A plastic products inspection checks moulding quality, colour, fit and function on a random sample drawn to ANSI/ASQ Z1.4. Here is what our inspectors look for on injection-moulded, blow-moulded and extruded products.
Housings and covers, food containers and kitchenware, bottles, garden and household products, and technical parts.
Each defect in the sample is photographed and counted in its class. Your AQL plan sets how many are allowed; for critical defects the answer is none.
Likely to injure the user or breaks a mandatory rule of the destination market. One critical defect in the sample means the lot is not accepted.
Likely to cause a failure, reduce usability or make the product unsaleable, so a customer would return it.
A departure from the specification that does not affect use and is unlikely on its own to cause a return.
Your specification and approved sample decide the final class. Where a buyer defines zones (for example, zone A for the most visible surfaces), a defect in zone A is usually classed higher than the same defect in a hidden area.
Containers and lids filled with water or pressurised, then inverted.
Product dropped from the height in your specification, then checked for cracks.
Opened and closed the number of times in your specification.
Against the approved master in a light box under D65 daylight.
Parts fitted to their mating parts without force.
Part weight against the standard: a light part can point to a short shot or a material change.
| Point | How we measure |
|---|---|
| Overall length, width, height | Calipers against the drawing |
| Wall thickness | At the points on the drawing |
| Critical fit dimension | Per cavity, where the mould has several |
| Thread or neck finish | Gauges for bottles and closures |
| Flatness or warp | Feeler gauge on a surface plate |
| Weight | Scale, in grams |
Unit: mm unless stated. We measure at least five units per size or version against your specification and tolerances, and report every reading.
We check marks and documents against your specification. Your compliance team or test lab confirms which rules apply to your exact product.
We note the mould and cavity numbers, draw samples across cartons so every cavity is represented, and inspect under good light at arm’s length. Colour is judged in a light box, and fit and seal tests run on separate units.
Suggested planLevel II with AQL 0 / 2.5 / 4.0 suits most consumer plastics. Technical parts add a dimensional plan per cavity.
Anything else, ask us directly. A principal replies, not a bot.
[email protected]Short shots, flash, sink marks, warpage, weld and flow lines, stress whitening, black specks and colour variation. We class each one as major or minor by where it appears and whether it affects fit or function.
Side by side with your approved colour master in a light box under D65 daylight, and under a second light source if you specify one. We photograph both together so you can see the match.
We check the documents on site: the declaration of compliance and the migration test report for the resin and the product. Migration testing itself is done in an accredited lab, which we can arrange.
Tell us the product, the factory and the date. We confirm the inspector and the fixed price the same working day.