7 stages of working with your contract electronics manufacturer (cem)
16 August 2022
Although you may be tempted to try to navigate manufacturing your product yourself, it’s important to consider all the challenges and obstacles that you could face along the way.
At FermionX Manufacturing, we pride ourselves on being partners to our customers, rather than just suppliers. That’s why over your journey with us, you have full control of your product, with transparent and open communications at each stage. Think of us as though we’re sat alongside you, working to the same goal.So how does this look in practice?
We know that when you begin your journey from idea to product manufacture, the manufacturing process and stages can seem daunting. To help, we’ve drawn up a simple diagram to illustrate the 7 key stages of working with your contract electronics manufacturer.
Firstly, it’s worth spending time identifying where you are currently. You may have an idea for a product, but no design or prototype. By contrast, you may have a fully engineered spec ready to go. The following info will help you clarify where you are currently and what your next steps could be
1. Your Idea
You can come to us with an idea for a great product. With 50 years’ experience in PCB assembly and manufacturing our own globally recognised product brands, we know all about the obstacles that you face when you’re developing a new product. We use experts in the field of product design to help navigate the way to creating a prototype.
At the outset of all new customer projects, we discuss not only the product specifications, but how you want the project and relationship to work, setting clear expectations for service delivery, communication and response times.
2. Design for Manufacture (DfM)
At FermionX, we specialise in manufacturing PCB’s to the highest standards possible. Over the last 50 years, we have developed a network of recommended independent specialists who we can call on to work with our in-house engineers on any project.
Our Design for Manufacture service bridges the gap between design, engineering, and component sourcing. Design for Manufacture focuses on identifying challenges and obstacles that may lay ahead. This means that you can be sure that when you are ready for your product to be put into the production cycle, there are no unexpected costs or component changes.
You can ask us about our own experiences in Design for Manufacture with our Seward Stomacher range of lab blenders and our Airbox Asbestos Air Sampling pumps.
3. Prep for Production
Good production preparation is fundamental in ensuring projects run smoothly. Thanks to our 50 years of experience, our focus on DfM, we’re well placed to foresee potential hiccups in the manufacturing journey and work with you to resolve these.
We also believe in pricing accurately upfront. Our experienced and qualified purchasing team work with our engineers to get you a competitive price every time they quote.
Using knowledge, understanding and attention to detail, we help you find the most efficient way to build your product.
4. Supply Chain Management
The events of 2020 onwards have caused global supply chains to be thrown into chaos. Fluctuating freight costs, breakdown of supply routes, delays and component shortages have all been factors. Weak supply chains built on poor relationships or small networks have been less likely to survive, hence the importance of having a robust supply chain.
But what makes a supply chain strong? And why is there a benefit in working with us?
Our Supply Chain and Purchasing Team have extensive experience in both local, UK and offshore supply chain management. We not only source components for our CEM customers, but we also source metalwork, enclosures, cable assemblies and injection moulded plastics for our own brand products.
All these factors mean we have more purchasing capability, and we can manage the current supply chain challenges more effectively.
5. Manufacturing Services
At FermionX we have invested in a wide range of contract electronics manufacturing services.
We run several Surface Mount production lines, optimising our manufacturing capacity and giving us the flexibility to deliver products of varying batch size and component complexity. We can manufacture our customers’ products to a production-ready state, reducing product testing and development times.
We also offer an end-to-end, integrated manufacturing service; from PCBA, through sub-assembly, to fully integrated box-building and testing. Not only are box-build solutions cost-effective, but they also offer the strategic advantage of reducing your number of suppliers. That’s a significant competitive advantage in both speed and cost – and our experience in box-build assembly means that we deliver on quality as well.
Which manufacturing path is right for you?
That’s what we’ll discuss in your first meetings with us. For a full list of our manufacturing services, have a look at our FAQ and services pages or contact us.
6. Quality Control and Regulatory Compliance
Regulatory compliance such as ISO 9001 provide the foundations of our manufacturing quality systems. We completed our ISO 9001:2015 in March 2018 and ISO 14001:2015 in November 2018. Our people and processes are also scrutinised annually to ensure we meet current legislation regarding COSHH.
We are familiar with CE, UL, CA and CB testing and auditing requirements, thanks to our own Seward and Airbox Sampling Products. We can support secondary customer audits for their own UL audits.
We support customers in their own audits for relevant certification requirements (e.g. ISO13485 for medical equipment or IEC 80079-34 for explosive atmospheres).
Having successfully transitioned to ISO9001:2015, all our manufacturing controls are in line with current standards. Our team also have extensive experience manufacturing UL controlled products.
We care about our manufactured products being of good quality and we won’t hand back something that we are not happy with. We know that we are only as good as the product we make for you.
7. Your finished product
We know that what you want is a reliable and proactive contract manufacturer, who builds your product with the right quality at the right time and to budget. This is what we aim to deliver – but don’t take our word for it, read some of our customer case studies and testimonials.
To find out more about starting your journey with us, give us a call on 01903 524600 or send us an email at sales@fermionx.com
Other Press Releases By This Company
- 11/01/2024 - FermionX achieves ISO 13485 certification for medical device manufacture
- 06/04/2022 - Keeping our customers products in production.
- 10/02/2022 - A UK based CEM partner is more than a simple cost saving - Will Patrick, Commercial Director
- 10/02/2022 - Electronic distribution marketplace
- 18/11/2021 - Quality control in electronics manufacturing with Fermionx
