What documents should a buyer request from a Chinese equipment manufacturer?
Which legal identity documents should the buyer request first?
The starting document is the business licence (营业执照). It establishes that the entity exists, is in normal operating status, and is authorised to do specific business activities. It carries the Unified Social Credit Code (USCC), an 18-character identifier that is the supplier’s permanent identity in Chinese public records.
From the business licence the buyer can verify: registered name, USCC (cross-checkable in the SAMR National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System), registered address, registered capital, incorporation date, and — critically — the registered business scope. The scope indicates whether the company’s declared activities clearly include manufacturing activity for the equipment category; where the scope does not align with the quoted equipment, the buyer should verify the production entity, factory address, and contractual accountability before treating the supplier as the manufacturer. A general tax registration document is sometimes requested in addition, but the licence covers the same identity information at this stage.
Which quality-management certificates matter during qualification?
ISO 9001 is the reference quality-management certification. Request it where the project requires it, and check that its scope covers the site and products concerned. The certificate is issued by a certification body — it carries that body’s name and a certificate number to check with the issuer, in its public register where one exists. Where the project requires accredited certification, confirm through IAF CertSearch, which lists accredited certifications, or with the accreditation body named on the certificate, that the certificate is current and the certification body is accredited for that scope.
Project-specific extensions may also apply: ISO 14001 (environmental management) is often required for lender-financed projects; ISO 45001 (occupational health and safety) is common in heavy industry; ISO 13485 is the equivalent for medical devices. Verify each with the issuing body rather than relying on the printed PDF.
Which product certificates and type-test reports should be checked?
The documents required depend on the equipment and the destination market:
- CE marking for equipment going to the EU — the Declaration of Conformity should identify the manufacturer, applicable EU legislation, relevant standards, and product covered. Where the conformity assessment route requires a notified body, the notified body number and scope should be checked against the EU’s NANDO database.
- ATEX for hazardous-area equipment intended for the EU market — ask the manufacturer to identify the applicable legislation, equipment group/category and conformity-assessment route for the exact product. Obtain the declaration or attestation, technical evidence and any notified-body certificates required by that route. Check the route and document requirements against the applicable legislation, and verify any notified body’s identity and relevant scope in NANDO. Identify whether the documents cover an item of equipment, a component or the complete assembly; do not infer the required certificate solely from the category or accept component evidence as proof of the complete assembly.
- IECEx where the destination or project requires it — request the certificate and referenced test/quality records for the exact equipment. Compare the supplied certificate with its entry on the IECEx website, including status, product scope and conditions or limitations. Check component and assembly coverage separately. An IECEx certificate does not replace the ATEX route for the EU; verify each applicable regime’s required evidence.
- IEC type-test reports for electrical equipment (transformers, switchgear, generators) — these name the testing laboratory. Where a report is issued under accreditation, check with the accreditation body that the laboratory’s accredited scope covered those tests and standard editions on the test date.
- Sector-specific certifications — Solar Keymark for solar thermal, ASME certification where the ASME pressure-vessel code applies, conformity assessment under the Pressure Equipment Directive for the EU, and others as the project requires.
What audit and capacity evidence should accompany the documents?
A recent third-party factory audit report — from SGS, Bureau Veritas, TÜV, or an equivalent — records what the auditor observed at the site on the audit date, within the scope stated in the report, such as staffing, equipment, QC processes, calibration management, and production capacity.
Supplementary evidence: production-line photographs (with recognisable details, not stock images), capacity figures substantiated by recent shipping records or customs data, and descriptions of QC equipment with calibration certificates for critical instruments.
What inspection evidence should the supplier be able to produce?
Ask for the supplier's inspection procedure, blank report template, acceptance criteria, non-conformity workflow and an explanation of how corrective actions are verified. These show whether the supplier has a usable control system without asking it to disclose another buyer's operational file.
Reports from other clients' contracts may contain names, drawings, serial numbers, photographs and findings that remain confidential even after obvious commercial details are removed. Do not treat access to those reports — redacted or otherwise — as a qualification condition. Instead, contract for a completed project-specific inspection or FAT record on your own order. If a supplier offers a past-client reference, obtain that client's consent before requesting documents or making contact.
