How an American Manufacturer Can Save You Time and Money
Ten years ago, if you asked whether manufacturing and assembly would be more profitable overseas or at home, you’d probably hear a resounding affirmation that overseas is cheaper. At one point, choosing a contract manufacturer was considered a less expensive option for mass production than choosing an American manufacturer. However, while the cost of the product may seem cheaper, for many companies, mass production overseas resulted in sacrificing quality for quantity and ultimately ended up costing them more.
This same idea had been conceived in the minds of members of a LED products management team, who held optimism that high-volume assembly would be cheaper overseas. However, years of frustration over quality and lack of flexibility from their overseas contract manufacturer encouraged them to pursue a relationship with an American manufacturer located in the USA.
The management team found Kodiak Assembly Solutions and a business relationship developed with the client’s business goals held firmly at the center of the process. Between hard and soft costs to the company, Kodiak Assembly provided manufacturing solutions closer to home that not only saved the company time and money but also added money to their bottom line.
How did the American manufacturer save the company time and money?
1. Reduced shipping time and saved money
A majority of the workforce is familiar with the concept that time equals money. If you’re wasting time, you’re likely wasting money. This was one of the biggest problems the LED products team encountered when they hired an overseas contract manufacturer. With shipping time estimated anywhere between 60 and 90 days, the team spent most of their time waiting for their products to arrive. This was their least expensive shipping option and although offered to upgrade to air shipping, this type of transportation added 30% to the cost of their product, an option that just wasn’t practical.
When the LED company partnered with the team at the American manufacturer, Kodiak Assembly, located in Austin, Texas, their shipping time transformed from the previous 60-to-90-day timeline to one-day delivery at ground rates. With the ability to receive products within a few business days, the company really was saving money by saving time. With a focus on providing on-time delivery, Kodiak is proud to have exceeded 97% of on-time delivery shipments over the last five years.
2. Provided higher-quality products
When you’re owning or managing a business, time spent is money either spent wisely or wasted away. For businesses using a manufacturer located overseas, waiting months for products that arrive broken, damaged, or reflect horrid quality, is the equivalent of wasted time. If your products have already been sold to customers, an unexpected delay means you might end up losing that customer’s business. Shipping products back to the manufacturer for repair overseas results in even more time spent waiting and eventually whittles away your confidence in the quality of products you might receive.
With assembly and ground shipping only a business day away, any necessary product repairs could be performed at Kodiak Assembly’s facility in Austin with a turnaround time of just three days.
3. Convenient customer service
When a company based in the United States works with any company overseas, communication becomes difficult. When you need to schedule a conference call, there are limited times that work best for both parties. Usually, one will end up having to sacrifice sleep or quality time spent elsewhere to deal with issues that may arise. The company providing LED products learned this quickly, as communications with their contract manufacturer were delayed 24 hours and the company based in the U.S. always drew the short end of the stick when scheduling conference calls. With a contract manufacturer in the same or close time zone, conference calls can be made quickly and simply to our Austin, Texas facility.
Kodiak Assembly worked with the LED products management team to manufacture quality products, establish on-time delivery and utilize processes centered around the client’s business goals. Kodiak Assembly proved that an
American manufacturer could be cost-effective and satisfy the flexible needs of demanding end customers. After one year, Kodiak Assembly proved not only to be competitive but in some cases, less expensive than overseas suppliers. Not only did Kodiak save time and money, they also added to their client’s bottom line.
At Kodiak, we have developed solutions with our customer’s business goals in mind. Our strength lies in our experienced team, state-of-the-art machines, clean facility, and our quality-centered processes. Contact Kodiak Assembly Solutions today to find out how our commitment to quality and time can help your business succeed.
