Third-Party Inspection in Chile, A Customer's Engineer at the Bench
Nothing settles an import order like watching the test. For this delivery the customer's engineer attended the works for it.
Third-Party Inspection in Chile, A Customer's Engineer at the Bench
For a Chilean order the customer chose to send their own engineer to the works rather than accept documentation at a distance. The visit covered the pressure test on the valves in the order and the inspection of the finished items before packing.
It is a straightforward arrangement, and it changes the character of the transaction: the acceptance criterion is settled at the bench rather than after the container arrives.
How witnessed inspection is arranged
It is asked for at enquiry stage, because it has to be built into the production schedule. The valves have to be ready and the test bench has to be free on the day the inspector attends, which means the visit is planned against the production plan rather than announced.
Where the customer nominates a third-party inspection body rather than sending their own engineer, the same planning applies. The test schedule is agreed in advance and the inspector witnesses the shell and seat tests against it.
What the witness actually sees
The shell test and the seat test on the valves in the order, run to API 598, with the valve identification visible and the pressure and duration recorded. Where the order calls for a video record, the same session produces it.
It is also an opportunity to inspect the finished items, the marking, and the condition of the flange facings and bores before the valves are crated. Most of the disputes that arise on import orders are settled more cheaply at this point than after shipment.
The point of it
Documentation can be copied and can be issued in good faith for the wrong batch. Watching the test on the actual valves in the order removes the question entirely, and it is why the option is worth pricing into an import schedule.
We offer witnessed testing and recorded test video on request at enquiry stage, and the arrangement is confirmed with the order rather than after production.
Questions this page answers
At enquiry stage, so it can be scheduled into production. A visit arranged after the valves are crated has much less value.
Yes. The test schedule is agreed in advance and the nominated inspector witnesses the shell and seat tests against it.
It is not a substitute, but it is the cheapest available evidence where attendance is impractical. The recording shows the valve under pressure with its identification visible.