Factory & Supplier Audit Services

Factory and supplier audits are systematic evaluations conducted to assess manufacturers’ or suppliers’ quality management systems, operational capabilities, and compliance levels.

Pro QC offers tailored factory and supplier audit services in over 100 countries, backed by more than 40 years of expertise. As a trusted partner, Pro QC supports businesses that need to:

  • Verify the reliability and capabilities of new suppliers
  • Ensure supplier compliance with standards and industry best practices
  • Prepare a factory for a certification audit or maintain existing certification
  • Meet client compliance requirements
  • Identify non-compliance issues and implement corrective and preventive actions
  • Improve factory manufacturing performance to achieve quality excellence

We conduct global factory compliance audits to help you qualify factories or suppliers

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What is a Factory Audit?

Factory audits are critical for businesses seeking to mitigate supply chain risks, ensure consistent product quality, and maintain compliance with industry standards, regulatory requirements, and contractual obligations.

The primary goal of factory and supplier audits is to help clients verify their suppliers’ capability, reliability, and suitability. These audits thoroughly evaluate the supplier’s infrastructure, processes, workforce competency, and adherence to quality and compliance standards. They serve as valuable tools for identifying potential risks, such as production inefficiencies or non-compliance with industry regulations, allowing businesses to proactively address issues before they affect the supply chain.

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Types of Factory Audit Services Offered by Pro QC

At Pro QC International, we provide a comprehensive range of factory and supplier audit services, each designed to meet the specific needs of our clients and the industry sectors they operate within. These audits ensure that suppliers and manufacturers adhere to the highest quality, compliance, and efficiency standards. Below are the key types of factory audit services we offer:

A supplier verification audit aims to validate a new or existing supplier’s reliability, capability, and compliance. This type of audit ensures that the supplier meets your organization’s requirements in terms of production capacity, quality standards, and ethical practices. Pro QC’s auditors thoroughly assess financial stability, operational capabilities, and quality assurance practices. This audit provides critical insights for risk management and helps ensure that suppliers can consistently deliver on quality, timelines, and compliance.

The QMS audit evaluates a supplier’s adherence to globally recognized quality management standards, such as ISO 9001, IATF 16949, ISO 13485 and AS9100. This audit scrutinizes every aspect of the supplier’s quality management processes, including documentation, process controls, and corrective action protocols. Pro QC’s auditors assess the effectiveness of these systems in ensuring consistent production quality and identify any potential gaps that could affect the final product. This audit is essential for companies aligning their organization with international quality benchmarks.

A process audit focuses on a supplier’s manufacturing procedures. It examines the production workflow, machinery, calibration, and process controls to verify that each step in the production cycle is well-defined and capable of producing consistent, defect-free outputs. Pro QC’s process audit identifies inefficiencies, potential bottlenecks, and non-conformities in the manufacturing process, providing actionable insights for optimization.

This audit ensures suppliers meet social responsibility standards, focusing on labor practices, workplace safety, fair wages, and environmental impact. It is particularly crucial for companies that need to demonstrate compliance with ESG guidelines or specific regulatory requirements like the SA8000 standard. Our audits help mitigate reputational risk by ensuring our clients uphold ethical practices and comply with local and international labor laws.

As sustainability becomes a critical component of global supply chains, our environmental audits provide an in-depth assessment of an organization’s environmental impact, including waste management, energy efficiency, and compliance with regulations like ISO 14001. These audits help businesses align their organizations and suppliers with environmental sustainability goals, reducing the risk of non-compliance with environmental laws and promoting eco-friendly practices throughout the supply chain.

Health and safety audits ensure that a factory’s operations meet workplace safety standards and regulatory health requirements. This audit assesses the current safety measures, such as employee training, emergency procedures, equipment safety, and working conditions, to minimize the risk of accidents and injuries. Pro QC’s auditors also verify compliance with standards like ISO 45001, helping our clients maintain a safe work environment while protecting their employees.

In certain industries, particularly those with sensitive or high-risk products, security audits are necessary to ensure that a supplier’s facilities comply with security protocols and anti-terrorism measures, such as C-TPAT (Customs Trade Partnership Against Terrorism). Our security audits verify that physical and procedural safeguards are in place to protect against unauthorized access, tampering, and other security threats.

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When to Conduct a Supplier Audit?

