With the boom in global electronics manufacturing and sales, it's little wonder that more companies are looking into electronic goods than ever before. Thanks to a world of manufacturing facilities, any design can be brought to market at surprisingly low investment costs.
However, like in any wide-open market, there's also a wide range of quality and services on offer. Too many companies simply look for the cheapest source, at least based on up-front costs, without considering the range of additional services that can ultimately reduce their TCO and boost the project's ROI.
Don't settle for bare-bones when picking an electronics design and manufacturing firm. This is a case of spending money to make money, and smart investments will bring much higher returns!
Three Things To Look For When Outsourcing Electronics Design
1 - Robust On-Site Facilities
The first and easiest trap for an upstart electronics concern is the circle of outsourcers. If your partner company doesn't have their own facilities, that means they'll just be handing off the work to someone else while taking a cut as the middle-man.
And for all you know, those outsourcers have their own outsources, and you'll never be able to keep track of who's actually doing what. This especially becomes a concern when dealing with Asian-based companies.
On the other hand, a partner with a state-of-the-art facility designed for medium- or large-sized batches with a number of variations, you'll be able to directly oversee production and verify your designs are built to spec.
2 - In-House Designers
Plenty of people can set up a manufacturing shop and start stamping out PCBs. However, far fewer spend the time and money hiring actual electronics engineers to oversee the designs.
Why? Because all too often, the prototype designs provided by a company can be optimized. Top-flight electronic design manufacturers will investigate cost savings by way of component reduction, or consolidating functions into easier activities.
Additionally, if they have state-of-the-art facilities, they may simply have better/easier ways of designing the product to match their own equipment. They'll have the insight necessary to get the most of their facilities, which translates into cost-savings for you.
3 - Original Product Development
Perhaps you merely have an idea for a great product, but lack the on-site expertise to design a prototype. When you partner with a top-grade manufacturing facility, this isn't a barrier to market entry! They can design new products from scratch, based on the latest techniques, and produce prototypes designed to match the functionality you specify.
This can also be extended into market research and demand trending. If, for example, you plan three variations on your product at three different price points, your manufacturing partner could help you determine the most efficiently-sized batches for each build.
Modern Electronics Manufacturing Is "You Get What You Pay For"
So, when you're looking for manufacturing partners, remember that "you get what you pay for" really is the only rule these days. A bottom-bidder may be able to provide exactly what they advertise -maybe- but won't be able to offer the same robust design services as a top-tier electronics manufacturer.
When a company's reputation is on the line, and they're truly looking to build an audience of happy customers, paying a little more up-front for quality designs can pay off throughout the entire life of a product.
To learn more about modern domestic manufacturing and its advantages, just contact ZenTech for a free consultation!