| Dimensional Precision | Consistency of mounting holes, spline or broach geometry, interfaces, wall thickness, and external dimensions. | Controlled engineering drawings with stated tolerances; calibrated gauges, CMM reports, and first-article inspection records. | 15% | Approved drawings, inspection plans, capability studies, and sample measurement reports. |
| Material Verification | Grade, composition, hardness, corrosion resistance, and suitability of stainless steel, brass, zinc alloy, aluminum, or engineered polymer components. | Material certificates, incoming inspection, positive material identification where required, and traceable batch records. | 12% | Mill certificates, supplier declarations, hardness results, and lot traceability documents. |
| Functional Durability | Resistance to repeated lifting, turning, tightening, loosening, vibration, and interface wear during the expected service life. | Testing aligned with the applicable faucet product standard, including ASME A112.18.1/CSA B125.1 where applicable; acceptance limits must be defined in the test plan. | 15% | Life-cycle test reports, failure analysis, corrective-action records, and control-plan results. |
| Corrosion and Finish Performance | Resistance of plated, painted, PVD-coated, brushed, or untreated surfaces to moisture, chemicals, abrasion, and handling. | ISO 9227 or ASTM B117 salt-spray methods may be used when appropriate; exposure duration and acceptance criteria must be specified by the purchaser. | 12% | Coating specifications, thickness measurements, adhesion tests, photographs, and laboratory reports. |
| Quality Management | Effectiveness of process control, nonconformance management, document control, calibration, audits, and continual improvement. | Current ISO 9001 certification issued by an accredited certification body, supported by audit scope and expiry verification. | 12% | Certificate, audit summary, process flow, PFMEA, control plan, and statistical quality records. |
| Regulatory and Safety Compliance | Compliance of the handle assembly and relevant faucet components with destination-market material, safety, and drinking-water requirements. | Applicable requirements may include NSF/ANSI/CAN 61 for drinking-water system components, RoHS, REACH, and regional product regulations. | 12% | Valid test reports, declarations of conformity, restricted-substance declarations, and certification listings. |
| Manufacturing Capability | Ability to perform machining, forging, casting, stamping, injection molding, polishing, plating, assembly, and inspection under controlled conditions. | Documented process flow, equipment list, maintenance program, operator qualification, and capacity plan. | 10% | Factory audit, process capability data, maintenance records, and production-line photographs or visit records. |
| Supply Reliability | On-time delivery, production continuity, capacity flexibility, inventory strategy, and response to engineering changes. | At least 12 months of documented delivery and quality performance is recommended for supplier comparison. | 6% | OTD reports, lead-time records, capacity commitments, business-continuity plans, and escalation procedures. |
| Customization and Engineering Support | Ability to develop custom geometry, finishes, packaging, tolerances, prototypes, and tooling with controlled engineering changes. | Formal design-review, prototype-approval, tooling-validation, and change-control processes. | 4% | Sample development timeline, engineering-change notices, prototype reports, and tooling-maintenance records. |
| Total Cost of Ownership | Unit price plus tooling, inspection, freight, packaging, warranty exposure, scrap, rework, and expected service-life costs. | Use a consistent total-cost model rather than comparing unit prices alone. | 2% | Transparent quotation, tooling amortization, warranty terms, packaging specification, and landed-cost calculation. |