If you are looking to cut costs in the production of your components or products, it might make sense to consider contract manufacturing in China. In fact, it is a known cost-effective means to minimize production and manufacturing costs, while letting companies introduce new products quickly into the market without wasting their resources. That said, those benefits will only be relevant if you work with the right service provider. If mishandled, contract manufacturing could easily have a negative impact on your company’s reputation and financial health. So, before outsourcing to China, take a look at these five tips to help ensure the best experience that can add value to your business:
1. Take time to register your intellectual property in China
This is among the most critical activities you should do before you even begin looking for providers of contract manufacturing in China. Your Intellectual Property (IP) rights include your copyrights, design patents, and trademarks. Skipping the registration in another country could compromise your rights to your own product. If someone else claims your product or idea as theirs and registers its patent or trademark before you do, they will be the one to get it, regardless of whether it is already registered in UK or in the US. As a result, you may not be able to export your product from China as it will appear that you have infringed on the IP rights of another company.
2. Find a good manufacturer
Make sure they are a reputable company that specializes in contract manufacturing in China. Remember to make them sign a non-disclosure, non-use, and non-circumvention agreement to safeguard your IP rights. Your NNN agreement must be written in Chinese and enforceable in their local court, to deter the manufacturer from copying and reproducing your components and components without your consent.
3. Seek a dependable supplier
Consider the production capabilities, size of the factory, technological capabilities, staff expertise, and location, of the supplier. You should also determine whether you want them to exclusively create your goods.
4. Use a reliable manufacturing solutions provider
There are companies that can help you in avoiding the guesswork involved when finding the right manufacturer or supplier. They can recommend reputable companies they know for contract manufacturing in China or look into the company you have chosen to do an audit. With their help, you can easily verify if the company is indeed trustworthy or if it really exists. It is also important to verify and assess the claims of the supplier.
5. Ensure frequent quality control inspections
Even with a strong agreement with the service provider, the manufacturer could still make mistakes, whether deliberately or not. You can prevent that by assigning a reliable quality control service provider to regularly inspect your preferred manufacturer. Make sure they can conduct pre-production inspections, audits, and in-process inspections. Some companies can also inspect the products as they are being loaded into shipping containers.
Be sure to hire the right company
Contract manufacturing in China can be a great investment that can help your business save a lot of time and money! However, you need to make sure that you are making an informed decision after doing your homework and ensuring that your IP and your rights are protected.
