| 1 | Product and process fit | Confirm the proposed process suits the intended chip type, such as fresh-potato chips or formed chips, and covers the required stages from preparation through seasoning and packaging. | Process flow diagram, equipment list, product specification, and a written description of included and excluded scope. | Match each process step and product requirement to a named machine, operating condition, or clearly stated customer responsibility. |
| 2 | Line trial and product quality | Run a trial using the intended raw material, recipe, cut, and operating conditions. Assess finished-product characteristics and repeatability. | Trial protocol and results covering agreed product attributes, such as slice dimensions, color, texture, moisture, oil content, and seasoning distribution where relevant. | Agree in advance on the test product, sampling method, measurement method, pass criteria, and responsibility for trial materials. |
| 3 | Capacity and yield | Clarify whether quoted capacity refers to raw potatoes, prepared slices, finished chips, or packaged product. Account for product losses and operating conditions. | Capacity calculation, stated product and feed assumptions, operating-speed range, and trial or reference data for comparable products. | Compare offers using the same measurement point, product specification, operating hours, and definition of saleable output. |
| 4 | Energy and utility consumption | Review electricity, fuel or thermal energy, water, compressed air, and exhaust requirements. Consumption depends on line configuration, product, throughput, and operating conditions. | Utility schedule and estimated or measured consumption with units, measurement boundary, product, throughput, and test conditions stated. | Request comparable figures—for example, energy per kilogram of finished product—and verify what equipment and auxiliary systems are included. |
| 5 | Food safety and hygienic design | Check product-contact materials, cleanability, drainage, access for inspection, and measures to prevent contamination. Verify food-safety documentation relevant to the supplied equipment and facility. | Material declarations, product-contact surface information, cleaning instructions, risk assessment, and any current certificates with their scope and issuing body. | Assess the actual equipment and certificate scope. A certificate alone does not establish that every food-safety or regulatory requirement is met. |
| 6 | Cleaning and changeover | Understand how the equipment is cleaned, how parts are removed or accessed, and how product or seasoning changes affect cleaning time and line availability. | Cleaning procedure, recommended tools and agents, changeover steps, and details of parts requiring routine removal or inspection. | Review the procedure with the plant’s sanitation team and confirm it is compatible with site rules and the intended production schedule. |
| 7 | Controls, guarding, and site integration | Check control-system functions, emergency stops, machine guarding, electrical requirements, interfaces, and the intended division of installation responsibilities. | Electrical drawings, control-system description, equipment layout, interface list, and applicable conformity or safety documentation for the destination market. | Have qualified personnel review the design against local requirements and confirm utility connections, floor space, access, and upstream/downstream interfaces. |
| 8 | Installation and commissioning | Clarify what support is provided for installation, start-up, operator training, and performance verification, including travel and site-readiness requirements. | Installation plan, commissioning checklist, training agenda, site-preparation list, and written responsibility matrix. | Confirm milestones, required customer resources, acceptance tests, and how unresolved commissioning issues will be recorded and addressed. |
| 9 | After-sales service and spare parts | Establish service channels, technical support hours, escalation process, warranty terms, and availability of critical wear and replacement parts. | Written warranty, service contacts and response commitments, recommended spare-parts list, and parts ordering and shipping process. | Check that service commitments are documented and workable for the buyer’s location, time zone, language, and operating schedule. |
| 10 | Commercial scope and references | Compare the complete scope, exclusions, payment and delivery terms, documentation, and relevant operating references without relying on unsupported performance claims. | Itemized quotation, delivery schedule, contract scope, technical deviations list, and references for comparable equipment or applications where available. | Resolve differences between quotations in writing and verify references directly where possible, focusing on similar products, capacity, and operating conditions. |