A purchaser may use following product specifications as individual or as in combination, for standardization.
1. By blue print
2. By chemical analysis
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3. By brand or trademark
4. By commercial standards or standard specifications
5. By market grade
6. By physical description
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7. By sample
8. By performance use or function
9. By method of manufacturing.
1. By Blue Print:
Blue prints are usually for component parts. This is one of the best and most accurate methods of describing an item. The engineering or design department prepares the blue prints for the materials management department. This method overcomes the difficulties experienced in buying samples.
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2. By Chemical Analysis:
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A product is described by its chemical composition of chemical formulae. Here also, a company is required to prepare its own specifications. The product on receipt can be tested in the recipient’s chemical laboratory.
3. By Brand or Trademark:
A product is fully defined by a brand name. Since, there is no competitive binding because purchase is restricted to a single source, the price is generally high. The position is further aggravated because on such products considerable sums of money are spent on advertising which further ads to the cost. This disadvantage can be partially overcome by stipulating a number of alternatively acceptable brands introducing a semblance of competition.
Branded products are protested to the manufacturer’s standards and are of uniform quality. Since quality is assured, no further testing at the buyer’s end is necessary and this eliminates the testing expenses. It also saves time and effort and cost of screening suppliers.
The fact, however, remains that more often than not a brand product is three times as costly as a non branded equivalent product to prescribed commercial standards.
4. By Commercial Standards or Standard Specifications:
This is the form most commonly used nationally and internationally. Either the company itself prepares a standard specifying in detail the product in respect of its physical characteristics, dimensions, tolerances, chemical composition, methods of testing and test results or the company adopts one of the national and international standards prepared by the recognised statutory bodies. The product, in this case is precisely defined and there is no doubt in the mind of the buyer, the supplier and the inspector of what is required to be supplied.
5. By Market Grade:
Buyers and sellers both know grades A, B, C or D of tea. These are the market grades of tea.
6. By Physical Description:
A product is described by length, breadth, height, volume, weight or other physical properties capable of being measured. A company will have to prepare its own specifications for such products.
7. By Sample:
The buyer exhibits a standard sample to which supplies should conform. Nowadays, this method is usually adopted by a buyer when he tries to procure an item competitively for the first time, whereas in the past, it was procured on proprietary on captive basis.
The method suffers from serious handicaps as the vendor can only measure the dimensions from the sample and has no information about the chemical composition or other physical properties of the item, if the right dimensions and in any case acceptable tolerances are not known. And with all these handicaps, the buyer will expect the vendor’s supply to stand field trials.
Sometimes against a tender enquiry, some vendors submit their own counter samples. This is so even when bids are invited to commercial standards. Usually, it has to be presumed that such counter offers are made when the bidders are not about the suitability of their products. Consideration of such bids introduces various complications.
Testing of such tender samples to the stipulated commercial standards will be involved which will result in the delay of placement of contracts. Testing of such samples to destruction to check their physical and chemical properties will be involved and this is not possible because then the approved sample will not be available for comparison with bulk supplies when received.
Such bids deserve immediate rejection. This also throws a corresponding obligation on the buyer not to call for tender samples when commercial standards are available and are prescribed when bids are invited. The standard itself requires the bidders to send samples.
8. By Performance Use or Function:
Prospective bidders are advised about the use to which the product will be put the function it is required to perform and the performance expected. The supplier in this case has much more freedom in designing the product.
Unlike a commercial standard which lays down all dimensions, tolerances, chemical composition, physical characteristics, etc. the supplier is bound in this method to end result, viz. performance. This method is usually adopted for end products like engines, pumps, motors, etc.
9. By Method of Manufacture:
A buyer indicates his choice regarding method of manufacture, e.g., hot rolled sheets vs. cold rolled sheets or hot-dip galvanising vs. electro galvanising.