Procurement guide / All equipment families
Drilling Rig Pre-Shipment Inspection: An Evidence Checklist
Quick answer
Agree an inspection plan against the accepted order before the machine is packed. Link identification, configuration, agreed functional checks, accessory quantities and packing evidence to that specific machine and record unresolved items.
Define the inspection before it takes place
This is a buyer’s equipment acceptance checklist. It does not establish the statutory inspection, conformity or import requirements for a destination. USTR describes government preshipment inspection as a separate trade practice; buyers should distinguish those requirements from the commercial inspection agreed with their equipment supplier.
Start with the signed order, accepted technical sheet and accessory schedule. Assign a revision number to each. Agree who will inspect, where it will happen, which items must be witnessed and what evidence the buyer will receive. Identify any independent inspector in the order rather than assuming supplier photographs constitute independent verification.
Build an evidence register
Use a register that names the item, acceptance basis, evidence file and result. “Checked” without a reference makes a later discrepancy harder to resolve. The register should also distinguish items that cannot be demonstrated before shipment.
| Evidence item | Acceptance reference | Record to request |
|---|---|---|
| Machine identity | Order and offered configuration | Identification marks and configuration sheet |
| Functions | Agreed inspection plan | Dated report and identified demonstration |
| Tools and spares | Accepted quantity schedule | Itemised count and part identification |
| Documents | Contract document schedule | Manuals and applicable documents for the actual offer |
| Packing | Approved shipment scope | Packing list, package IDs, weights and photographs |
| Open issues | Agreed corrective actions | Closure evidence and buyer release decision |
Agree what a demonstration can establish
Specify the functions to be demonstrated and the conditions under which the demonstration will take place. Have competent personnel use the manufacturer’s approved procedures. An unloaded workshop demonstration cannot establish drilling productivity, final borehole depth or performance in your geology.
For a matched package, ask which interfaces can be verified before dispatch and which require a site test. Record any excluded compressor, pump, attachment or tooling. If a demonstration uses substitute equipment, identify the substitution explicitly and do not file the result as proof of the shipped combination.
Keep the machine identification visible in the evidence sequence, along with the inspection date and the agreed report reference. Request clear still photographs for labels and components as well as any video. Product illustrations and unrelated jobsite images are not shipment evidence.
Close issues before dispatch approval
List defects, missing items and document gaps separately from accepted items. Record the corrective action, responsible party, deadline and evidence required for closure. If a substitution changes the technical configuration, return it for buyer review before packing.
Check the packing list against the accessory schedule and ask for package identification, dimensions, weights and handling information. Confirm what is shipped loose and how documents and small parts are located. Treat transport preparation and destination documentation as named responsibilities in the order.
Keep commercial release conditions separate from technical inspection results. Whether payment or dispatch can proceed depends on the agreed contract and the buyer’s authorised decision. Archive the final inspection record, accepted revisions and packing evidence together so the receiving team can reconcile the delivery.
Use the enquiry worksheet.
Download an editable text checklist to record supplier responses, document references and unresolved questions.
Download Checklist ↓Buyer questions.
Does a workshop video prove drilling capacity?
No. It can show agreed functions under the recorded test conditions; it cannot establish performance at your project site.
Is this the same as mandatory import inspection?
No. Check destination requirements separately with the responsible parties. This checklist concerns evidence for the equipment purchase and agreed order.
Sources and scope.
External sources support the background points attributed to them. The enquiry questions, checklists and procurement implications are RigSpan editorial guidance. References to other manufacturers do not imply a commercial relationship, endorsement or performance equivalence.
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