Adding a second Chinese factory for certified PPE
Yes, potentially, by keeping the incumbent supplying while the candidate completes the agreed assessment and buyer approval gates. Ask the conformity body to confirm how the additional site fits the production-assessment scope, then release each site's batches separately. Coordination in China can be supported by Cambridge China Bridge.
Keep supply running while approval is pending
Treat continuity as an overlap plan, not a promised approval date. Keep the incumbent supplying against the approved specification while the candidate's evidence is reviewed. Agree what happens if assessment, corrective work or the pilot takes longer than expected. The second supplier qualification guide covers the general qualification gates.
This guide focuses on supply into Great Britain. Before briefing the additional factory, record the destination market, manufacturer named in the documents, product configuration, marking route and conformity bodies involved. Ask whether the arrangement keeps the existing manufacturer or introduces a different manufacturer; do not treat that distinction as an administrative detail.
Put the site change to the conformity body
The manufacturer must keep series production in conformity and take relevant product and specification changes into account. Send the body a change pack showing the candidate site's address, processes, subcontractors, materials, equipment and final tests. Highlight differences from the incumbent, including any change to the manufacturer named in the documents.
Ask the type-examination body whether the proposed differences affect the approved type or its documentation. Ask the production-assessment body what evidence and assessment it needs for the additional site. These may be different bodies, so agree who communicates each decision. Use the PPE assessment scope guide for the wider document review.
Confirm production coverage before allocating orders
Ask the production-assessment body to identify the applicable route and explain how the candidate site will be covered. For supervised product checks, ask how sampling will represent production from each site. For production quality assurance, ask which premises, processes, final inspections and tests fall within the assessment and surveillance arrangements.
Request a written outcome stating whether existing approval covers the proposed arrangement, whether its scope needs changing, and what remains outstanding. Agree the conditions for using the body's identification on candidate-site output. Keep commercial capacity reservations conditional on this outcome; matching samples alone should not trigger a supply transfer.
Release each site's batches independently
Set up a separate buyer release record for each site's batches. Link the site, product revision, material records, inspection results, applicable conformity documents, deviations and release signature. This is a purchasing control, not a claim that the conformity body must approve every shipment. The batch traceability guide explains the wider record chain.
For a GB importer, checking that the manufacturer has carried out the appropriate conformity assessment is a legal obligation. Build that check into the release gate. If candidate-site evidence is unresolved, hold its affected batches separately and assess incumbent batches on their own evidence. Separate records help identify which output needs investigation; they do not establish conformity by themselves.
Agree the handover and escalation owners
Use a shared decision log with owners for body correspondence, technical changes, pilot acceptance and batch release. Record which findings concern only the candidate and which could affect the shared design or materials. A shared defect needs a review across the affected output, rather than an assumption that the incumbent is unaffected.
Cambridge China Bridge can coordinate factory evidence, site checks and pilot inspections through its own staff in China. Brief us with the existing conformity documents, approved specification, candidate process differences and continuity plan. Keep the conformity body's assessment decisions and the buyer's purchasing release decisions clearly assigned.
Frequently asked questions
Can I keep buying from the original PPE factory?
Plan to retain incumbent supply while the candidate is assessed. Check incumbent batches on their own evidence and review any findings that could affect the shared product design or materials.
Can the new factory use the existing PPE certificate?
Ask the relevant bodies to confirm the proposed manufacturer, product and production arrangements in writing. Do not allocate saleable output on the assumption that an existing certificate covers the candidate.
Does the conformity body release every PPE batch?
Do not assume that it does. Ask the body to explain its assessment and surveillance role, then define your separate purchasing release gate for each site's batches.
What if the second factory fails its pilot?
Hold the affected candidate batches, record corrective work and keep incumbent supply under its existing release controls. Investigate whether the failure also concerns shared materials or design.