Define the Supply Scope
Almost every import dispute traces back to a supply scope that was never written down. A photograph of a styled bathroom is not a specification, and the taps, mirrors and accessories in it are not included unless a component list says so.
Ask for an itemized component list per unit, and read it as the definition of what you are buying. Where a price seems unusually low, the difference is almost always in this list rather than in quality.
Also settle the specification items that decide compliance and performance: panel emission class, glass thickness and treatment, hardware corrosion specification, and finish coat count and sealing scope.
- Itemized component list per unit, as the definition of the order
- Panel formaldehyde emission class stated explicitly
- Glass thickness, treatment and edge finish
- Hardware specification including corrosion resistance
- Finish coat count and whether hidden faces are sealed
Approve and Keep a Sample
A physical sample is the only unambiguous reference for color, finish and construction, and it costs a fraction of what a disputed container costs.
Approve it, sign it, and keep it. Not a photograph of it, and not a description. Color on a screen is unreliable and finish sheen cannot be photographed accurately at all.
For colored or pigmented products, the sample also anchors the batch conversation: agree in writing what variation from the approved sample is acceptable, so that a later judgement has a reference rather than being an argument between two opinions.
- Approve a physical sample, not a photograph
- Sign and retain it for the life of the contract
- Agree an acceptable variation standard in writing
- For repeat orders, keep the sample as the ongoing reference
- For projects, consider a full prototype unit rather than a material sample
Get Evidence During Production
One photograph of finished goods before shipping tells you almost nothing, because by then everything is decided and the container is loading.
Ask instead for evidence at stages: material or components before machining, assembled units before finishing, finished units before packing. Each of those is a point where a problem can still be corrected cheaply, and the request itself changes how carefully the order is watched at the factory.
This does not require an inspector on site. Dated photographs at agreed stages, with the order number visible, are enough to make production visible and to establish when something went wrong if it does.
- Agree evidence points at stages, not just before shipment
- Dated photographs with the order reference visible
- Assembled units before finishing is the highest-value checkpoint
- Ask what cure time is allowed before packing
- For projects, review a first-off unit before releasing the balance
Specify the Packing
Packing is treated as the factory's business and it is actually the buyer's risk. Damage in transit costs the replacement, the freight, the delay and the customer relationship, and none of that is recovered by a cheaper carton.
Ask what the packing consists of, how corners and edges are protected, and how units are secured in the container. For glass, edge protection is the specific thing to confirm, because a chipped edge in a tempered panel is a structural defect rather than cosmetic damage. For cabinets, corner protection and film against surface marking.
Then ask for carton dimensions and units per container. Packed volume is what you pay freight on, and a supplier who has thought about nesting or separate tops can materially reduce landed cost. Both directions of that conversation are worth having.
- Confirm what the packing consists of, in writing
- Glass: edge protection specifically, not just face protection
- Cabinets: corner protection and surface film
- Ask for carton dimensions and units per container
- Labeling by unit or room number where the site needs it
Documents and Inspection
Two things should be settled before production rather than before shipping.
Documentation, because some of it cannot be produced retrospectively. Timber legality evidence, emission class documentation and any test reports need to be requested at order stage, when the factory can still source them for the material actually used. Requested at shipping, the honest answer is often that the material is already in the product.
Inspection, because the point at which goods are inspected determines what happens if they fail. Pre-shipment inspection at the factory, before loading, is the useful moment: goods can be reworked. Inspection on arrival at destination means a dispute rather than a fix. Agree the point, the standard, who attends, and who pays for a re-inspection if the first one fails.
Finally, confirm the legal entity on the invoice matches the entity you contracted with and the factory that made the goods. Mismatches here are common and are worth resolving before money moves.
- Request documentation at order stage, not before shipping
- Timber legality and emission documentation must match the actual material
- Agree pre-shipment inspection at the factory, before loading
- Define the standard and who pays for re-inspection
- Confirm the invoicing entity matches the contracting entity
