inspector	LuggagePro QC — inspector reference LP-04

Sampling plan

Item	Basis applied
Standard	ANSI/ASQ Z1.4 (ISO 2859-1)
Sampling plan	Single, normal
Inspection level	General II
AQL applied	Critical 0.0 / Major 1.5 / Minor 4.0
Sample size	125 units
Sample selection	Random, selected by the inspector from packed cartons

Inspection sections

#	Section	Result	Notes
1	Quantity and production status	Pass	Production 100% complete; 92% packed at time of inspection
2	Workmanship — appearance and function	Within AQL	2 major, 5 minor recorded — see defect summary
3	Tests and special checks	Pass	Wheel roll and handle static load performed on 10 units
4	Packing and cartons	Pass	Carton grade and drop test consistent with the specification
5	Shipping marks and labelling	Pass	Marks match approved artwork; barcode scan verified
6	Product conformity to specification	Pass	Dimensions within tolerance; colour within the agreed grade

Defect summary

Defect class	Found	Maximum allowed	Result
Critical	0	0	Pass
Major	2	5	Pass
Minor	5	14	Pass

Defect detail

Ref	Description	Class	Units	Disposition
D-01	Trolley handle locking button sluggish on extension	Major	1	Reworked on site, re-inspected
D-02	Lining stitch run-off at internal divider	Major	1	Reworked on site, re-inspected
D-03	Light scuffing on shell corner, colourway 3	Minor	3	Accepted as minor; logged
D-04	Carton print slightly out of register, carton 41	Minor	2	Accepted; noted for next print run

Conclusion: passed. The lot meets the agreed acceptance criteria under the sampling plan applied. Both major defects were reworked and re-inspected on site before packing. This inspection is a sampled assessment under ANSI/ASQ Z1.4 and does not certify every unit in the lot.

Defect Log & Corrective Action Record

A failure is not closed when it is fixed. It is closed when the same failure can no longer happen — and somebody has proved it.

Record reference	CAPA-2026-07
Raised from	Final inspection, production run 2
Severity	Major
Owner	Factory quality lead, with the LuggagePro programme team
Target closure	30 days from raising

Problem statement

14 of 600 units in production run 2 failed the trolley handle locking test at final inspection on 9 May 2026 — the handle extended but did not lock positively in the upper position. All 14 were isolated before packing. The failure mode did not appear in sampling, nor in run 1.

Containment

Action	Owner	Date	Status
Isolate the 14 affected units from packed stock	Factory QC	9 May	Done
100% locking check on the balance of the run	Factory QC	9–10 May	Done
Hold cartons 18–24 pending analysis	Factory QC	9 May	Released 12 May after check

Root cause analysis — 5 Whys

• Why did the handle fail to lock? The locking pawl did not engage fully in the upper detent.
• Why? The pawl spring was seated deeper than the drawing allows.
• Why? The spring seating tool had been swapped for a spare that was not to the original dimension.
• Why? The spare was made in-house without a drawing check, and no first-article approval was applied to tooling replacements.
• Why? The changeover procedure does not classify an in-house spare as a change requiring first-article approval.

Root cause: the tooling replacement procedure does not require first-article approval for in-house made spares.
Contributing cause: the locking test is not part of the in-process check at the handle assembly station.

Corrective and preventive actions

#	Action	Type	Owner	Due	Status
1	Restore the spring seating tool and verify it against the drawing	Correction	Maintenance	12 May	Done
2	Re-check and re-inspect all 14 isolated units	Correction	Factory QC	12 May	Done
3	Amend the changeover procedure: in-house spares require first-article approval	Corrective	Process engineer	30 May	Done
4	Add a locking test to the in-process check at handle assembly	Corrective	Factory QC	5 Jun	In progress
5	Apply the same spare-tool rule to all tooling across all lines	Preventive	Maintenance	20 Jun	In progress

Verification of effectiveness

Method	Success criteria	Checked	Result
Review first-article records for all tooling changes	100% of changes have a signed first-article record	30 days after action 3	Pending
Locking test results across 3 consecutive runs	Zero locking failures at final inspection	60 days	Pending
Spot check in-process records at handle assembly	Locking test present and completed each shift	60 days	Pending

Closure: this record cannot be closed until all three verification criteria are met. The 100% locking check remains in place until closure.

Programme Stage Tracker

One page that answers the only question a brand ever asks mid-programme: where are we, and what has to be true before we move?

Stage	Deliverable	Gate criteria	Status
1 Discovery & spec	Written specification, target cost, compliance market	Specification signed off; price target tested against factory quotes	Complete
2 Factory match	Evaluation summary per factory, with comparison	Factory approved with conditions; corrective actions dated	Complete
3 Sampling & validation	Sample evaluation report against the specification	Sample passes every specification point; drop and wheel tests passed	Complete
4 Pilot run	Pilot run report, first-article records	Pilot quantity within AQL; no critical defects; tooling approved	Complete
5 Production	IQC / IPQC / FQC records, photo-documented	Each gate signed off; defect log current	In progress — run 3
6 Pre-shipment	Pre-shipment inspection report, defect log	Lot meets AQL; major defects closed or reworked	Not started
7 Logistics	Documents set: invoice, packing list, test reports	Documents match the order and destination requirements	Not started
8 After-sales	Warranty parts plan, defect follow-up log	Spare parts available; defect closure rates reported	Not started