There is always a dilemma for any Original Equipment Manufacturer in determining if outsourcing or completing work in-house is more cost effective. The argument many smaller OEMs have is that the in-house design and engineering team is already in place, and they understand the company, the goals for the product and the work leading up the design and development stage.
The concern with this choice is the limitation that this can create within the design process. The in-house team only has the experience they have in working on the project and any past projects. However, this experience will always be more limited in scope than an external team with expertise in working across multiple industries and specializing in industrial product design.
Design, Development, and Production Under One Roof
Through the outsourcing of the industrial product design to a company with the ability to complete development, prototyping, and production, the OEM has one partner to work with.
When completing the design in-house, the OEM then transfers the design files to the contract manufacturer, typically for review and necessary changes, and then on to prototyping and production. This can result in the need for revisions and work between the in-house and contract manufacturing team, adding time to the process.
Options for The Design
With the experience across multiple industries, as well as the ability to troubleshoot and proactively address potential challenges in production, the outside industrial product design can often create innovative changes in the design to make the product more effective, unique or to add value or life to the part, component or device.
A small change in elements of the design by experienced product designers can also shave costs from production, building in added revenue for the OEM. As these companies know the best manufacturing processes and how to develop a product for those processes, the result of outsourcing may actually provide cost savings over the short and long term.
