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JANUARY 2017

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73

THINK

testing, another company may

require the same product to be

tested as though a baby would

chew on it. For many distributors

and suppliers, it’s increasingly

harder to satisfy all the people

all the time.

This variability has a lot to do

with a company’s risk tolerance.

The avoidance of risk drives a lot

of compliance policy decisions,

and companies that have had a

recall or safety issue in the recent

past will typically be much more

demanding of their vendors.

While some companies might be

OK with an outdated test report,

others may want to see testing on

the same batch of products they

are buying.

Many of us offer a wide

variety of products, from simple

shopping bags to complex

electronics—and each one

of the products has its own

collection of legal requirements

and/or industry standards.

Some product requirements are

straightforward—such as for kids’

items or products that hold food.

Other product requirements,

such as for electronics, are

not so clear. They might have

few legal requirements, but

electronics have strong voluntary

requirements that have a big

impact on safety. Every one of

your customers may have their

own idea on what standards

to adopt.

Creating a supply chain that

can cope with differing customer

requirements is a real challenge.

It takes a robust compliance

program, supply chain

transparency and a dynamic

sourcing team that can react

quickly. Here are some areas

to focus on to help you meet

the challenge:

Do a product risk

assessment.

A

standardized, documented

review of each of your products is

a key step. A proper assessment

not only ensures you identify all

potential risks, it also allows you

The avoidance of

risk drives a lot

of compliance

policy decisions,

and companies

that have had a

recall or safety

issue in the

recent past will

typically be much

more demanding

of their vendors.