Quality is key when it comes to jewelry. You want to make sure that the jewelry you get from your suppliers meets your high standards and expectations.
That’s why you need a jewelry quality control checklist to help you check every aspect of your jewelry, from design to production to packaging.
This article will give you a detailed guide on how to use a jewelry quality control checklist to ensure the quality of your jewelry. You will learn about the different stages of quality control, such as design, pre-production and post-production, and what to look for in each stage.
You will also find out how to check the packaging and specifications of your jewelry before shipping. By following this checklist, you will improve the quality of your jewelry and increase your sales performance.
Pre-Production
Defining Design Specifications
Design specifications are the cornerstone of each piece of jewelry, encompassing crucial aspects such as dimensions, shapes, colors, weight, and style.
Utilize 3D design blueprints, samples, and prototypes to confirm the feasibility of the design, serving as the ultimate reference for the finished product.
Ensuring Gemstone Quality
- Consistency in gemstone color is imperative, and a set of gemstones must match.
- Defects such as notches, pits, and cracks are unacceptable.
- Consistency in color is also required for multiple gemstones.
Verifying Metal Quality
Validate the quality and content of the metal, such as 925 sterling silver, 14k gold, or 18k gold. For gold-plated orders, confirm the thickness of the plating.
Checking Pearl/Glass Bead Quality
- Glass beads should exhibit uniform size and color with a smooth surface.
- Natural pearls come in various sizes and shapes, potentially with minor imperfections.
- Request pre-production samples for in-depth quality assessment and compliance with design specifications.
Post-Production Inspection
Visual Inspection: Pursuing Flawlessness
Surface: Examine the jewelry’s surface meticulously for defects such as scratches, dents, or sharp edges.
Color: Plating color must fall within an acceptable range, avoiding overly deep silver or excessively yellow gold.
Gemstones: Colors should be accurate, with appropriate thickness to ensure a harmonious and delicate appearance.
Engravings: All markings must be precise, clear, and distinct.
Performance Testing: Proving Durability and Functionality
Performance testing serves as the test for the durability and functionality of jewelry.
Consider various tests, including tensile strength testing, elongation testing, drop testing, and wear testing. These tests ensure that each piece can withstand the rigors of daily wear, maintaining its brilliance.
Clasps: Clasps should open and close without the need for tools.
Soldering: Earring posts must be sufficiently robust to endure normal wear and tear.
Necklace Stretch Test: Necklaces are tested at a 2 kg tensile force.
Bracelet/Ring Closure System: The closure system must be sturdy, secure, yet flexible.
Check for the retention and correct fastening of small components (for jewelry, gemstones, pearls, beads, and other decorative elements).
Specification Checks
Compare the finished jewelry pieces with the final design documents to ensure compliance with all requirements.
Ring Specifications: Ring circumference measurements follow U.S. standards (e.g., 6#/7#/8#), with a standard error of ±0.1. Other requirements cater to customer preferences. Standard ring size is 7#.
Bracelet Specifications:
- Circular bracelets have an inner diameter error of ±1 mm.
- C-shaped open bracelets have inner diameter and opening errors of ±5 mm.
- Adjustable spring bracelets should have equal lengths at both ends, excellent elasticity, and a static inner diameter error of ±2 mm.
- The average length of traditional bracelets is 7.5 inches, with a length error between -0.15 inches and +0.25 inches.
- Extension chains have an average length ranging from 2 inches to 3 inches.
Chemical Property Testing
Why test jewelry for chemical properties?
- Jewelry may have harmful metals like lead or mercury that can make you sick or allergic.
- Different countries have rules about how much metal jewelry can have.
- You need to follow the rules to sell your jewelry in different markets.
What are the common tests for jewelry?
- Heavy metal testing: This test checks how much lead, cadmium, mercury, arsenic, and chromium are in your jewelry.
- These metals can cause serious problems like brain damage, kidney failure, or cancer.
- Different countries have different limits for these metals. For example, the EU allows 0.05% lead, while the US allows 0.06% lead.
- Electroplating protection testing: This test checks how well the metal coating on your jewelry lasts and resists corrosion or wear.
- Electroplating is a process of putting another metal on top of your jewelry to make it look better or last longer.
- Electroplated jewelry can get damaged by salt, water, or use.
- Electroplating protection testing uses methods like salt spray test (SST), neutral salt spray test (NSST), or copper accelerated acetic acid salt spray test (CASS) to see how your jewelry reacts to different conditions.
How to choose a reliable organization for jewelry testing?
- You need a reputable and recognized organization that provides jewelry testing services.
- A reputable organization has qualified and experienced staff, advanced equipment, and standardized procedures for testing.
- A recognized organization has accreditation or certification from authorities or associations that confirm its quality and credibility for testing.
- Some examples of recognized organizations are SGS, Intertek, and Bureau Veritas.
Packaging
- Ensure that plastic bags are intact and clean.
- SKUs must match the correct style.
- Labels should be neat with good print quality, and packaging must safeguard the jewelry.
Conclusion
Quality is not only a matter of aesthetics, but also of safety, compliance, and customer satisfaction. A quality control checklist for jewelry helps you plan, execute, and evaluate your quality control activities.
It covers all the essential steps and criteria for inspecting and testing your jewelry products, from raw materials to finished products. It also helps you record and report your quality control results, identify and correct any quality issues, and improve your quality control process.
By using the jewelry quality control checklist, you can ensure that your jewelry products meet the highest standards of quality and excellence.
