About the On-Site Check

If the SAQ of a company site indicates a potentially higher sustainability risk, an On-Site Check (OSC) is conducted at the supplier‘s site. Since a country risk factor is included in the risk evaluation, the necessary SAQ score to directly obtain a positive S-Rating may vary depending on the site‘s location.

With the OSC, we aim to assess a site‘s sustainability performance and provide support on further developing a supplier‘s site in terms of sustainability.

The SAQ is accepted as evidence of the site's sufficient sustainability performance and is generally free of charge for all suppliers. In the event that the minimum score to be achieved for this specific location is not met, an on-site check carried out by third-party providers may be initiated.

The process flow for initiating and executing a required on-site check depends on whether the location (DUNS number) in question has a production facility or is to be considered as a facility providing services. This is determined by the data you are providing in the SAQ.. On-site checks are mainly carried out for companies with 100 or more employees.

If the SAQ has not lead to a positive result and an on-site inspection is necessary, the following applies:

Does the Supplier Site (DUNS) have…
Does the Supplier Site (DUNS)...
  • ... 100 or more employees and
  • ... some kind of production facility (regardless of what products are produced at this location)


... in this case, auditing according to the RSCI standard applies.
  • .. have 100 or more employees
    and
  • ... offer services of any kind and does not have a production facility

... in this case, auditing according to the VOC standard applies.
Audit-Standard: RSCI

The RSCI audit is initiated and commissioned independently by the supplier. The costs of hiring a certified company to carry out the RSCI audit are to be borne by the supplier. The supplier has the opportunity to share the result of the audit with all members of the RSCI, taking advantage of capacity and synergy effects.
Further information on the standard and RSCI is available under the RSCI information pages under https://www.rsci.online/en . A weight average of SAQ and audit result determines the overall score and thus the S-Rating result of the supplier.
Audit-Standard: VOC (Vor-Ort-Check)

The VOC is a Volkswagen-specific standard. The audit will be initiated by the responsible purchasing department of Volkswagen AG and is communicated to the supplier. The implementation will be in the responsibility of our external service providers (Intertek/ Elevate). The audit result is provided by the service provider to both, Volkswagen AG and the supplier.
A weight average of SAQ and audit result determines the overall score and thus the S-Rating result of the supplier.

Please note that the result of the SAQ is relevant for the evaluation of our sustainability performance, even if an audit has been carried out. A negative rating (C-rating) can be assigned if an audit has been carried out and the S-Rating result, determined from the SAQ and the audit result, is lower than the required S-Rating overall result. A C-rating corresponds to a ban on future nominations until the agreed Corrective Action Plan (CAP) has been proven to have been completed as part of a re-audit.

Content of the OSC

Content of the OSC

Here you can find an overview of the topics that are assessed in the On-Site Check.

read more...
Procedure of an OSC

Procedure of an OSC

Here you can find information on the process of the On-Site Check and on how we approach you in case an On-Site Check is necessary.

read more...
Questions & answers

Questions & answers

Here you can find an overview of frequently asked questions.

read more...