The best way to get outdoor furniture products right the first time is to detect issues as early as possible in the supply chain. The easiest way to achieve this is to go upstream and anticipate risks from the earliest stages of raw materials and manufacturing.

Key points to look at include:

• Ensuring you have the right design
• Ensuring product compliance
• Ensuring the right production process
• Defining the right control plan

Utilizing the support of a third party can help brands and retailers address these challenges while relying on an independent expert to secure product quality and fit-for-use. This will reduce issues at the end of the supply chain, avoid delays, and satisfy customers with products that arrive on time and meet their expectations.

At API, we provide comprehensive expert solutions for outdoor furniture. With more than 25 years’ experience and a portfolio of international brands and retailers that trust our knowledge, our suite of solutions is dedicated to securing the quality, safety, and performance of outdoor furniture products across the entire supply chain from the earliest stages of development. Some of these include:

• Help during product development
  Ensure better products from the early stages of development through:

  • Raw material traceability
  • Suggestions on sustainable processes
  • Suggestions on product improvement
  • Validation of control plans, marking, product characteristics, golden sample
  • And more 

• Design/prototype review at the factory or lab
  This includes expert reviews at the factory, showroom, or at our network of laboratories at the moment of product selection, including conformity criteria, risk and issues anticipation, and recommendations for improvements. 

• Sample validation
  Validation of a final sample before production will define the model to follow and ensure the rest of the production is manufactured according to the brand specifications. 

• In-production process assessment and root cause analysis
  This aims at understanding the processes for improved finished products with a high focus on identifying, assessing, and improving the manufacturing methods critical to quality and safety to prevent failures. 

• Physical, mechanical, and chemical compliance testing
  Ensure the safety and quality of your products through:
  • General safety tests
  • Stability
  • Strength and resistance
  • Fire resistance
  • Restricted substances chemical analysis
  • And more 

• Fit-for-use and performance testing
  Evaluate your products’ performance and durability, including:
  • Resistance to aggressive environments
  • Corrosion, UV aging, rain and water resistance, heat resistance, etc.
  • Usage resistance (scratches, stains, washing, tearing, metal finishing adherence, etc.)
  • Product feel and support
  • Textile performance
  • And more

• Recycled polyester testing
  This scientific method verifies and quantifies the amount of recycled polyester in products to ensure what you bring to the market while supporting your marketing claims. 

• During production inspection
  Inspection of the finished goods at 5% or 10% of the production completion will identify issues early in the production line.

Interested in finding out more about how API can help your brand with our adapted outdoor furniture solutions?