The entire nature of the electronics manufacturing industry is changing, putting unprecedented demand on manufacturers to provide increasingly complex products at a cost-effective price.
Today’s contract electronics manufacturing sector must place a high emphasis on smarter supply chain management – reducing costs, improving efficiency and planning collaboratively with partners to mitigate associated risks.
Long-range planning and forecasting accuracy remain crucial, but in addition, the focus must be on providing the products that customers want, offering low-risk solutions and creating optimum technology at the most competitive prices.
Supply chain management in electronics industry companies has taken on greater significance for those that manufacture electronic systems, components such as printed circuit boards and electrical products for consumers and industry.
Managing risks effectively
Increasing numbers of modern electronic devices – laptops, computers, tablets, mobile phones, gaming consoles, smart TVs and more – have state-of-the-art technical requirements. To fulfil the demands of modern designs, PCBs are getting smaller and more complex.
Electronics manufacturers are also entering new markets as globalisation reaches unprecedented heights, with the associated regulations and standards impacting manufacturing processes. Every reputable contract electronics manufacturer must pay greater attention to product innovation, with pricing pressure becoming an industry-wide phenomenon all over the world. Consequently, the importance of risk management has greater relevance than ever before.
The common pitfalls faced by CEMs in today’s market include supplier reliability, component shortages, regulatory compliance and quality control issues.
Supply chain disruptions
Supplier disruptions can lead to delays in production, increased costs, downtime and product quality issues, all of which can damage your company’s reputation, leading to a belief you’re unreliable.
Studies show that a massive 63% of electronics companies have suffered supply chain disruption over the past few years for various reasons including labour shortages, natural disasters, bottlenecks in the chain, geopolitical tensions and sudden fluctuations in global demand.
Risk management is vital to identify, assess, prioritise and mitigate the various factors that are likely to impact efficiency. It means developing a risk management strategy and framework to align with the company’s values and objectives.
Recognising the risks
Establish a team and governance structure to conduct a risk assessment that will identify the likelihood and causes of potential supply chain disruption. Then develop a mitigation strategy to specify the resources, actions and timeline to reduce or eliminate the threats, with both proactive and reactive measures.
After implementing the plan, monitor its effectiveness using feedback mechanisms, performance indicators and audits and amend it if necessary to incorporate best practices and lessons learned.
Over time, this will ensure the business operates smoothly and delivers value by achieving operational efficiency, cost optimisation, innovation potential, customer satisfaction and ultimately market expansion.
When dealing with potential component shortages, mitigate the risks by building strategic inventories, diversifying suppliers, forecasting demand and exploring alternative components.
Impact of regulations
Changing regulations can impact electronics manufacturers by making them adapt to different sourcing practices, product designs and production processes to ensure compliance with new standards. This can potentially lead to higher costs, a need for new technology and disruption to the supply chain.
The risks of non-compliance can include product recalls, financial penalties and a damaged reputation, so keeping abreast of changes is crucial. Ensuring your business acts upon them within the mandatory timeframe is the key to mitigating the associated risks.
Quality control
Manufacturers must ensure quality control by detecting defects early. In Sellectronics’ case, this means investing in the latest technology and highly trained technical staff to deliver reliability and a trusted service – even with tight timescales and technically demanding builds.
We have worked closely with customers for many years to develop testing strategies to ensure the performance and reliability of our PCBs including in-circuit and functionality tests, boundary scans, bespoke testing and more. As a trusted electronics manufacturer, we handle product recalls by implementing robust quality assurance processes, having a clear recall plan and quickly communicating with customers.
Currently, we possess AS9100D and BS EN ISO 9001 certifications, demonstrating our commitment to high quality. We also hold ISO 14001:2015 certification, highlighting our dedication to environmental practices.