Ensuring all manufacturers comply with international standards.
Our Factory Compliance service ensures that all manufacturing facilities in your supply chain meet international standards, regulatory requirements, and ethical business practices. We conduct comprehensive assessments of potential and existing suppliers to verify their compliance with relevant regulations, industry standards, and your organization's specific requirements.
By working with compliant manufacturers, you minimize legal, operational, and reputational risks while supporting responsible business practices. Our verification processes provide confidence that your products are being manufactured in facilities that meet acceptable standards for labor practices, environmental management, health and safety, and quality management systems.
Rather than focusing solely on minimum compliance requirements, our approach emphasizes continuous improvement and best practices. We work with manufacturers to identify opportunities for enhancement, implement corrective actions for any deficiencies, and develop sustainable compliance programs that create long-term value for all stakeholders.
Our comprehensive factory assessments evaluate compliance across several critical dimensions.
We verify that manufacturers adhere to ethical labor standards and comply with relevant labor laws and international conventions.
We assess whether manufacturing facilities maintain safe working conditions that protect worker health and prevent accidents.
We evaluate manufacturers' environmental practices to ensure responsible resource use and pollution prevention.
We review the systems and processes manufacturers have in place to manage compliance requirements effectively.
We assess facility security measures to ensure protection of products, intellectual property, and supply chain integrity.
We verify that manufacturers maintain ethical business standards and transparency in their operations.
We follow a structured approach to factory compliance assessment that ensures thorough evaluation and effective follow-up.
Before conducting an audit, we gather essential information about the facility, including location, size, products manufactured, workforce, and previous audit history. We also review applicable standards and regulations based on the facility's location and your specific requirements.
This preparation allows us to customize the audit approach to focus on the most relevant compliance areas and potential risk factors specific to each manufacturer.
Our experienced auditors conduct comprehensive on-site assessments that include facility tours, document reviews, management interviews, worker interviews, and direct observations of operations. We use standardized assessment protocols adapted to your specific requirements.
The assessment evaluates compliance across all relevant areas, including labor practices, health and safety, environmental management, and quality systems, gathering both documentary and observational evidence.
Following the on-site assessment, we document all findings in a detailed audit report that clearly identifies areas of compliance and non-compliance. Each non-compliance is categorized based on severity (critical, major, minor) and supported with specific evidence.
The report includes a compliance score or rating that provides a clear indication of the facility's overall compliance status and allows for comparison across different manufacturers in your supply chain.
For any identified non-compliances, we work with the manufacturer to develop a Corrective Action Plan (CAP) that addresses root causes, not just symptoms. The plan includes specific actions, responsible parties, timeframes for completion, and verification methods.
We prioritize corrective actions based on risk level, focusing first on critical issues that could pose immediate dangers to workers or serious compliance violations that require urgent attention.
We provide guidance and resources to help manufacturers implement required corrective actions effectively. This may include sharing best practices, providing templates or procedures, connecting them with technical resources, or offering training on specific compliance requirements.
Our collaborative approach focuses on building manufacturer capability rather than just identifying problems, creating sustainable improvement in compliance practices.
We verify the implementation and effectiveness of corrective actions through follow-up assessments, which may be conducted remotely or on-site depending on the nature and severity of the original findings.
Based on verification results, we update the compliance status of the facility and provide recommendations for ongoing monitoring and continuous improvement to maintain and enhance compliance over time.
We assess factories against recognized international standards and adapt our approach to your specific industry and requirements.
Our environmental compliance assessments evaluate manufacturers' environmental management practices and regulatory compliance. We can assess against various environmental standards and frameworks:
Assessment of systematic approach to environmental management, including policy, planning, implementation, checking, and management review processes.
Evaluation of environmental disclosures and performance in areas such as energy, water, emissions, effluents, waste, and biodiversity.
Assessment of environmental management system, energy use, water use, wastewater, air emissions, waste management, and chemical management specifically designed for manufacturing facilities.
Evaluation of preventive environmental approaches to manufacturing processes, focusing on resource efficiency, pollution prevention, and waste minimization.
Our security compliance assessments verify that manufacturers maintain appropriate security measures to protect products, intellectual property, and supply chain integrity. We can evaluate against recognized security standards:
Assessment of security practices in line with U.S. Customs and Border Protection's voluntary supply chain security program, focusing on physical security, access controls, procedural security, personnel security, and training.
Evaluation of compliance with security standards required by various customs authorities worldwide for facilitated customs processing, including supply chain security, customs compliance, and systems security.
Assessment of systematic approach to managing security risks in the supply chain, including security policy, risk assessment, operational controls, performance evaluation, and improvement.
Evaluation of facility security requirements specifically designed to protect high-value, theft-targeted goods throughout the supply chain.
We can assess compliance with standards specific to your industry or product categories, ensuring manufacturers meet specialized requirements relevant to your business:
Assessment of quality management systems specifically for medical device manufacturers, ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements and focus on safety and effectiveness.
