| Quality management | Documented controls for order review, production, inspection, nonconforming products, and corrective action. | ISO 9001:2015 certification, where applicable; confirm scope, certification validity, and issuing body. | Request a current certificate and ask how process changes and customer complaints are recorded and closed. |
| Automotive requirements | Automotive quality controls, production-part approval, traceability, and change management. | IATF 16949:2016 certification for applicable automotive production; PPAP requirements as agreed with the customer. | Verify that the certified scope and site cover the relevant manufacturing activity; agree on approval documents before production. |
| Material selection and traceability | Grade, thickness, temper, coating, mechanical properties, and batch identification should match the drawing and purchase specification. | Material test certificates and applicable specifications, such as ASTM A1008/A1008M for certain cold-rolled carbon steel sheet or ASTM A666 for certain stainless steel products. | Specify the exact material standard and grade; confirm how incoming material is identified and linked to finished parts. |
| Dimensional inspection | Inspection of critical dimensions, hole locations, flatness, burrs, and formed features against the approved drawing. | Inspection plans, calibrated measurement equipment, first-article reports, and measurement records. | Identify critical-to-quality characteristics and tolerances on the drawing; review sample reports before approving production. |
| Tooling and process capability | Suitability of progressive, transfer, or single-operation stamping; die maintenance; press capacity; and process monitoring. | Tooling plans, maintenance records, process flow, and capability studies when specified by the customer. | Review who owns and maintains the tooling, how revisions are controlled, and what happens to tools at contract end. |
| Customization and finishing | Custom geometry, material thickness, deburring, heat treatment, plating, painting, or other specified secondary operations. | Approved drawings and finish specifications; process records and coating or finish inspection evidence where required. | Confirm which operations are performed in-house or outsourced, and define acceptance criteria for appearance and performance. |
| Environmental and substance compliance | Environmental management and control of restricted substances relevant to the product and destination market. | ISO 14001:2015 certification where applicable; RoHS Directive 2011/65/EU, as amended, and REACH Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 where applicable. | Specify applicable regulations and request product-specific declarations or test evidence; do not rely on a general factory statement alone. |
| Commercial and delivery reliability | Quoted tooling and unit costs, minimum order quantities, lead times, packaging, export documentation, and capacity planning. | Written quotation, agreed production schedule, packaging specification, and shipment records. | Compare quotations on the same drawing revision, material, finish, inspection level, order quantity, and delivery terms. |