How to fill in each section
1. Order and lot
Identify the order exactly: the purchase order, the style, the colours and the factory where the goods were made and inspected, which is not always the supplier on the invoice. Record the order quantity, how much of it is finished and how much is packed when the inspector arrives. The whole order should be made before the sample is drawn, and inspection firms such as QIMA make a final random inspection once at least 80% of it is packed, so the sample represents what will ship. Name the approved sample and the tech pack revision the goods were judged against: when a dispute comes up months later, this line settles which version was in force.
Common mistake: Inspecting while part of the order is still being sewn and recording the result as if it covered the whole order. The pieces made after the visit may come from a different line or a different shift.
2. Sampling plan
Write the plan before the inspection, from the purchase order, not on the day. Most garment orders use ISO 2859-1 (the same tables as ANSI/ASQ Z1.4) at general inspection level II, with AQL 2.5 for major defects and 4.0 for minor defects, and no critical defect accepted. Take the sample size and the accept numbers from our AQL calculator: for this example's lot of 2,880 pieces that is 125 pieces, up to 7 majors and up to 10 minors. If the calculator gives a different sample size for one class, inspect that number of pieces for that class. Open at least the square root of the number of cartons, chosen at random across colours and sizes; the sheet works the number out from the carton count.
Common mistake: Agreeing the AQL but not the defect list. Whether a fault counts as major or minor decides the result more than the AQL does, so attach the agreed classification to the purchase order.
3. Quantity and packing
Count before you judge quality: a lot short of the ordered quantity, beyond the tolerance in the purchase order, is a finding however well it is sewn. Check the cartons against the packing list, then open the selected cartons and check what is inside against the carton marks and the packing instructions in the purchase order. Measure and weigh the opened cartons, because the dimensions and gross weight on the packing list decide the freight bill and, for marketplace warehouses, whether the carton is accepted at all.
Common mistake: Opening only the cartons the factory puts forward. The inspector chooses the cartons, across the whole carton number range.
4. Conformity with the approved sample
Lay the sealed sample next to the sampled pieces and compare. Judge shade against the approved lab dip or sample under the light source agreed in the order, and check for shade differences between the panels of one garment. Read every label: fibre content is required by law in the EU, the UK, the US and Canada, and the US also requires the country of origin and care instructions, so a wrong label is not a cosmetic fault.
Common mistake: Checking colour under the factory’s ceiling lights and not the agreed light source, which makes shade the easiest result to argue about later.
5. Defects found
Write each kind of defect once, with where it is on the garment, the sizes and colours it was found in and the numbers of its photographs, and count it under critical, major or minor, as agreed in the defect list. Agree in advance whether a piece with several faults counts once, under its most serious defect, or once for each fault, and write the rule in the remarks. Photograph every defect next to a ruler or a label, and number the photographs. The sheet adds up each class and compares the totals with the accept numbers in the sampling plan.
Common mistake: Writing "some loose threads" instead of a count. A report without counts cannot be checked against the AQL limits, so it cannot pass or fail anything.
6. Measurements
Measure a few pieces of each size (the sheet has room for five) on the points of measure that decide fit: body length, chest, sleeve and neck for a t-shirt. Copy the specification and tolerance from the tech pack revision named above, so the inspector measures against the version you approved. The last column counts the readings outside tolerance for you. A fit point out of tolerance is usually a major defect: add it to the defects table as well.
Common mistake: Measuring only the base size. Grading errors show up in the largest and smallest sizes, so measure every size in the order.
7. Tests on site
List the tests the purchase order asks for, with the method agreed in advance, and mark the rest N/A. Laboratory tests, such as colour fastness to washing or restricted substances, are not done on the factory floor: attach the laboratory report and name it in the remarks. Mould, a strong smell or live insects are critical, because the whole lot is then suspect.
Common mistake: Running a test on the day that nobody agreed in advance. Its result can be argued away, because the factory never accepted the method.
8. Result and sign-off
The sheet answers one question for you: whether the defect counts are within the accept numbers. The overall result is the inspector’s: pass, fail, or pending when something must be decided by the buyer, such as a shade question or a failed packing check. Record the corrective action and who owns it, keep a few sealed pieces from the inspected lot for each side, and have both the inspector and the factory sign. Ask for every defective piece found in the sample to be repaired or replaced, even when the lot passes. The factory’s signature confirms it has seen the findings; it does not mean it accepts a failure.
Common mistake: Leaving the retained samples out. Without sealed pieces from the inspected lot, a complaint after delivery becomes your word against the factory’s.