Evaluation of food safety management systems, including hazard analysis, preventive controls, traceability, and recall procedures for food manufacturing facilities.
Assessment of quality management systems specifically for automotive production and relevant service part organizations, focusing on defect prevention and reduction of variation and waste.
Evaluation of compliance with Responsible Business Alliance standards covering labor, health and safety, environment, ethics, and management systems for electronics manufacturers.
We help manufacturers address compliance gaps through structured improvement programs.
When compliance issues are identified, we don't simply highlight problems—we provide comprehensive support to help manufacturers implement effective solutions. Our remediation approach focuses on sustainable improvement that addresses root causes rather than temporary fixes.
We understand that different manufacturers have varying levels of compliance maturity and resources. Our support is tailored to each facility's specific needs, capabilities, and compliance challenges, creating realistic improvement paths that lead to meaningful progress.
We help manufacturers identify the underlying causes of non-compliance issues, looking beyond symptoms to address systemic factors that contribute to compliance gaps.
We collaborate with factory management to create structured corrective action plans with clear responsibilities, timelines, and success metrics for each improvement initiative.
We provide guidance on implementation methods, share best practices, and connect manufacturers with specialized resources when needed to address complex compliance challenges.
We help develop or strengthen systems and processes that support ongoing compliance, including policies, procedures, training programs, and internal monitoring mechanisms.
We track implementation progress through regular check-ins, documentation reviews, and verification activities to ensure corrective actions are completed effectively and on schedule.
Discover how our Factory Compliance services have helped clients manage risk and improve supplier practices.
A retail client discovered that one of their key apparel suppliers was operating with significant social compliance deficiencies, including excessive working hours, inadequate safety systems, and poor record-keeping practices. These issues created substantial risk for both the workers and our client's reputation.
Rather than immediately terminating the relationship, the client engaged Crossglobe to implement a comprehensive compliance improvement program. We began with a thorough assessment that documented all issues and their root causes, then developed a prioritized remediation plan focusing first on critical safety concerns.
We worked closely with factory management to implement improved time-keeping systems, strengthen fire safety measures, enhance worker communication channels, and develop comprehensive health and safety management systems. Our approach included both technical guidance and management coaching to build internal capacity for sustained compliance.
Quarterly follow-up assessments tracked progress and identified areas needing additional support. Over the 18-month program, the factory transformed from a high-risk supplier to a model of compliance that became a preferred supplier for our client and attracted additional business from other international brands.
Eliminated all critical non-compliances within the first three months
Achieved 97% compliance with all applicable standards by program completion
Reduced excessive overtime by 85% while maintaining production targets
Developed internal compliance team capable of managing ongoing requirements
A healthcare provider needed to ensure that all manufacturers in their medical supply chain met stringent quality and compliance requirements. They were particularly concerned about factories producing items that would come into direct contact with patients or be used in sterile environments.
Crossglobe developed a customized compliance assessment program that combined elements of social responsibility standards, quality management requirements (ISO 13485), and specific healthcare industry regulations. We implemented a risk-based approach that applied more intensive scrutiny to manufacturers of critical medical items.
We conducted comprehensive assessments at all 12 manufacturing facilities, documenting compliance status and identifying improvement opportunities. For each supplier, we developed a facility-specific improvement plan and risk management approach, with additional verification and monitoring for higher-risk facilities.
The program provided the healthcare provider with clear visibility into their supply chain compliance status and confidence that their products were being manufactured under appropriate conditions. It also established ongoing monitoring protocols that maintained compliance awareness and continuous improvement.
Identified and addressed 23 critical compliance issues across the supply base
Developed standardized compliance requirements for all medical supply vendors
Established risk profiles for all suppliers, enabling targeted monitoring
Created compliance database with real-time status tracking for all facilities
Ready to verify that your manufacturing partners meet international standards and operate responsibly?
Our expert team will help you assess compliance risks and implement effective verification programs.
Discuss Your Compliance Needs
Social Compliance Standards
Our social compliance audits assess manufacturers' adherence to labor standards and workplace practices that protect worker rights and ensure ethical treatment. We can evaluate compliance against a range of recognized social compliance frameworks:
International Labour Organization (ILO) Conventions
Assessment against fundamental conventions covering forced labor, child labor, discrimination, freedom of association, and collective bargaining.
SA8000 Standard
Comprehensive social certification standard based on ILO and UN conventions, covering child labor, forced labor, health and safety, freedom of association, discrimination, disciplinary practices, working hours, compensation, and management systems.
SMETA (Sedex Members Ethical Trade Audit)
Widely used social audit methodology that assesses compliance with the Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI) Base Code and local laws covering labor standards, health and safety, environment, and business ethics.
BSCI (Business Social Compliance Initiative)
Supply chain management system focusing on improving working conditions in global supply chains, based on international labor conventions and declarations.