What counts as a real customer reference?
A logo strip on a presentation slide is not a reference. A real reference is a contactable end client who has received the supplier’s equipment for an installation comparable in scale and complexity to the planned project. The buyer asks the supplier for the project name, the country of installation, the year, the equipment scope, and a contact at the end client.
A short reference call — 15 minutes — covering whether the equipment performed to specification, whether documentation was clean, whether commissioning had complications, and whether after-sales support has been responsive, surfaces information no document does.
| Document | What it helps verify | Needs separate evidence | How to check |
|---|---|---|---|
| Business licence (营业执照) | Legal existence, business scope, registered capital, address | Production capability, financial health, delivery reliability | Look up USCC in SAMR National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System |
| ISO 9001 / 14001 / 45001 | Documented management system in place | Day-to-day quality of execution | Check the certificate with its issuer; for accredited certification, cross-check via IAF CertSearch |
| CE declaration of conformity | The manufacturer’s declaration against the EU legislation it names | That the shipped unit matches the declared product | Read the declaration; check any notified body in NANDO; match to the equipment being quoted |
| ATEX documents / IECEx certificate | ATEX: category and conformity route for the EU. IECEx: the scheme certificate | That the shipped unit, its marking and any assembly fall within them | ATEX: check any notified body in NANDO. IECEx: find the certificate on the IECEx website |
| IEC type-test reports | Design tested against the standard | Routine-test quality of the specific unit | Where the report relies on accreditation, check the laboratory’s accredited scope |
| Third-party factory audit | Production capacity, QC processes, calibration | Performance on the specific contract | Check the audit date, site and scope; confirm the report with the organisation that issued it |
| Supplier inspection procedure and blank report | How the supplier records, classifies and closes findings | What it will look like on your contract | Check defect classification, acceptance criteria and corrective-action workflow; contract for an inspection record on your own order |
| Reference contracts | Comparable delivery and post-installation behaviour | Performance on equipment differing in scale or specification | Contact the named end client directly; 15-minute call |
How Sinospect compiles the documentation dossier
Sinospect requests, organises, authenticates, and reviews the full documentation dossier on the buyer’s behalf. Certificates are verified in the relevant registries; reference contacts are spoken with directly; inspection reports are read for what they actually say rather than what they appear to say. The output is a structured qualification dossier that travels with the buyer through the rest of the procurement cycle.
See the cluster guide on supplier qualification for how this step sits in the broader workflow, or how Sinospect works for the full execution method.
Frequently asked questions
What if the supplier’s certifications are in Chinese only?
That is normal. Many Chinese-issued ISO certificates carry an English version alongside the original. For product conformity, the documents depend on the product and destination: the manufacturer’s declaration and supporting technical evidence, plus any third-party certificate the selected conformity-assessment procedure requires, such as an IECEx certificate. Request both language versions and check each document against the issuer’s register where one exists.
How recent should the documents be?
Business licence: current as of the request and matched to the live registry record. ISO certificates: within the validity period printed on the certificate, with surveillance status confirmed through the certification body. Audit and inspection reports: judge currency against the scheme, the product or configuration covered and any changes since issue, and ask for updated evidence where those conditions have changed. An older report remains useful history for the conditions it covered.
Can the buyer share the documentation with the project lender or end client?
Public records, such as the business licence and certificates listed in an issuer’s register, can be shared for the checks they support. Private audit, inspection and customer reports need the permission of their rights holders for the specific recipient and purpose: ask for an authorised extract, with identifying and commercially sensitive details removed where required.
What happens when the supplier provides only some of the requested documents?
The qualification dossier is treated as incomplete and the supplier moves into a conditional state. Sometimes a missing document reflects timing (a renewal in progress) and can be cleared in days; sometimes the gap is permanent. The decision to proceed should be made with the gap explicitly noted, not silently absorbed.
Have a supplier document pack to review?
Send the licences, certificates or test reports the supplier has provided. Sinospect responds with an initial view on what is verifiable, what is missing and what to request next.