QualityInspection.org

Quality Assurance, Product Development, and Purchasing Strategies in China

Making Components’ Shipment and Presentation Easier (Before Assembly)

This article was written by Kevin Howard, a packaging engineer and owner of Packnomics. A few days ago, we wrote about Design for Distribution. In this article, let's focus on the design of the components of a product, and the impact it has on shipment from the component suppliers to the assembler. Design for Distribution should also apply to components that are inbound to the Contract Manufacturer sites.  I have worked on many components, where I show the product engineer how to add … [Read more...]

Design Reviews on New Electronic Hardware Products – Q&A with an Expert

I had the chance to ask a few questions to John Teel, founder and lead engineer at Predictable Designs about design reviews on new electronic hardware products. He helps companies who are designing and developing new electronic hardware products. If you are not sure where to start, you can grab his 'cheat sheet' (15 steps for developing your electronic product). … [Read more...]

Carbon vs. Alloy vs. Stainless: Steel Grades You Might Buy in China

There are basically 3 steel grades (types of steel) that are used when it comes to product manufacturing: Carbon Steel Alloy Steel Stainless Steel Each of these steel grades is comprised of different amounts of iron and carbon (the basic elements of steel), as well as additional alloys in some cases. Let's explore these steel types in detail... … [Read more...]

The New Product Launch Roadmap you should use to develop & make a product in China

You have a new product idea. You might also have committed customers. What is between you and success? A successfully-produced first batch of your new product. If you haven't developed new products and had them manufactured in China before, you will probably find the process difficult and frustrating. Unfortunately, there can be a number of prototyping iterations, difficulties in finding the right manufacturer and/or components, some solid work on setting production & testing … [Read more...]

The 7 Most Common Product Launch Pitfalls in China

More and more companies work with Chinese manufacturers on new product developments. And, in most cases, things don't turn out the way customers want. I thought I'd highlight the most common product launch pitfalls I have observed for electrical and/or mechanical products. 1. Thinking that "the factory is an expert in manufacturing and all will be good" We have run into many people who think this way. This is typical among companies that essentially do trading (buy and then resell without … [Read more...]

Pros and Cons of Crowdfunding (Kickstarter/Indiegogo) for Startups

Crowdfunding has emerged as one of the main sources of funding for hardware startups (and many other ventures). Here are a few impressive statistics: 15 million people have backed a Kickstarter project since 2009. Backers pledged a total of 3.9 billion USD. More than 9 million people have backed an Indiegogo project since 2008. However, entrepreneurs need to think about all the pros and cons of raising money this way. If you are in this situation, here are are some … [Read more...]

On-Time Delivery for your New Product Made in China? Possible?

We have seen this situation a number of times: An American or European company designs a new product They find a manufacturing partner that has some general experience in their industry (but has never made that precise product since it is totally new) Since the buyer needs flexibility and service, and can't afford high prices, they tend to work with a small or medium-sized factory (fewer than 500 employees, and often fewer than 200) All the development (NPI) work gets done, but … [Read more...]

Making Prototypes In China: 5 Key Steps And Objectives

By Fabien Gaussorgues Are you going to manufacture a mechanical and/or electrical product in China? This article will help you plan for the steps to follow. You might need a concept of the product, to show investors and to launch a Kickstarter campaign. You might need a prototype that is close to the final version of the product, in order to run testing (including usability testing) and validate the design before going into production. When making prototypes in China, the usual … [Read more...]

Product Specifications: What Tolerances for Measurements?

A client asked me, how to decide on tolerances to write on a drawing, when giving a technical file to a Chinese manufacturer? I always suggest to importers that they define a product specification sheet. And they often struggle with setting the right tolerances. Many considerations need to be taken into account. This is not a formal how-to guide, but I jotted down a few ideas. First, you might not need to specify every dimension on your product. And on those dimensions you end up … [Read more...]