Pulse Inspection Before Shipment

Pre-shipment inspection is the mechanism by which a buyer who cannot attend the loading gets an independent account of what was loaded. It is not a formality and it is not a rubber stamp — a properly instructed inspection produces evidence that is useful precisely because the inspector has no commercial interest in the outcome.

Who appoints the inspector

The inspection company is nominated by the buyer, or agreed between buyer and seller, and it contracts with and reports to its instructing party. That relationship matters: an inspector instructed by the buyer works to the buyer's brief, and an exporter cannot direct the outcome. Listing inspection companies that a buyer may appoint is not the same as claiming an existing relationship with any of them.

What an inspection can cover

• Drawing representative samples from the packed lot or during stuffing, sealed and identified.
• Testing against the contract parameters — moisture, purity, foreign matter, admixture, damaged, broken, insect damaged, immature, size or count.
• Verifying bag count and net weight, at a weighbridge or by checkweighing during stuffing.
• Confirming bag type, condition, marking and lot references against the packing instruction.
• Inspecting container condition and cleanliness before loading.
• Attending stuffing, recording container and seal numbers and witnessing sealing.
• Issuing a report and certificate in the format the contract or letter of credit requires.

Writing a useful instruction

Most disappointing inspections are the product of vague instructions. "Inspect the cargo" leaves the inspector to guess at scope, and the certificate then fails to answer the question the buyer actually had.

1. State the exact parameters to be tested and the tolerance for each.
2. State the sampling basis — how many increments, drawn where, and at which point in the process.
3. State whether weight is to be verified, and by what method.
4. State whether stuffing supervision is required, and at which location.
5. State the certificate format required, particularly where a letter of credit prescribes wording.
6. State who receives the report and within what timeframe.

What an inspection certificate proves

It records the inspector's findings on the sample drawn, at the time and place stated, against the parameters instructed. That is a meaningful and useful record. What it does not do is guarantee the condition of the cargo at discharge weeks later, or cover parameters that were not instructed, or substitute for a properly written contract specification.

Timing

Inspection has to be scheduled against the stuffing plan, which means the stuffing location and date need to be settled in advance. Inspection companies work to their own availability, and requesting attendance at short notice during the peak export season is where schedules slip. Where inspection is part of the contract, it belongs in the shipment timeline from the start.

How sampling is done, since it determines what an inspection can conclude. Commodity sampling methods →