The sample you approve before bulk is the sample your whole container gets judged against. Approve it casually and every garment in the order inherits the mistakes; approve it thoroughly and the inspection, the labeling check, and the final AQL pass all have something solid to measure against. This is the checklist to run before you sign off on a pre-production sample; it works on any factory floor, ours included.
The short answer: before approving bulk, check the pre-production sample against your tech pack on six fronts: measurements, fabric, construction, trims, labels, and packing. Then confirm every correction from earlier rounds was actually applied. The sample is the bulk order’s contract in cloth.
What is a pre-production sample?
The pre-production sample (the PP sample) is cut from the fabric and trims bulk production will actually use, on the production pattern, after earlier proto and fit rounds are done. That is what separates it from the samples before it: a proto tests the design, a fit sample tests the shape, and the PP sample proves the whole spec works together in production materials. When you approve it, you are approving the standard every carton is measured against.
Sampling rounds run 1 to 2 weeks each, and the realistic plan is two rounds before bulk. The PP sample is usually the output of the final round, which is why its approval and the production calendar’s approval gate are the same event.
What should you check on a pre-production sample?
Six fronts, in the order factories read them:
- Measurements. Lay the sample flat and check it against the graded measurement chart in your tech pack, at the tolerance you set. The fit samples already proved the shape; the PP sample proves the pattern was graded correctly across sizes. Check at least the key points on every size in the run, not only the sample size.
- Fabric. Confirm the composition, weight, and finish match the spec, on the actual bulk fabric. This is where substitution gets caught, and it is why fabric testing runs before cutting in the FOB program: the PP sample should carry a test result, not a promise. Shrinkage belongs on this front too; a garment that passes measurements but moves a size after its first wash failed the fabric check.
- Construction. Stitch types, seam finishes, and stress points against the tech pack’s construction notes. Check inside the garment; the inside is where shortcuts hide. Turn a sleeve, open a side seam allowance, count stitches per inch against the spec if the tech pack names a number.
- Trims. Zippers, buttons, snaps, and drawcords against the trim spec, including the hardware on any kidswear program, where lead limits apply.
- Labels. All three US label elements present and correct: the care label per 16 CFR Part 423, fiber content with your RN, and “Made in Indonesia” origin marking, with placement as specified. Labels printed after approval are the fix that costs twice.
- Packing. Fold, polybag, and carton spec on a packed sample, so the container packs the way your warehouse receives.
What should be fixed before approval, not after?
Anything that differs from the tech pack. The pre-production stage is the last point where a correction costs one garment instead of a thousand: after approval, a spec change means recutting, re-inspecting, and re-papering part or all of the run. If a correction from round one or two did not carry through to the PP sample, that is not a detail; that is the whole reason the PP stage exists.
Two sign-offs belong together at this stage: your approval of the sample, and your inspector’s. Your own inspector from SGS, Intertek, or QIMA is welcome on the floor at any stage, and using the PP visit to verify the sample against the compliance file means bulk inspection runs against a standard everyone has already touched.
One more habit separates smooth approvals from slow ones: put the approvals in writing, dated, with the sample reference and the spec version. When the container arrives and a question comes up months later, the dated sign-off is the document both sides turn to, and the version of the tech pack it names is the version that governs the order.
What happens after you approve?
Approval releases bulk cutting, and the calendar takes over. The stages inside the 40 working days of production run in order: cutting against the approved pattern, sewing through the production stages, inline checks at the needle, finishing and pressing, the label operations already specified in the tech pack, and export packing to the carton spec you approved. Final inspection runs to AQL 2.5, and the sail date that every date before it was protecting arrives on schedule.
Keep the approved PP sample where both sides can reach it; final inspection measures bulk against it, and any dispute resolves by laying a production garment next to the thing you signed.
Pre-production sample: the quick answers
What is a PP sample?
The sample made from bulk fabric and trims on the production pattern, after proto and fit rounds. Approving it sets the standard every garment in the order is measured against.
How is a PP sample different from a fit sample?
A fit sample tests shape, usually in a substitute fabric. A PP sample tests the full spec, fabric included, in production materials.
How many samples do I approve before bulk?
Plan for two sampling rounds before bulk, at 1 to 2 weeks each, with the PP sample as the final output. Rounds that try to skip ahead cost more at the container than they saved at the desk.
Who checks the PP sample, me or the factory?
Both, in a split: we check against the tech pack as we build the sample, and you (or your inspector) verify it against your expectations before approving. Third-party inspectors are welcome at this stage on our floor.
What happens if I find a problem at PP stage?
Reject the sample and list the corrections; bulk does not cut until a corrected sample passes. That is the stage doing its job.
Approving a PP sample is the decision every carton in the container gets measured against. Request a quote here, or book capacity with the sampling rounds already on the calendar.