Factory and Supplier audits are a strategic tool that can be employed at various stages in the supplier relationship, providing insight and control over the supply chain. Pro QC’s audits apply to the following situations:

1. Pre-Contractual Audits

When selecting a new supplier, conducting a factory audit before entering into a contract is a critical step in mitigating potential risks. These audits assess the supplier’s capabilities, production capacity, and quality control systems, providing a clear understanding of whether the supplier can meet your specific requirements. Pre-contractual audits are especially important when entering into long-term agreements or when production will occur in regions with less stringent regulatory oversight.

2. Ongoing Supplier Performance Monitoring

Periodic factory audits allow businesses to continuously monitor supplier performance, ensuring they maintain high levels of quality and compliance throughout the relationship. These audits can be scheduled at regular intervals, such as annually or semi-annually, to ensure the supplier’s processes remain aligned with your evolving needs and industry standards. This is particularly important in industries where compliance standards are frequently updated.

3. Special Circumstances

Factory audits can also be employed in response to specific concerns or events, such as a sudden increase in product defects, compliance violations, or supply chain disruptions. In such cases, a targeted audit can help identify the root cause of the issue and provide recommendations for corrective action. This ensures swift resolution of problems before they affect the overall supply chain.

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The Qualifications of Our Auditors

At Pro QC International, our auditors possess extensive expertise, ensuring that each factory audit is conducted with the highest precision, technical acumen, and industry knowledge. All our auditors are certified in relevant international standards and have substantial experience auditing manufacturers across various sectors.

Certification and Accreditation

Our auditors hold internationally recognized certifications, such as ISO 9001, ISO 14001, ISO 45001, ISO 13485, IATF 16949 and SA8000 certifications. These credentials demonstrate their comprehensive understanding of quality management, environmental standards, and process audits.

Industry-Specific Expertise

Pro QC auditors specialize in various industries, including automotive, medical devices, electronics, aerospace, textiles, and more. This sector-specific knowledge allows them to tailor audits to the unique requirements of each industry, ensuring that clients receive accurate and actionable insights.

Local and Global Knowledge

Our auditors operate in 100 countries including all the key manufacturing hubs worldwide, combining local market knowledge with global standards. This enables us to conduct audits in accordance with local regulations and client-specific needs while maintaining adherence to international best practices.

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Pro QC’s Factory and Supplier Audit Process

A factory audit, conducted by a third party like Pro QC International, provides an independent assessment of a supplier’s operations, systems, and capabilities. This ensures the supplier can meet quality, operational, and regulatory requirements, with a structured process focusing on key performance areas.

Audit Preparation

The audit starts with defining objectives based on the client’s needs, whether quality management, process capabilities, or compliance. An audit checklist is developed using standards like ISO 9001 or client-specific requirements. Pro QC coordinates scheduling with the supplier, ensuring that auditors with the right expertise are assigned.

On-Site Audit Execution

The audit begins with an opening meeting with the supplier’s management team to set expectations. The auditors review documentation (e.g., quality manuals, and compliance certificates), inspect the facility, assess production processes, and evaluate workforce qualifications. They also verify compliance with relevant standards (e.g., ISO, VDA) and identify non-conformities. A closing meeting is held to present preliminary findings.

Post-Audit Reporting

Pro QC provides a comprehensive audit report with detailed findings, non-conformities, and recommendations for improvement. The report includes an overall supplier evaluation score and may include a corrective action plan (CAP) if needed.

Follow-up and Continuous Improvement

If significant non-conformities are found, a follow-up audit may be conducted to verify corrective actions. Pro QC also offers ongoing monitoring to ensure continuous supplier compliance and development, helping maintain supply chain resilience.

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The Benefits of Working with Pro QC for Supplier Audits

Choosing Pro QC for factory and supplier audits offers numerous advantages:

Stability and Expertise: Founded in 1984, Pro QC is a trustworthy and dependable quality partner with over 40 years of experience.
Expert-Led Solutions: Technical expert advice from first contact ensures reliable solutions are executed with precision.
Qualified Resources: Resource transparency and the right qualifications safeguard your interests on every project at every supplier.
Single Contact Point: A single contact point for quality services globally simplifies your supply chain.
Stringent Technical Oversight: Meticulous technical preparation, guidance throughout the engagement, and report review by senior engineers.
Advanced Quality Analysis: Industry-leading quality dashboard, analytics, and supplier performance analysis tools and framework.
Global Aligned Operations: Operational processes are optimized and aligned for a seamless cross-regional experience.

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Download Sample Reports

Get in touch with us using the contact form below or visit our sample report page. Our team would be happy to provide a relevant sample report by industry or global audit standard (e.g. ISO 9001).

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