Injection Molding Outsourcing in China

There’s a growth in Injection Molding Outsourcing in China.

In 2020, it was estimated that nearly 35% of companies outsource injection molding in China, with 78% being satisfied with the outcome.

The competitive market environment that we face in recent years on outsourcing has led to today’s outsourcing providers’ readiness to provide much more than a cost-effective injection molding solution for customers.

China Injection Molding Outsourcing has become much more than a cost-saving measure. The right choice of outsourcing and outstaffing providers allows companies to establish a lasting professional relationship with a top-quality development team and effective injection molding management.

How does China Injection Molding Outsourcing work?

Outsourcing is not only advantageous for tooling and injection molding development. Human resource management, facilities management, supply chain management, customer support and service, marketing, diagnostic testing, and legal documentation are some of the services providers tend to outsource.

The risks and challenges associated with outsourcing in China

The selection of a vendor is critical to avoid omissions. Outsourcing collaborations could be vulnerable at the following points:

• Turnaround time is slower.
• Knowledge of vendor’s industry.
• Barriers are due to language and culture.
• The time zones differ.
• Inability to control.

Managing best practices

Building relationships with key managers

The effectiveness of the relationship between the senior management personnel of both teams depends upon their ability to communicate, work together, and maintain a healthy working relationship. Numerous studies on successful China injection molding outsourcing projects have revealed that strong working chemistry and relationships between colleagues are crucial to the success of injection molding outsourcing projects.

Plan your project scope and timeline

Be clear about what you want to achieve before you begin the work. Provide accurate, complete information in advance so your Chinese injection molding service providers can quote you realistic prices. Please let injection molding vendors know as much information as possible regarding the work to be completed.

Make sure your schedule requirements are realistic and clear, as your schedule can drastically affect the project’s cost.

Be sure your outsourcing partner has the right experience with your type of project. Overseas injection molding development is especially complicated, so you have to hire a specialist.

Try to think beyond price.

Experiential outsource buyers who assess hundreds of proposals are usually unanimous in their recommendation to disregard both the competitor’s lowest and highest bid.

Those buyers who are the most successful with their Chinese injection molding companies feel the provider offered a good value for their money while providing quality results.

Don’t take the portfolio lightly

Examine the previous injection molding work done by the vendor. Even if your Chinese injection molding vendor’s portfolio, references, and previous work experience do not demonstrate that they are competent, they might still be able to create a mock-up or outline a simple action plan.

Chinese injection molding vendors who are intensely interested in earning your business may be able to provide you with a rough idea of what they will offer.

Feel free to ask for a mock-up, but do not demand that a vendor provide finished work on your spec. No qualified professional will agree to work for free.

Engage the first service provider for a small and relatively straightforward job, then move on to larger, more complex injection molding jobs as time goes on.

If you do so, you will gain a better understanding of the offerings and capabilities of the provider before entrusting your “mission-critical” project to them.

Similarly, just as it is imperative to make sure that you outline a clear timetable for your outsourced injection molding project, it may also be helpful to set out a specific schedule of deliverables.

By scheduling regular checkpoints – in which you can review the project’s status as it progresses toward completion – it is easy to ensure that the mold makers will complete the project on schedule and of high quality. You should coordinate the vendor’s payment with these milestones.

A good rule of thumb is to fund only a small portion of the total project costs out of your own pocket and the remainder in installments over three or four milestones.

Negotiate your ownership as early as possible

If you ever outsource any tooling or injection molding work in China, it is vital to clarify who owns the work product and any significant elements thereof.

If you intend to develop a custom injection molding part for your personal use, there will be substantial differences from the development of plastic parts you intend to resell.

Support after the delivery

It is good practice to include a warranty clause in technology projects so that you can ensure that the Chinese injection molding vendor will continue to support after the injection molding project is completed.

To negotiate a support clause, it is much easier to negotiate it before the service provider starts work rather than after the injection molding project has been completed.

An injection molding outsourcing from China involves both cultures, and these differences must be embraced and bridged. It would be best to organize social events between the companies to better understand the cultures’ differences.

How to outsource

To get the best price from a Chinese injection molding provider, make sure to have all the answers to the following questions ready in advance.

• Is the injection molding job or project from China to be outsourced clear to you?
• Do you have a detailed description of the task, or at the very least, clear guidelines for outsourcing?
• Description of specific injection molding project
• Performance to be expected
• The project’s cost/budget
• Clearly state the deadline/deadline
• Injection molding project requirements
• Requirement for resources
• Who will manage and interact with the outsource contractor in your organization?

Is it possible for the contractor who you initially hired to work with you to create an outline of the steps required to complete the task so you can refer back to it later, either as part of an operations manual or to use by another China injection molding contractor if-then initial one has failed?