The Technical Audit: How to Judge a Factory Before You Place an Order

Choosing a factory on price and a nice sample is how brands end up with a partner that can't hold quality at volume. A technical audit is the structured way to answer the real question - can this factory actually make my product, to standard, at my quantity, repeatedly? - before the money is committed. Here is what it covers.

Technical vs social: two different audits

Don't confuse the two audits a factory faces:

• Technical (capability) audit - can they make it well: machinery, capacity, the quality system, sampling, testing.
• Social / compliance audit - do they operate responsibly: labour, wages, hours, health and safety (this is the SMETA / BSCI / WRAP world).

Both matter, but a technical audit is the one that predicts whether your bulk will match your sample. This checklist is the technical side.