Qualified Products Lists (QPL)

A Qualified Products List (QPL) is a listing of products qualified as conforming to the requirements of applicable standards or specifications by the appropriate qualifying authority. The Government of Canada's Supply Manual glossary gives the French equivalent as Liste des produits homologués (LPH). The Supply Manual glossary on CanadaBuys is the federal reference for the term.

Each entry on a QPL identifies the qualifying authority and includes product identification and reference data, together with the supplier's name. Products are examined and tested before a purchase and independently of it, so a buyer can later rely on the list instead of testing every offering during a specific procurement.

What a QPL entry contains

The Supply Manual describes a QPL as a list that names the qualifying authority, identifies each product, gives reference data and records the supplier. The U.S. Department of Defense uses a similar description: a list of products that have met the qualification requirements in the applicable specification, including product identification, qualification references and manufacturer or distributor information. See the Defense Logistics Agency document for that definition.

How qualification puts a product on the list

A QPL is created through qualification. Canadian government guidance describes qualification as obtaining, examining and testing products and then identifying them on a QPL. A Canadian government Production Sharing Guidebook states the same idea: qualification is testing products for compliance with a specification in advance of and independently of a procurement action. Products that pass can be listed and used in later procurements, whether the buyer is government or a government contractor. The Production Sharing Guidebook sets out this approach.

A qualified product is one manufactured under controlled and substantially unchanged conditions that meets the requirements for listing on the applicable QPL.

QPLs maintained by the Department of National Defence

The Department of National Defence (DND) maintains QPLs for various categories of goods. CanadaBuys explains that these listing programs expedite procurement by establishing, before and independently of a specific purchase, the products or services that comply with recognized performance standards or specifications. Details are on the CanadaBuys defence contract and defence supplies page.

DND's listed QPL categories include:

• batteries
• military-identification decals
• active and passive electronic components
• fire-fighting agents and chemicals
• soldering flux and electronic solder
• gaskets and hose fittings
• hydraulic products
• insulation and packing materials
• marine and industrial coatings
• mechanical hardware
• petroleum products
• printed-wiring boards
• rubber hoses, tires and tubes
• wire and cable

Related lists and terms

• Qualification: the process of examining and testing products for conformity with a specification before a purchase.
• Qualified Products Database (QPD): the broader database in which qualified products lists may be maintained.
• Qualified Manufacturers List (QML): a related list that focuses on qualified manufacturers rather than particular products.

The U.S. Department of Defense explains how it uses these lists in its military specification FAQs.

What a QPL means for a supplier

A product may need to go through the applicable qualification process and be listed on the relevant QPL before it can compete in procurements that invoke that list. Check the specification in a solicitation to see whether a QPL applies, and identify the qualifying authority early.

Listing does not end your compliance duties. U.S. defence QPL notices state that listing does not release a supplier from compliance with the applicable specification (example one, example two). Bid teams should treat a QPL entry as proof of qualification, and still confirm that the product offered meets every requirement of the specification.