Timeline management is critical for launching new generations of innovative products to the worldwide market. With pressure from global competition ever present, innovative companies are using the methodology of concurrent engineering (CCE), in which design, research, and manufacturing are all taking place at the same time. With the CCE model, traditional manufacturing process controls and standard operating procedures no longer take place in the chronological manner they were designed for. With new materials, new technologies and new processes introduced constantly, timeline management on new product introductions (NPI) is facing all uncertainties. Risks are mixed into the “chaotic” appearance of NPI. In this situation, the actual timeline management is largely dependent on the problem solving skills of the subcontractor network, or extended supply chain, which make the innovations possible.
The key of CCE project timeline management is determined by how fast those NPI problems can be solved. How can a company and their subcontractors solve NPI problems, without known answers, in the fastest way? The answer depends on how many specialty resources the company has and can use at the moment. The more related specialty resources available, the faster a problem may be solved. In practice, these resources can boil down to specialty engineering capabilities, process development speed, prototypes, testing, sourcing capabilities, specialty manufacturing availabilities, capacities, and materials, to name a few. Thus, the timeline largely relies on how you organize capabilities, how fast you can organize them, and how many specialty resources you have for each problem.
With the best specialty engineering teams in electronics, casting, plastics, metal, and packaging, E-BI is strategically positioned to provide global rapid specialty contract manufacturing. We are designed to help our clients take on innovation challenges with our over 400 specialty subcontractors located in China, Vietnam, India and other countries. Please contact us to see how we can help with your new projects.