FACTORY AUDIT / 01
Audit buyer-defined controls—not the factory’s presentation.
“Factory” is not a single database field and a site tour is not an audit plan. Define the product, site, processes, evidence sample and decision owner first. Then test five separate capability claims and retain the dated result.
AUDIT BRIEF / 02
Write these six fields before the audit starts
The buyer owns the audit question. Replace generic “check quality” instructions with a brief that tells the reviewer what claim to test, where to test it, which record or sample to inspect and what happens when evidence is missing.
| Audit field | Define before the review | Record in the audit file |
|---|---|---|
| Claim or control | The capability, process or control being tested against the order | Criterion used and whether the observation conformed, did not conform or remained unverified |
| Evidence and sample | Required document, record, item, batch or time window—and how examples will be selected | Exact record title, date, sample identity and any selection limitation |
| Site and person | Named production location, relevant area and accountable role | Location observed, people interviewed and any entity or site mismatch |
| Observation | What the reviewer must see rather than infer from a sales statement | Dated fact, linked evidence and the boundary of what was not observed |
| Exception | What counts as missing, contradictory or nonconforming evidence | Finding, affected product or process, containment and required correction |
| Owner and decision | Who can accept risk, require correction, re-audit or stop approval | Owner, due date, release block and next decision state |
Social, environmental, worker-safety and destination-market product compliance require separately scoped criteria and evidence. Do not imply that this technical capability checklist covers those assessments.
Match the legal entity and its registered role
Start with the exact Chinese legal name and Unified Social Credit Code. Match the current National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System record to the business licence, quotation and contract.
Read the registered business scope (经营范围) for manufacturing, processing, sales and import/export wording that is relevant to the quoted product. China’s market-regulation rules define business scope as the registered range of activities; that makes it useful identity and role evidence, not a live inspection of assets or capacity.
Put capability into the global supplier due diligence sequence →
Need the identity first? Follow the official company-registration workflow →
Paying the supplier? Verify the bank account details before payment →
Bind the manufacturing claim to one named site
Record the production-site name, full Chinese address and relationship to the contracting company. Ask whether the site is owned, leased, a branch, an affiliate or a subcontractor, and identify who is accountable for the order when those entities differ.
A dated live walkthrough can help connect the contact to a physical place. Ask to see non-confidential areas relevant to the quote—site signage, the named production line, incoming material control, in-process checks and finished-goods handling—in one agreed sequence. Preserve the date and the claims observed.
A video call shows selected conditions at one moment. It does not independently prove site control, continuous capacity, labour conditions, product conformity or who will manufacture the final batch.
Translate your product into process questions
List the few processes that determine whether your product can meet specification: materials, critical equipment, tooling, tolerances, test methods, traceability, special processes, output window and known subcontracted steps. Ask for evidence against that list rather than a generic factory tour.
Define the controlled product specification before assessing whether this site can make it →
Cross-check the quoted lead time and capacity against the line, shifts, maintenance constraints and other committed work. Where a step is outsourced, identify the actual processor and decide whether it belongs inside the assessment scope.
Do not infer capability from employee count, registered capital, a marketplace badge or a large catalogue alone. Those may raise questions, but none demonstrates that the site can repeatedly make your specified product.
Verify the certificate, then read its scope and sites
If the supplier presents an ISO management-system certificate, match its legal entity, certificate number, status, standard, scope and covered locations. ISO says it does not certify companies or issue certificates; it directs users to the issuing or accreditation body and IAF CertSearch for accredited-certificate verification.
Management-system certification is not product certification. ISO’s supply-chain guidance says the certificate describes the scope of the quality-management system and that ISO 9001 does not define the specific requirements for the product you are buying.
Use IAF CertSearch or contact the named certification or accreditation body. A valid certificate whose scope or locations do not cover your product and site does not close the capability question.
Match supplier certificates and test reports to the holder, site, product and order →
Finish with proof tied to your order
Freeze the product specification, approved materials, tolerances, test method, packaging, acceptance criteria and change-control route before treating a sample as meaningful. Keep the approved sample or pilot evidence tied to that version.
Create the product-definition baseline before requesting production evidence →
Choose verification proportional to risk: document review for a low-consequence repeat order; a live technical review or pilot for a new custom item; an independent, scope-defined site assessment and pre-shipment inspection where failure would be material. ISO’s supplier guidance explicitly treats customer or third-party assessments and inspections at supplier premises as distinct ways to build confidence.
A passed sample, audit or inspection is dated evidence within its stated scope. It is not a permanent guarantee, so retain change notices, batch records and acceptance results for the actual order.
