Quality is verified, not promised.
Every shipment can be sampled, analysed and certified by an internationally recognised inspection company before it loads — so what arrives is what the contract said, and there is a document to prove it.
Inspection is instructed with a company that neither side controls. These are the ones commonly appointed on our shipments.
What an inspection covers
- Quality verification
- Samples drawn to an agreed procedure and analysed against the contracted specification. The result is issued as a certificate of analysis.
- Quantity determination
- Draft survey for bulk cargo, weighbridge or bag count for packaged cargo. Establishes what was actually loaded, independent of either party.
- Loading supervision
- Attendance at loading, hold and container condition checks, and supervision of stowage. Non-conforming cargo is not loaded.
- Certification
- Issue of the certificates the contract and the destination require, in the form the buyer's bank will accept on presentation.
On sampling
Sampling method is worth agreeing in the contract rather than leaving to custom. Composite samples drawn during loading, sealed and retained by both parties, settle most disputes before they start — and cost very little compared with a rejected cargo.
The paperwork is the trade.
A commodity contract lives or dies on its document set. These are the ones that normally travel with a shipment — the exact list depends on your destination's import rules and your bank's presentation terms.
- Bill of Lading
- Title to the cargo and evidence of shipment, issued by the carrier once loading is complete.
- Certificate of Origin
- Country of production, attested by a chamber of commerce. Determines duty treatment at import.
- Certificate of Analysis
- The laboratory result against the contracted specification, issued by the inspection company.
- Phytosanitary Certificate
- Issued by the plant protection authority at origin for agricultural cargo. Most destinations will not clear without it.
- Weight & Quality Certificate
- Independent determination of what was actually loaded, by draft survey or weighbridge.
- Insurance Certificate
- Marine cargo cover for the voyage, required under CIF terms.
- Packing List
- Marks, numbers, packaging and net and gross weights, lot by lot.
- Commercial Invoice
- The priced contract of sale, matched to the credit terms.
Tell us what you need moved.
Product, tonnage, delivery port and timing is enough to start. We come back with a written offer.