We simplify offshore outsourcing for you.

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Offshore outsourcing (OO) can deliver value creation for your business by capitalising on lower resource costs, enabling you to focus on R&D initiatives and provide scalability critical to high-value engineered project businesses.

The premise of outsourcing is to outsource the lower value-adding functions of your business: in the packaging industry, this usually refers to case conveying and pallet handling.

The rise of industrial robots and AI now means that entire robotic palletising systems and more recently, robotic case packers can be added to your outsourcing initiative. These pieces of kit are now not complex to manufacture—the complexity and your competitive advantage lie in system design, control system integration and customer service delivery.

There are however significant risks to OO that often lead to brand damage, cost blowouts or even total failure of the initiative.

These inherent risks are exacerbated when one moves from high-volume, repeatable manufacturing to low-volume, high-value engineered product manufacturing.

These risks are summarised below:

Unrealised Cost Savings
Organisations typically expect cost savings proportional to wage differential, not considering several hidden-cost components of OO as well as hidden in-house manufacturing costs like purchasing, receiving, and QA. At ED&M we will only take on contracts of supply that are mutually beneficial with the intention of forging long-term partnerships.

Supplier Assimilation
The transition of knowledge and processes is critical to the success of OO. Our product-specific process-driven manufacturing systems and framework coupled with our specific industry experience ensure seamless assimilation once the upfront design (3D model) and manufacturing details are agreed upon.

Quality Assurance
The OO supplier may not be able to understand nor deliver on your quality expectations due to a lack of experience, expertise, lack of processes or simply having a different frame of reference with regard to build quality due to cultural differences. We have been manufacturing in the region for more than five years and have supplied equipment for projects at top-tier companies around the world. We understand both your quality expectations and the frame of reference of SE Asian staff to bridge the gap and deliver to your expectation.

Timeline Slippage
Manufacturers in low-cost countries value adherence to timelines differently than Westerners. Projects in the region are often delayed by both the customer and suppliers for a variety of reasons so there is almost a resigned expectation of delays. We understand the importance of having enough time to thoroughly commission and test the systems you build prior to shipping to the customer’s site and the spiralling costs incurred onsite as a result of a failure to excel at this phase of the project.

Supply Chain Management
Your products have a wide range of engineered OEM and bespoke parts suppliers who are on the critical path of the project. Ensuring these suppliers are local is critical to realising cost savings, however, this increases the risks of incorrect supply and delays inherent to local suppliers. We have built with a number of qualified and proven local suppliers over the years and have systems in place to ensure they continue to exceed our expectations.

Cultural Differences
Group dynamics, personality traits, cultural norms, frames of reference and proficiency in English communications differ across different geographies. These differences impact on adherence to quality, schedules and other deliverables. Bridging this cultural and communication divide is one of our key strengths that only comes with hard experience. We believe that partnering with us will help mitigate these risks.

Our location has been carefully considered to place us in the heart of the biggest car manufacturing country in the region with an established complex supply chain, availability of human resources with the requisite skill sets, established infrastructure and ease of doing business.

Our long-term manufacturing presence combined with specific EOL knowledge makes us the logical choice for your offshore outsourcing.

Skimping on pallet handling is false economy.

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Pallet handling is often given little thought during the specification and procurement of a project.

However, it becomes a real focus when a line stops with a breakdown, or operators are put at risk dealing with jammed pallets.

Trends impacting pallet handling:

  1. Smaller case / pack counts – a smaller footprint means less stability which requires smoother pallet handling.
     

  2. Light weighting of primary / secondary packaging – with less strength in the packaging gentler handling of pallets is required to ensure they make it to the customer in the best condition.
     

  3. Variable pallet quality – the drive to the lowest possible cost means pallet quality has become more variable. Arguments about pallet quality do nothing to help when a line is down with a jammed pallet.
     

  4. Higher guarding standards have seen pallet conveyors become more enclosed in perimeter fencing and complicated safety systems. This in turn makes accessing and resolving problems with pallets more difficult and time-consuming. In some cases, it is impossible to fix a pallet jam without risking breaking site safety procedures.

Systems suppliers often see pallet handling as an area where savings can be made to keep a project to the customer’s budget. However, shortcuts in design or build quality create ongoing issues in production that are difficult or even impossible to fix in the long term. Cutting corners on robustness, transfer design, or even simple pallet guiding turns a straightforward system into an ongoing source of frustration, lost production and risk.

ED&M | Engineering Design & Manufacturing, with low overheads and a low-cost manufacturing base, allows you to reach your target price without compromising the design and quality of the pallet handling system or the long-term safety and profitability of your business.