Some historical facts boggle the mind: Did you know that India’s history of leading global manufacturing dates as far back as the 16th century? But how could there have possibly been a global manufacturing footprint that long ago, and how could it have been large enough to be referred to as “manufacturing”?   Today, India is commonly regarded as young and still working towards economic stability; in fact, India recently celebrated its 75th anniversary of independence from British rule.  However, India’s history stretches back thousands of years, indeed including a period of tim ..read more

To us at ITI Manufacturing, understanding the intricacies of our partnering countries is paramount, as it tells us so much about what projects, people and practices are best poised for success based on their shared values and expectations. Vietnam is one such country that warrants a deep understanding and appreciation between buyers and manufacturers. If this can be accomplished, then commercial benefits will naturally follow.   Economically, Vietnam is a developing country, considered to be lower-middle income and rife with political, social, human rights and economic fluidity. Vie ..read more

From Point A to Point B, and the International Shipping Services in Between Industrial buyers practically move mountains to get their products manufactured overseas, clearing the litany of hurdles it takes to engage offshore manufacturing over many weeks and months. You would think once an order was placed and produced, the hard part would be over, but there’s one final jump to clear: shipping products stateside.  Let’s take a look at international shipping services.  International shipping is no small feat. It requires a coordinated plan of attack between multiple parties across mul ..read more

Sourcing custom plastic parts – domestically or via import – is laced with potential complications, stemming from complex engineered materials to even more complex manufacturing methods.  What should you keep in mind when sourcing custom manufactured plastic components?  Here’s a close look at the plastic part supply chain process and the information you need to steer clear of complications.  Step by Step Starting with the overall plastic part supply chain process, most sourcing engagements that we employ for our clients’ custom plastic parts follow these steps: Proof of conce ..read more

Bringing new consumer products to market can be a scary prospect, with only a few ways to win big but seemingly endless ways to fail. Consumer product companies tend to need ample support in setting up profitable manufacturing outsourcing for their products such that winning big is the most likely outcome.  One critical factor that we see product creators struggle with the most is working around international currency exchange rates, specifically when valuing their products’ long-term manufacturing costs and net profitability. We’d like to help explain exchange rates in terms of manufact ..read more

When the Price Isn’t the Price: Avoiding Surprise Costs With Global Logistics Solutions  In the context of industrial manufacturing procurement, what does the term “competitive pricing” mean to you?  With our experience in global logistics solutions, we know that for some, competitive pricing means to match market-average pricing, and to others, it means to beat market-low pricing.  Because both opinions exist in the market simultaneously, no given supplier can ever be certain where their quoted prices will land. This conundrum leads some suppliers to artificially lower a price ..read more

The best time for industrial supply chain communication is immediately. So what do you do when real-time communication in procurement sourcing isn’t fast enough?      In personal and business relationships alike, communication is key. That communication can deliver a tough criticism, an inspiring outlook or a looming uncertainty. In business at least, no matter the message, the time to hear it is right now. Managers and executives cannot make critical decisions concerning their industrial supply chains without sound data, and the timeliness of that data can make all the differe ..read more

When it comes to modern supply chain planning discussions, there is an overwhelming amount of noise. One topic that’s especially noisy involves choosing supply chain models. Recently, a few clients asked how we select our own manufacturing models. Answering the question required us to dig down to pertinent specifics. Since this was a helpful process with our own inquiring clients, we want to share the same information here with the broader community.   If you do a web search on “supply chain models,” the top results will likely return a list that looks like this:   Contin ..read more

We all know there is compound risk when sourcing products from foreign manufacturers. Fortunately, these risks are not completely out of a buyer’s control. In fact, buyers today are positioned better than ever to stay ahead of risks, so long as they commit to the hard work and ongoing effort involved.  To help break down the massive topic of managing foreign manufacturing risk, we present key concepts below that you as a buyer can use to mitigate exposure in your own global supplier engagements.   Start Within: Internal Actions to Mitigate Supplier Risk  When first setting ..read more

We are constantly reminded that “quality” is subjective in a manufactured product. While the definition or characteristics of quality might change, we understand how critical it is for domestic buyers to hit their own unique quality requirements when engaging with product manufacturing companies.  What Does Quality Mean in Manufacturing?  Is quality really a moving target? In a recent customer feedback poll we conducted on behalf of a client selling industrial equipment, we received over two dozen different definitions of what quality means. For context, that’s three times more vari ..read more