Pre-production sample: the last sign-off before your order is made

Where it sits among the samples

The pre-production sample is the first one that shows what the order will actually be. A development sample in the right colour but the wrong fabric does not answer that; the pre-production sample does.

Why the approval matters

US federal purchasing rules set out the same step for government contracts. They define a first article as a preproduction model, initial production sample, test sample, first lot, pilot lot, or pilot models^[1], and allow testing and approval of one where it is essential to have an approved first article to serve as a manufacturing standard^[2]. Before first article approval, buying materials or starting production is normally at the sole risk of the contractor^[2]. Those rules govern only government contracts, but the logic carries over to a private order. Write into your purchase order that bulk production starts only after your written approval of the pre-production sample, and agree who bears the cost of materials bought before it.

What to check before you sign

• materials and components against the bill of materials, including the supplier of each key part;
• dimensions against the spec and its tolerances;
• colour against the approved standard, in daylight;
• function: closures, moving parts, fit and any test the product needs;
• labels, markings, packaging and the carton;
• anything you flagged on the development samples.

Sign and date two identical samples. Keep one; the other stays at the production line as the factory's reference.

When a lab test depends on the sample

For a children's product sold in the US, the CPSC's certification rule lets tests run on samples identical in all material respects to the product, which it defines as no difference with respect to compliance to the applicable rules, bans, standards, or regulations^[3] between the samples tested and the finished product sold. A pre-production sample can serve only if it truly matches production. A material change afterwards can include changes in component part composition, component part supplier, or the use of a different component part from the same supplier^[3], where the change could affect compliance, and then the changed product must be tested again and the certifier must issue a new Children's Product Certificate^[3]. For goods made outside the US, the CPSC's certificate rule says the importer, as defined in this part, is the finished product certifier^[4]. If you import, that retesting is yours to arrange, so write into the order that no component may be swapped after approval without your written consent.

Example: an approval record

Checking a pre-production sample against the spec

Check	Spec	Sample	Result
Length	30.0 cm, plus or minus 0.5 cm	30.3 cm	Pass
Main fabric	280 gsm canvas, as on the bill of materials	280 gsm canvas	Pass
Colour	Approved lab dip	Visibly lighter in daylight	Fail
Zip	Named supplier, size 5	Named supplier, size 5	Pass
Care label	Fibre content, origin, care	Origin missing	Fail
Decision			Resubmit with colour and label fixed
Cost of a second sample, including courier			$85

Illustrative figures, not a quote. Real prices depend on the spec, quantity and factory.

A second sample costs a little money and some days. Approving the wrong colour costs the whole order, because the approved sample is what the order is inspected against.