EVIDENCE MAP / 03
What each layer can—and cannot—show
| Evidence | Useful for | Does not establish |
|---|---|---|
| Current GSXT identity record | Matched legal identity, registered status and displayed scope at the query date | Factory ownership, equipment, capacity, quality or order performance |
| Manufacturing wording in business scope | A first-pass consistency check between the registered role and quoted activity | Which site will make the order or whether production is current or outsourced |
| Dated live site walkthrough | Selected site, process and material observations at one moment | Independent site control, stable capacity or final-batch conformity |
| Verified management-system certificate | Certificate status, named organisation, covered scope and listed locations | Product certification, superior product, or 100% conformity |
| Approved sample or pilot | Evidence against a frozen specification and test method | Unchanged materials, scaled production or every future batch |
| Scoped independent audit or inspection | Third-party observations against stated criteria, location and date | A risk-free supplier or performance outside the assessment scope |
DECISION RECORD / 04
Turn findings into a controlled next state
The audit report supplies dated evidence; the buyer’s accountable owner makes the commercial decision. Record one state, its reason, unresolved exceptions and the event required to change it.
| Decision state | Use it when | Required next control |
|---|---|---|
| Not ready | The product, site, critical process, criteria or evidence sample is not defined | Complete the buyer brief before reviewing or commissioning an audit |
| Review open | Required evidence is incomplete or a material contradiction is unexplained | Assign an owner and evidence deadline; keep the affected release blocked |
| Conditional | A narrow exception can be controlled without pretending it is closed | Write the condition, owner, deadline, verification method and prohibited release |
| Correct and re-audit | A material control failed and objective correction must be observed | Contain the risk, obtain corrective evidence and repeat the affected audit scope |
| Do not approve | Evidence fails buyer criteria or the risk cannot be reduced within the order constraints | Record the reason and stop the affected supplier, product or order release |
METHOD / 05
How this checklist was prepared
Currawong Web’s China-side verification desk reviewed the official sources below on 31 July 2026. We separated what those sources directly support—registered scope, audit-programme guidance, certification roles, certificate verification and supplier-assessment options—from our original buyer-brief and decision-record framework.
ISO 19011:2026 provides guidance on audit principles, managing an audit programme, conducting audits and evaluating auditor competence. Using it does not itself certify the supplier, prove manufacturing capability or approve an order.
We did not inspect any reader’s supplier, factory, product, certificate or order. This page is general evidence-organising guidance, not legal advice, a factory audit, a product-compliance opinion or a guarantee of supplier performance. Official records, certificate status and site conditions can change.
PRIMARY SOURCES / 06
Official sources used for this guide
Links and page content were checked on 31 July 2026. Re-open the live record, certificate entry and applicable product rules before a material decision.
- National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity SystemOfficial China market-entity identity and public registration record used for the first evidence layer.
- State Council — Regulation on the Administration of Registration of Market EntitiesCurrent regulation requiring market entities to register their business scope under the published classification and separating general from licensed activities.
- ISO 19011:2026 — Guidelines for auditing management systemsCurrent guidance on audit principles, audit programmes, conducting audits and auditor competence; it is not supplier certification or buyer approval.
- ISO — Certification and accredited-certificate verificationExplains certification and accreditation roles, that ISO does not issue certificates, and how to verify accredited certification.
- ISO — ISO 9001 in the supply chain (archived explanatory guide)Older official buyer guidance used only for the distinction between purchaser requirements, management-system certification, product conformity and supplier assessment.
- IAF CertSearch — Certificate searchCertificate-number or company search with status, scope, locations and issuing/accreditation body details.
COMMON QUESTIONS / 07
Keep factory-audit conclusions narrow
- What should a China factory audit checklist include?
- At minimum: the matched supplier and site, the product and critical processes, buyer-defined criteria, evidence and sampling instructions, dated observations, exceptions, an accountable owner and the next decision state.
- Is a trading company always the wrong supplier?
- A trading company is not automatically unsuitable. It may add sourcing, export or coordination value. Require the seller to disclose the actual manufacturing site and make responsibility for your order clear.
- Does manufacturing wording prove it is a factory?
- No. It supports a registered-role hypothesis. Site control, current processes, capacity, subcontracting and order fit need separate evidence.
- Is a live video tour enough?
- No. It is a dated observation selected by the supplier. Use it to ask better questions, then escalate according to order risk.
- Does ISO 9001 certify my product?
- No. ISO 9001 concerns a quality-management system. Match the certificate’s organisation, locations and scope, then verify product requirements separately.
- Does following ISO 19011 approve the supplier?
- No. ISO 19011 provides guidance for auditing management systems. The audit criteria, evidence, findings and buyer decision still need to be defined and recorded for this supplier and order.
- When should I use an independent audit?
- When the order value, safety impact, custom tooling, process complexity or cost of failure makes supplier-selected evidence insufficient. Define the site, processes, documents and acceptance criteria before commissioning it.