This article was written by hogan’s director, Ben Wong and first published on Linkedin.
Asia undoubtedly is and will be, the epicenter of growth in the years to come. In particular, China has one of, if not ‘the most advanced supply chain, the best infrastructure, and resources in the world. But Asia also has an abundance of potential contract manufacturers to choose from, so the question is how to find a good OEM?
As a Hong Kong-born, Toronto-raised industry veteran, working in contract manufacturing in Hong Kong for +20 years, having managed multiple +10 Mio USD accounts for global CPG/FMCG brands and managing +1,400 associates, I believe I am well positioned to bridge the gap between Asia and the world, and share Five tips on how to find and choose a reliable injection molding OEM.
Tip #1 – Value Over Price.
Your aim is to find a partner offering you the best value, not the best price.
In Asia, you can always find someone offering an even lower price, but it usually comes with a cost. The goal is to get a “good price bundled with a solid night’s sleep”! Get quotes from three different injection molding suppliers, disregard the cheapest one, and maybe consider the one representing the ‘golden middle’.
Tip #2 – Reputation.
As Warren Buffett famously said, “it takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you’ll do things differently.” Do thorough background checks and ask the two final candidates to provide you with customer references. Make the effort and reach out to them. It takes less than five minutes.
Tip #3 – Capabilities, Experience, and Skill Match.
Start by listing out those skills your ideal OEM possesses, and what machinery he needs to have to fulfill your requirements. The chosen supplier doesn’t need to already have 100% of your required machinery, but he should show the experience to quickly assess and understand what is required, and signal his openness and readiness to make the necessary investment.
Tip #4 – Workstyle & Mentality.
The appointed key account manager needs to have the right mindset and chemistry with yourself, or the contact window you assign to manage things on your end. Trust, language, experience, and orderliness are vital to make the relationship work.
Tip #5 – Financial Stability.
Choosing an injection molder to work with is a multi-year commitment. Therefore, it is vital for the supplier to have the financial prowess to go through valleys and slow periods. Ask for recent, audited financial accounts and ensure the company has the means to be a solid partner for many years to come.
There you have it, the 5 Tips How To Find The Right Injection Molding Partner in Asia. My experience is that LinkedIn is a great place to find suitable manufacturing partners because those companies making the effort to create and maintain a LinkedIn presence will most likely speak proper English, and share the same mindset refer to above. Other good websites to use are of course Alibaba.com, if you for example are looking for suppliers of plastic sport water bottles, this is how I’d search for plastic sport water bottles:
Another good option is Made-in-China.com, e.g. try searching for plastic injection molding