Global Sourcing Risk Management

Berlin Global Packaging Group makes it a point to “walk the floors” of our factory partners and institute solid working relationships with them.  Although internet sourcing may seem easy and convenient, it can turn out to be painful and costly.  We see many of our competitors and customers trying to handle the global sourcing process via e-mail with a couple of on-site visits per year.  Our trained and experienced staff is located at points around the globe and works with our qualified factory partners on a daily basis.  Our success in global sourcing stems from doing more than overcoming the language barriers and just relying on a good price.  That is the easy part.
 
Berlin Global Packaging Group has built a comprehensive, three-part risk management strategy into our global sourcing operations.
 

Pre-Production

Everything starts with a comprehensive factory evaluation.

 

• A physical plant survey evaluates the manufacturing and storage facilities, products, personnel, equipment, key customers, production capacity, and any social accountability concerns.
• The Quality Assurance and Quality Control evaluation covers training practices, operating procedures, incoming material controls, in-process quality control, and final inspection procedures.
• A factory assessment report is generated that highlights any recommended physical plant or process improvements, along with a recommendation to proceed or not to proceed.

Production

On-site personnel conduct inspections on every production run.

 

• Every new item starts with a pilot run and product testing before mass production to confirm that we have met our customers’ expectations.
• Min/max range boards and sign-off samples are important to confirm expectations for quality. 

Final Inspection

Identify any problems before goods are loaded for shipment.

 

• All shipments are inspected by our quality-control inspectors and compared against the factory’s own quality control data.
• Final inspection reports are completed for each shipment.

 
A robust risk management program is not a cost center; it can pay dividends by helping avoid time-consuming and costly quality issues.  This strategy allows Berlin Global Packaging Group to focus on growth opportunities and meeting the needs of our customers, not fixing problems.

     

 

Social Accountability      

Berlin Global suppliers have passed Social Accountability (SA) audits that ensure no child or forced labor is employed and that there are no issues with working conditions, compensation, and disciplinary practices within the factories.