Leather grading accreditation 2025 relaunch

Outlining amendments to the provision of this valuable scheme for the footwear and leather industries.

by Darren Brooks & Simon Courtney

SATRA’s leather grading scheme has been in successful operation for over 30 years, and is currently used by a wide variety of tanneries and footwear manufacturers in more than 18 countries. In 2025, SATRA has introduced a new version of this programme to provide additional features for both companies which use the system and individuals who carry out this important assessment.

Leather grading accreditation

SATRA’s leather grading accreditation is an essential tool to ensure that quality is maintained when using leather in a production process. The tanner or leather supplier can benefit from improved quality and the product will also be suitable for its end purpose.

Our leather grading assessment package is engineered to not only improve user and supplier relationships, but also to identify the usability of the leather. Suppliers who achieve a required standard of competence can apply for SATRA registration, which is recognised internationally. We offer an audit visit to check employees’ understanding of the system and to ensure that appropriate management procedures are in place. Successful personnel receive certificates of competence which recognise the length of time that they have been accredited as a leather grader.

SATRA’s unique ‘five-point grading method’ is based on continuous development of our leather assessment techniques, and is the industry standard for ensuring realistic and consistent grading results. As well as providing comprehensive training in this method, we can assess the suitability of your working environment and provide guidance about area discrepancies and how to record data in a standard form.

SATRA’s ‘one language’ approach will ensure realistic and consistent grades. It will improve understanding and communication between you and the tanneries, since agreed quality standards can now be defined and measured. The number of disputes about leather quality with the tanneries and cutters will be reduced, and the monitoring of leather usability will be simplified.

Features of the 2025 system

The introduction of the 2025 leather grading programme presents new benefits for companies using the scheme. It also provides an opportunity to differentiate length of compliance for companies which adopt the scheme and individuals conducting leather grading. The scheme introduces a system of tiered status for companies and individuals to demonstrate ongoing continuous compliance for up to five years, over five years and over ten years. This new version will allow member companies holding the accreditation to better demonstrate compliance to their customers and to footwear brands. The length of time they have held their accreditation will also be listed on SATRA’s website.

The programme features in-person audits to give reassurance of ongoing competence. This will provide you with increased confidence in the operation of the leather grading scheme and assessments carried out by your staff members. It will also allow follow-up training where necessary. There are significant benefits to having auditors carry out the necessary assessments in person, as they have an opportunity to give additional advice and guidance to their findings and observations.

Bronze, silver and gold certificates

The new system introduces ‘bronze’, ‘silver’ and ‘gold’ certificates for the company holding the accreditation and for individual leather graders. This is in recognition of the length of time they have successfully held their accreditation. The new system provides additional benefits for member companies, including an updated leather grading manual, which is available to all companies on transfer to the new scheme.

SATRA will provide new digital certificates for companies and individuals, with corresponding coloured bronze, silver or gold stamps correlating with the length of their accreditation. Previous training to SATRA’s leather grading scheme will be acknowledged. SATRA will recognise a company’s or individual’s existing status and experience and will allow advanced entry into the new scheme. For example, a company which has maintained compliance with the existing system for more than five years will be fast-tracked into the new scheme as silver certificate holders. The new certificates will be supplied following the success completion of the next scheduled audit, which will primarily be done in person, in 2025.

The status of a company’s accreditation will be listed on SATRA’s website, and a unique coloured promotional logo will be made available for the companies use on marketing materials and test reports. Companies who are awarded silver certificates may also qualify for the inclusion of a profile in SATRA Bulletin magazine. Companies which are awarded gold certificates will also qualify for a free one-day consultation, when a five-day training refresher course is booked. This consultation will provide advice on processes and support in improving the overall quality of leather grading operations within the factory.

Leather grading development
Company		Individual
Bronze certificate		Bronze certificate
0 to 5 years	Benefits: bronze digital accreditation certificate in-person auditing by SATRA staff accreditation listed on SATRA website physical and digital copy of manual	0 to 5 years of accreditation and trained by SATRA staff	Bronze digital accreditation certificate
Silver certificate		Silver certificate
Five years-plus	Benefits: silver digital accreditation certificate accreditation listed on SATRA website in-person auditing by SATRA staff digital copy of manual	Five years-plus of accreditation and trained by SATRA staff	Silver digital accreditation certificate
Gold certificate		Gold certificate
Ten years-plus	Benefits: gold digital accreditation certificate accreditation listed on SATRA website digital copy of manual in-person auditing by SATRA staff one free place on SATRA Footwear Foundations course module one free day consultation when a five-day refresher course is booked two sets of leather grading grids	Ten years-plus of accreditation and trained by SATRA staff	Gold digital accreditation certificate

Transfer process

Leather Grading 2025 came into operation on 1st April 2025 and will fully replace the existing system on 31st December 2025. Under normal circumstances, your next scheduled audit should be conducted in-person during a visit of SATRA accreditation staff to your premises in 2025. To successfully schedule an audit visit at a suitable time, the coverage of the existing leather grading system may be extended for eight months to ensure that there is no lapse in the coverage of a company’s accreditation for this skill.

Publishing Data

This article was originally published on page 29 of the April 2025 issue of SATRA Bulletin.

Other articles from this issue »

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