If you're not looking to repair defective equipment, and send out replacements instead, you could be throwing away a lot of money along with the circuit boards!
In the past, repair services were difficult to supply and coordinate unless they were already in-house. As a result, companies that used outsourced assembly manufacturing services tended to use a "fire and forget" approach to warranty claims on defective equipment: Send out an entirely new circuit board, or potentially an entirely new product, and scrap the defective item.
It's obvious that this is inefficient, but the logistical challenges in supporting a repair operation were too significant. However, as reshoring continues to grow in popularity, domestic assembly manufacturing firms can make actual repair jobs a reality again.
Four Ways Local Assembly Manufacturing Also Lowers Support Costs
1 - Offsite Call Centers Staffed By Actual Experts
We don't need to go into the litany of reasons that most off-site tech support tends to deliver mediocre performance at best. The difficulty in finding expert staff is one of the biggest barriers to effective and customer-friendly post-sale support.
Well, who can provide more expert support than the group that designed the circuit or product?
Virtualization technology has made it possible for assembly services to provide their own post-sale support. They have direct access to the actual component supply lines, schematics, and potentially even the original designer. Domestic assembly services can now also provide technical support more robust than any third party could offer.
That pays off in lower tech support costs and happier customers.
2 - Certifiable Rework
A great number of common manufacturing flaws in circuity can be fixed quite easily, and often involve something as simple as a connector that needs an extra dab of solder. The issue with doing this sort of rework is being able to actually guarantee afterward that the product was up-to-spec. This is another reason companies tended to simply replace products.
However, the original PCB assembly operation would be in exactly the position to make that certification. You can be sure that repaired units are up to spec.
There's no actual need to replace a $100 component if a $1 capacitor is at fault. Certifiable repair jobs allow you to realize these cost savings while still being assured the repair will be done correctly the first time.
3 - Ongoing Product Refinements
Few products are truly perfect when they first hit market, and all of the most popular electronics lines in history have gone through multiple revisions over the years.
By allowing your assembly manufacturer to handle post-sale support, you can vastly cut costs on this process. The manufacturers and designers will be the first one to hear of potential long-term flaws, customer suggestions, or any other issues that come up during tech support. The manufacturer will understand what customers want, and they'll also know what's possible to implement.
This makes it much easier to make consumer-focused refinements to future generations of the product.
4 - Faster Turnarounds
If most of your business is American, then it just makes sense to keep the manufacturing local as well. The supply lines are shorter, the fuel costs are lower, and -most importantly for customer service- the turnaround times are faster. Your customers don't have to wait weeks for a product to arrive from China.
When consumers are increasingly demanding faster and more personalized service, a local combined manufacturing and support partner can deliver what they want.
Local Assembly Manufacturing And Support Services Save Money
Don't let your manufacturing costs get out of control due to wasteful post-sale support. With the right partner by your side, you can offer certified repair jobs that save you money while maximizing consumer satisfaction at the same time.
To learn more, contact Zentech Manufacturing to discuss the potential cost-savings from reshoring.
