Every supplier cert,
current at audit

File by supplier, because that is how approval decisions and audits are made: is this supplier still approved, and what proves it? Inside each supplier folder, keep only current certificates at the top level. When a renewal arrives, move the old certificate into a history subfolder instead of deleting it, so you can show continuous certification if asked.

Keep certificates apart from the other supplier paperwork: specifications, allergen or food-contact declarations, and questionnaires. They have different review cycles and different readers, and a certificate buried among twenty specification sheets is the one nobody finds in time.

Put four facts in the name: supplier, standard, site and expiry date. Clearwater_BRCGS-Packaging_Leeds_exp-2027-03-14.pdf tells you who, what, where and until when without opening the file. Using the expiry date rather than the issue date means a sorted list shows you what lapses next.

Add the site even when a supplier has only one today. Suppliers open new plants and move production, and a certificate for one site says nothing about another. When a certificate is replaced, mark the old file as superseded rather than leaving two near-identical names side by side.

First, the scope: what products, processes or activities the certificate covers. A packaging supplier can be certified for cartons and still supply you film from an uncertified line. Second, the site address: certificates are usually issued per site, and it should be the site that actually makes or ships what you buy.

Third, who issued it. Look for the certification body and an accreditation mark, and check the certificate number against the issuer or scheme. Many schemes and certification bodies publish online directories of valid certificates, which is a quick way to confirm a document is genuine and still active.

The classic tool is the approved supplier list: a spreadsheet with one row per supplier and a column for each certificate’s expiry. Someone filters it monthly and emails suppliers whose dates are close. It works until a renewal arrives and the spreadsheet is updated but the file is not, or the other way round.

Bigger sites use supplier portals or quality management software where suppliers upload their own documents. Those need every supplier to take part, and smaller ones often just reply by email. Filex covers whatever lands with you: upload the certificate, and the date, scope and site are read from the document itself, so the file and the reminder never disagree.

Filex reads certificates and files them. It does not confirm a certificate is genuine, check scheme directories, approve or suspend suppliers, or tell you which standards your customers require. Those decisions stay with your quality team.

It does not contact suppliers to request renewals. A low-quality scan or a certificate in a language it cannot read clearly may need you to check the dates and scope yourself before you rely on them.