During Production Inspection (DPI) refers to on-site inspection conducted by a third-party inspection agency or buyer's representative at the factory during the production process of a foreign trade order, when a certain proportion of products (usually 20%-30%) has been completed. Its purpose is to detect quality issues, process deviations, or material defects early in production so they can be corrected in time, avoiding mass scrapping or delivery delays. Use cases include: products with large order volumes, long production cycles, and high customization levels, such as electronic products, clothing, and mechanical parts. Precautions: inspection standards, sampling plans, inspection timing, and cost bearing must be clearly specified in the contract; inspection usually does not replace final inspection, and identified issues must be rectified within a deadline. Compared with Pre-Production Inspection (PPI), DPI occurs after production has started; compared with Final Random Inspection (FRI), DPI focuses more on process control rather than finished product release. The difference is: PPI checks raw materials and first articles, DPI checks process stability, and FRI checks finished product qualification rate.
📝 Examples
1. Given the large order volume for this batch of custom furniture, we recommend arranging third-party inspection during the During Production Inspection (DPI) stage to ensure that the painting and mortise-and-tenon craftsmanship meet standards. (Note: Conduct process inspection midway through mass production to prevent batch defects.)
2. The customer requires DPI when 30% of production is completed. We have notified the factory to reserve semi-finished products for inspection, and subsequent processes may continue only after the inspection passes. (Note: Clarify the trigger point and follow-up actions of DPI to ensure controllable quality.)
💡 Foreign Trade Tips
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