East West Manufacturing Blog

So you've designed a product. You've gone through the RFQ process, sharing your CAD drawings with engineers who probably made even more tweaks. The part is going to be made of plastic using the injection molding process. But you've never made a plastic injected part before. There are a lot of new words and phrases being tossed around and you...

The product design and development process is a fascinating one, marrying creativity with the disciplines of math, science, engineering and marketing. Transforming an idea into a marketable product doesn’t just happen.

When you’re in the U.S. and your manufacturer is in Asia, Mexico or some other remote location, how do you know you’ll enjoy sustainable high quality production throughout the life of your part or product?

You’ve submitted your design, you’ve seen your prototype and… there’s something not quite right. Maybe a curve is deeper than expected, there’s a ridge or dimple where there shouldn’t be. Perhaps it just doesn’t feel the way you expected it to. But it’s a simple fix, right?

One of the keys to a quality plastic injection molded part is an accurate mold – one that produces consistent pieces time and time again. So how is that accomplished?

You want to build a robot. But not some cute little walking robot.

If you have been involved in global contract manufacturing (CM) for more than a few months  you will inevitably hear the phrase, “Quote Fatigue.” Quote Fatigue occurs when a prospect submits an RFQ (Request for Quote) to a manufacturer for pricing — then another, then another, then another, without the manufacturer securing any new business.

Few things help a project — any project — more than objectivity. It's a great ability to view a task, whether editing a paragraph or designing a product completely free of emotion, but few people have that skill when it comes to their own work. That's why most companies use a project manager to guide the new product development process along. 

Whether you are brand new to international shipping or just need a refresher on the ins and outs of Incoterms, we have you covered. International freight a complex business, so it's important to understand the industry lingo, associated risks and costs, and how it all affects you.