I manage purchasing for a mid-sized manufacturing company. We buy specialty chemicals for our production line—adhesives, coatings, sealants. It's not like ordering office supplies. One wrong batch and you're looking at a production halt. Or worse, a recall.
I learned this the hard way in 2023. A new supplier looked great on paper. Good price, fast delivery. But when our finance team tried to process their invoice, it was a mess. Handwritten receipt, no tax ID, couldn't be matched to a PO. That order cost us $2,400 in rejected expenses and a very awkward conversation with my VP.
So I built a checklist. I've used it for every chemical vendor evaluation since, including when we recently added Eastman Chemical as a supplier. Here's the 5-step process I follow. It's saved me from repeating that expensive mistake.
Step 1: Verify the Company Profile (Don't Just Trust the Website)
Anyone can build a slick website. I start by confirming the basics. Who owns the company? What's their legal structure? Where are they registered?
For a company like Eastman Chemical, this is straightforward. They're publicly traded, so their Eastman Chemical company profile is a matter of public record. You can find their 10-K filings, their history, their litigation track record. But for smaller or private suppliers, you have to dig.
Here's what I check:
- Business registration: Is the company registered in a jurisdiction you recognize? I once found a supplier that was technically registered in a mailbox in Delaware. Red flag.
- Years in business: I want at least 3-5 years of verifiable history. Chemical supply chains are complex. A startup might have great technology, but can they actually deliver consistently?
- Physical address: A real office or plant, not just a virtual address. I've called the number on a website only to reach a shared voicemail.
The surprise for me: how many supposedly established suppliers have gaps in their registration. It's not always deliberate, but it tells you something about their administrative rigor.
Step 2: Check the Board of Directors (Seriously)
This sounds like overkill, but hear me out. For a publicly traded company like Eastman Chemical, the Eastman Chemical Board of Directors tells you a lot about their priorities. Are there people with deep chemical industry experience? Or is it all finance and legal backgrounds?
For private suppliers, I ask directly: "Who's on your board?" The response is telling. A clear answer with names and bios is a good sign. Evasiveness means they're hiding something or they don't have one.
Why does this matter? Because board oversight affects quality, compliance, and long-term strategy. A board with technical expertise is more likely to invest in R&D and quality control. A board without it might be purely focused on quarterly margins.
I've found my best suppliers have boards that include at least one person who's been in a plant. They understand what it takes to make a consistent product.
"Five minutes of verification beats five days of correction."
Step 3: Audit Their Certifications and Compliance
This step is where the 'prevention over cure' mindset really kicks in. A supplier who can't provide proper documentation will cost you time and money.
Specifically, I want to see:
- ISO 9001 (quality management) – non-negotiable for chemical suppliers
- REACH compliance (if sourcing from or into Europe)
- TSCA registration (US)
- Safety Data Sheets (SDS) for every product I'm ordering
- Proof of liability insurance – minimum $2 million, but more is better
The most frustrating part of supplier vetting: getting a vendor who shrugs when I ask for these. You'd think basic compliance documentation would be ready to share, but it's surprisingly common to get vague promises.
For Eastman Chemical, this was easy. Their compliance documentation is available on their website. But for a smaller specialty supplier, I had to follow up three times before they sent an SDS that was actually current.
If they can't produce these documents in the first week, they won't produce them when you have an audit next quarter.
Step 4: Test with a Small Order (Before Committing)
Never, ever start with a bulk order. I don't care how good their profile looks. Start small.
My rule: order no more than 10% of your projected first-month volume. Test their quality, their packaging, their shipping accuracy, and (my personal obsession) their invoicing.
Invoicing is the canary in the coal mine. If their invoice format doesn't match your PO system, you'll have problems. I once had a supplier who sent PDF invoices with a completely different order number. Our AP system rejected them. I spent three hours reconciling a $200 order. Not worth it.
Check these on a test order:
- Does the product match the spec from the SDS?
- Is the packaging intact and properly labeled?
- Did it arrive on time? (Not 'close to on time'. Actually on time.)
- Is the invoice format compatible with your system?
- Did the sales rep follow up? (Good service is a sign of a well-run company.)
The test order phase is where you catch problems. I've found issues like wrong concentration levels, mislabeled drums, and even a completely different product shipped by mistake. All caught on a small order, not a truckload.
Step 5: Build an Exit Strategy (Before You Need It)
This is the step most people skip. Don't.
Before you sign a long-term contract, know how you'll get out of it. What's the termination clause? How much notice do you need? What happens to inventory you've already ordered?
I learned this when a supplier went out of business with no warning. We had 6 weeks of inventory and a 12-week lead time to find a replacement. That was a stressful quarter.
Now I explicitly discuss exit terms before signing. I also keep a list of backup suppliers for every critical chemical. It takes time to maintain, but it's insurance.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
A few things I've messed up, so you don't have to:
- Skipping the credit check. A supplier's financial health matters. If they go under, you're scrambling. Run a basic D&B report or ask for references from other customers.
- Trusting verbal promises. Everything in writing. Specs, delivery dates, pricing. Verbal 'yes' is not a contract.
- Forgetting about tech compatibility. If they use a different ERP system, can you integrate? Manual data entry is error-prone and slow.
- Assuming 'company profile' is current. I check for news, lawsuits, or major changes at least quarterly. Something as simple as a change in leadership can affect service.
This checklist isn't perfect. It takes time. But the alternative—dealing with bad product, rejected invoices, or a production halt—costs way more. The $2,400 mistake I mentioned? That was just the direct cost. The real cost was lost trust and wasted hours.
So yes, I'm a fan of checking early and often. It's not glamorous work, but it keeps my production line running and my stress levels manageable.
