# 48 CFR § 46.201: 46.201 General

> Federal · Regulations · In force

URL: https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/ecfr-48-46.201

## Section

- **Citation:** 48 CFR § 46.201
- **Heading:** 46.201 General
- **Jurisdiction:** Federal
- **Kind:** Regulations
- **Status:** In force
- **Text as of:** September 22, 2026
- **Source:** Publisher's official text
- **Location:** Title 48—Federal Acquisition Regulations System > CHAPTER 1—FEDERAL ACQUISITION REGULATION > SUBCHAPTER G—CONTRACT MANAGEMENT > PART 46—QUALITY ASSURANCE > Subpart 46.2—Contract Quality Requirements

## Text

(a) The contracting officer shall include in the solicitation and contract the appropriate quality requirements. The type and extent of contract quality requirements needed depends on the particular acquisition and may range from inspection at time of acceptance to a requirement for the contractor's implementation of a comprehensive program for controlling quality.
(b) As feasible, solicitations and contracts may provide for alternative, but substantially equivalent, inspection methods to obtain wide competition and low cost. The contracting officer may also authorize contractor-recommended alternatives when in the Government's interest and approved by the activity responsible for technical requirements.
(c) Although contracts generally make contractors responsible for performing inspection before tendering supplies to the Government, there are situations in which contracts will provide for specialized inspections to be performed solely by the Government. Among situations of this kind are—
(1) Tests that require use of specialized test equipment or facilities not ordinarily available in suppliers' plants or commercial laboratories (e.g., ballistic testing of ammunition, unusual environmental tests, and simulated service tests); and
(2) Contracts that require Government testing for first article approval (see subpart 9.3).
(d) Except as otherwise specified by the contract, required contractor testing may be performed in the contractor's or subcontractor's laboratory or testing facility, or in any other laboratory or testing facility acceptable to the Government.

## Nearby sections

- [48 CFR § 46.101 46.101 Definitions.](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/ecfr-48-46.101.md)
- [48 CFR § 46.102 46.102 Policy.](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/ecfr-48-46.102.md)
- [48 CFR § 46.103 46.103 Contracting office responsibilities.](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/ecfr-48-46.103.md)
- [48 CFR § 46.104 46.104 Contract administration office responsibilities.](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/ecfr-48-46.104.md)
- [48 CFR § 46.105 46.105 Contractor responsibilities.](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/ecfr-48-46.105.md)
- [48 CFR § 46.201 46.201 General.](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/ecfr-48-46.201.md)
- [48 CFR § 46.202 46.202 Types of contract quality requirements.](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/ecfr-48-46.202.md)
- [48 CFR § 46.202-1 46.202-1 Contracts for commercial products and commercial services.](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/ecfr-48-46.202-1.md)
- [48 CFR § 46.202-2 46.202-2 Government reliance on inspection by contractor.](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/ecfr-48-46.202-2.md)
- [48 CFR § 46.202-3 46.202-3 Standard inspection requirements.](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/ecfr-48-46.202-3.md)
- [48 CFR § 46.202-4 46.202-4 Higher-level contract quality requirements.](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/ecfr-48-46.202-4.md)
- [48 CFR § 46.203 46.203 Criteria for use of contract quality requirements.](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/ecfr-48-46.203.md)
- [48 CFR § 46.301 46.301 Contractor inspection requirements.](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/ecfr-48-46.301.md)
- [48 CFR § 46.302 46.302 Fixed-price supply contracts.](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/ecfr-48-46.302.md)

---

Source: Frix Law Library, https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/ecfr-48-46.201. Check the current official text before relying on it. Not legal advice.