These five checks are the Octo Machinery Verification Stack.
Why does machinery carry a different risk profile from consumer goods?
For consumer goods, the worst case is a failed production run that gets liquidated. For industrial machinery — a CRGO slitting line, an injection-molding press, a CNC milling machine — the worst case is a six-figure capital outlay sitting in a warehouse, broken, with no spare parts and a supplier that has stopped responding to emails.
Standard pre-shipment inspection is not the right tool for machinery. The FAT is: the buyer operates the machine at rated capacity on the manufacturer's floor before the container ships.
The Octo Machinery Verification Stack
Five independent checks. Each verifiable without trusting the supplier's catalog.
| Layer | What you verify | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 1 — Legal entity | Registered manufacturer; business scope matches the machine category | SAMR / gsxt.gov.cn |
| 2 — Export record | History of exporting HS 84/85 to your destination region | Customs data via ImportGenius / Panjiva |
| 3 — Production capability | Machine shop with tooling and workforce to actually build the machine | In-person factory visit |
| 4 — Factory Acceptance Test | Machine runs at rated capacity, on the manufacturer's floor, with buyer's raw material, before it ships | Bureau Veritas / SGS / TÜV SÜD / Intertek |
| 5 — Post-sale support contract | Written terms: spare-parts pricing, service-engineer dispatch, warranty scope, English-language technical contact | Contract review before deposit |
Skip any layer and the buyer is accepting the machine on faith.
Layer 1 — Check the SAMR business scope
Pull the SAMR registration for the supplier's legal entity. A manufacturer's business scope (经营范围) should include 机械设备制造 (machinery manufacturing) or category-specific terms like 金属加工机械 (metalworking machinery) or 工业自动化设备 (industrial automation equipment).
A scope reading only 商贸 (trade) or 进出口 (import/export) is a signal worth investigating. Many Chinese factories use a trading entity as their export vehicle while the actual manufacturing happens in a separate linked factory — that structure is legitimate but adds a layer of distance between the buyer and the floor that actually builds the machine. The right question: which legal entity holds the production equipment?
Incorporation date and registered capital add context. A manufacturer with 5–15 years of operating history and registered capital consistent with the claimed factory scale is a different risk profile from a 6-month entity. Registered capital adds context; it does not prove production capability.
Layer 2 — Pull the export record for HS 84/85
Industrial machinery falls under HS chapter 84 (machinery, mechanical appliances) or chapter 85 (electrical machinery and equipment). Two questions to answer:
- Has this factory actually shipped machines in the same HS subheading to a destination similar to yours? A supplier with no export history in your destination region may still be capable, but the buyer should treat logistics, documentation, and after-sale support as unproven.
- Does export volume match catalog claims? A factory claiming "100 machines per year" should have customs records showing consistent annual shipments.
ImportGenius and Panjiva index US-bound bill-of-lading data from CBP's Automated Manifest System. For non-US destinations, TDB China provides customs-data lookups per query.
Layer 3 — Visit the production floor
Export record and SAMR confirm the paper. The factory visit confirms the floor. For a six-figure machine, the buyer or a third-party agent should verify: the CNC or fabrication equipment used to build the machine, the assembly bays and test floor, and the workforce and tooling consistent with the catalog scale.
A factory whose only evidence of production is a showroom and a catalog should be treated as unverified until the buyer sees the production floor, tooling, and FAT setup.
Layer 4 — The Factory Acceptance Test
The FAT is the buyer's chance to operate the machine at rated capacity on the manufacturer's floor before it ships. Skipping the FAT means the buyer's first test is after a 4-to-12-week ocean voyage — with no easy path back to the factory.
Per Bureau Veritas Industrial Inspection service, a mid-size industrial machine FAT typically runs 2–4 days on-site. SGS, TÜV SÜD, and Intertek provide FAT services on comparable terms. Per published 2026 China-inspection pricing, capital-equipment FATs typically run $500–$900 per man-day.
What a complete FAT covers:
| Test item | What "pass" looks like |
|---|---|
| Power-on and runtime at rated capacity | Machine runs at spec under load for the full inspection duration |
| Performance verification | Speed, throughput, tolerance, accuracy against spec sheet |
| Material handling with buyer's raw material | For a CRGO slitting line: silicon-steel coils of the correct grade fed through the line |
| Documentation review | Operating manual, electrical schematics, hydraulic diagrams, parts list with cross-reference numbers, calibration certificates |
| Spare-parts inventory | Starter kit of consumables and wear parts confirmed for shipment with the machine |
| Commissioning support confirmation | Manufacturer confirms on-site commissioning support in writing |
An FAT offered as photos and video is not an FAT. Photos and video can be staged. The on-floor runtime check is the test.
Layer 5 — Pin the post-sale support contract before the wire
Machinery fails after delivery. The verified-supplier checklist for capital equipment includes post-sale support as a contractual item, not a verbal promise:
- Spare-parts pricing list — every consumable and wear part with a 2026 price
- Service-engineer dispatch terms — flight, accommodation, daily rate, and response-time commitment
- Remote troubleshooting support — English-language technical contact, response window in business hours
- Warranty scope — what is covered (labor, parts, freight) and for how long
A supplier that refuses to put these in the contract is treating the machine as sold "as is, where is" once the wire clears. That is a Walk-Away under the Octo Walk-Away Test.
A common buyer-protective structure for capital equipment: 30% at PO signing, 30% on FAT pass, 30% before loading, 10% retained 30 days post-installation. Seller reports suggest that a supplier insisting on 50% or more upfront is asking the buyer to absorb most of the production risk before the machine has been verified.
What kills a machinery sourcing deal?
- SAMR scope is trade-only and the supplier cannot name the manufacturing entity. The buyer's relationship is one party removed from the production floor.
- Export record shows no HS 84 shipments to your destination region. The supplier is taking on their first export deal at the buyer's expense.
- FAT is offered as photos and video. The on-floor runtime check is the test — video is not a substitute.
- No spare-parts inventory in the quote. The supplier expects to never see the machine after the wire clears.
- After-sale service-engineer terms are not in the contract. "We will help" is not a response-time commitment.
A machinery supplier is not verified by a spec sheet. They are verified by the SAMR scope, the export record, the production floor, the FAT, and the post-sale contract. Skip any one and the buyer is funding a test case.
Five checks. Each verifiable without trusting the supplier's catalog. Octo SAM treats machinery sourcing as a capital-allocation decision. SAM coordinates the SAMR entity check, pulls the export-record cross-check via published customs-data sources, books the Factory Acceptance Test through Bureau Veritas, SGS, TÜV SÜD, or Intertek, and reviews the post-sale support contract before the buyer wires any deposit above 30%. See how SAM applies the Machinery Verification Stack →