If you buy products from a few Chinese suppliers, do you have a system for managing them? And do you use data for that? In this post, I'll show you how to manage Chinese suppliers using facts and data. … [Read more...]
Two Preventive Maintenance Examples: Go for More Structure
As I wrote before, preventive maintenance helps cut costs and improves quality. That's an extremely important element of good manufacturing and it doesn't get much coverage. Simply put, it extends the lifetime of the equipment, it prevents downtime that prevents production from taking place, and it ensures the equipment is ready to make good products. … [Read more...]
8 Elements of a Low-Risk Supply Chain in China [Free Webinar]
Clients often ask us for assistance in improving their supply chain in China. For instance, it's common to hear that they aren't satisfied with poor quality, with missed timelines, or with unethical practices. If your supply chain is giving you issues like this, and it is causing your business unnecessary risk, you might not have taken all the necessary steps. How to lower these risks and build a low-risk supply chain in China? Over at Sofeast, we've created a free webinar for you about … [Read more...]
Continuous Auditing to Keep Pressure on a China Factory: How it Works
One of the questions our clients ask most often is "how to keep the pressure on our supplier's factory so they improve and they don't make the same mistakes again". Continuous auditing is an answer to this, but how does it work? … [Read more...]
How To Ensure your Chinese Factory Purchases Good Components?
One of the most common ways Chinese manufacturers enlarge their margin is buying substandard components. Any time a lot of money can be saved this way, the temptation is very strong. What can you do to avoid this risky behaviour from happening? … [Read more...]
Helping a Chinese Factory Improve While Still Holding Them Accountable
You might discover that helping a Chinese factory improve makes sense if you have quality requirements that are challenging to one of the factories you work with, or if you are working with them to develop a complex new product. Actually, it sometimes makes very good business sense. Spending 10,000 USD might save your company 1 million USD in the end! And yet, there is a point where you can't keep "helping" them all the way, as they start to take the habit of being "baby-sat" and they … [Read more...]