Overview
FAR 46.102 establishes the fundamental responsibilities of executive agencies to ensure that all acquired supplies and services meet contract quality requirements before they are accepted by the Government. It mandates the inclusion of inspection clauses in contracts and defines the government's right to verify compliance through systematic quality assurance.
Key Rules
- Mandatory Inclusion: Agencies must include inspection and quality requirements (and warranties where appropriate) in all contracts to protect Government interests.
- Government-Led Assurance: Quality assurance must generally be performed before acceptance and must be conducted by or under the direction of Government personnel.
- Right to Inspect: No contract terms may prohibit the Government from performing its own inspections.
- Rejection of Nonconforming Items: Agencies are required to reject supplies or services that do not meet contract requirements, subject to specific exceptions in FAR 46.407.
- Commercial Product Preference: For commercial acquisitions, the Government should rely on the contractor's existing quality system rather than Government-unique inspection, unless in-process inspection is a customary market practice.
- Interagency Cooperation: Agencies should utilize the quality assurance and acceptance services of other agencies when it is economical or more effective to do so.
Practical Implications
- Contract Administration: Contracting Officers and Quality Assurance Representatives (QARs) must ensure that no "acceptance" occurs—and subsequently no payment is finalized—until the government has verified that the work matches the contract's Statement of Work or specifications.
- Commercial Shifts: When buying commercial products, the government takes a "hands-off" approach to in-process manufacturing inspections, placing the primary burden of quality control on the contractor’s established commercial standards.