Means Engineering, Inc.

Product development engineering in medical, industrial, semiconductor equipment & military with a standard of excellence in form, function and design.

(760) 931-9452 | info@meanseng.com
5927 Geiger Court, Carlsbad, CA 92008-7305

Improving Product Design

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Improving Product Design

A company is only as good as the products they produce. Inconsistent, unreliable, poor quality products can cause serious damage to a company’s reputation. This can decrease trust in their brand and lead to loss of business and revenue. It’s crucial that companies do all they can to ensure the quality of their products.

Design Plan Review

Production begins with design. This is the stage where all of the requirements and specifications are ironed out and put into writing. The design plans are then sent to a contract manufacturer or an in-house production team. The design sets the stage for the success of the whole project.

Although many companies handle design in-house, it can be extremely beneficial to have a contract manufacturer review the design plans prior to production. This is true whether you’re producing products yourself, or outsourcing to a contract manufacturer.

A contract manufacturer provides a second set of eyes for your design. Most contract manufacturers have years of experience and can help you locate areas in your design that could benefit from improvement. This might mean changing materials or making other adjustments.

Save Time and Money

Contract manufacturers understand the design and production process of a variety of products. They know how to adjust the design to save your company time and money. A quality contract manufacturer can help improve the quality of your product and locate issues that must to be resolved prior to production. This is far more cost-effective than changing the designs after products have been produced.

When choosing a contract manufacturer to work with, it’s important to look for a company that has experience working with a wide range of industries. They should offer a variety of services including design, production, and testing.

A contract manufacturer that understands the entire process is in the best possible position to improve the design, saving your company time and money.

Produce High Quality Products

A quality contract manufacturer cares about the quality of your product. They follow strict quality control measures and strive to provide excellent service. They work directly with you to develop consistent, reliable, high quality products.

The Importance of Consistent Products

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The Importance of Consistent Products

Consistency is important to the overall success of every business. Providing consistent, high quality products allows your customers to know exactly what to expect every time they purchase your products. This increases trust in your brand and can have a significant impact on the number of products you sell.

People have extremely high expectations when they purchase a product from a brand they know and trust. If the product they purchase does not meet these expectations, that customer is likely to let others know. Thanks to social media and review sites, bad reviews can travel extremely fast. All it takes is one bad product to harm your chance of success.

Although you won’t be able to guarantee that problems will never arise, there are a few things you can do to ensure your company produces high quality products consistently.

Design Plans

Having a second set of eyes look over your design plans can help you ensure that any potential issues are addressed long before production. This can also help you find ways to cut costs and increase the quality of the finished product.

Quality Control

It’s important to ensure that the company producing your products has adequate quality control measures in place. This applies whether you handle the production yourself, or you use a contract manufacturer.

An ISO-certified company has taken the time and effort necessary to learn and implement the stringent requirements of the International Organization for Standardization. These companies follow strict quality control measures. This ensures the production of consistent, high quality products.

Equipment and Experience

Producing consistent products takes a lot of time and experience. The right equipment is also important. Producing half your products at one location and the other half at another can cause inconsistencies. If production must take place at more than one location, it’s crucial that you make sure the equipment and processes are the same.

Testing

All products should be fully tested to check quality and consistency. For the best results, testing should be performed throughout production. Testing at each stage helps you locate problems quickly and efficiently.

 

 

 

 

Deciding When to Hire a Contract Manufacturer

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Deciding When to Hire a Contract Manufacturer

Every business wants to make products that are both usable and sellable. Unfortunately, most companies don’t realize what a difficult task this is to accomplish. Winning products can take years of trial and error. This is especially true for companies attempting to handle the manufacturing themselves.

The decision to outsource varies from business to business. There is no specific formula that can help you determine exactly when outsourcing will become feasible or necessary. However, there are some guidelines that can help you with this important decision.

Getting the Most Out of Outsourcing

Outsourcing is an excellent way to reduce costs, increase quality, and decrease time-to-market. However, it’s important to be well prepared before enlisting the help of a contract manufacturer.

Make sure that your design plans are finalized and your requirements are clearly defined. This can dramatically improve your outsourcing experience.

Make sure that the orders you outsource are not too small. Ordering a small number of prototypes then changing the requirements will end up costing you more.

It’s important to fully test your market prior to outsourcing. Collect information through online surveys and email campaigns. The more testing you complete prior to production, the better your results will be.

Stay Open to Feedback

A contract manufacturer can help you figure out ways to reduce costs and improve the quality of your products. Most contract manufacturers have years of experience working with a variety of industries. The last thing you want to do is ignore their advice.

An experienced contract manufacturer will know what works and what does not. This can help you produce high quality products at a reasonable cost. The higher the quality of your products, the better your company will perform in the long run.

Carlsbad Contract Manufacturing

The decision to outsource is an important one for companies of all shapes and sizes. It’s crucial that you take the time and effort needed to find a contract manufacturer you can trust.

Means Engineering, Inc. provides design, production, and testing for a wide range of industries. We work directly with each client to ensure the quality and consistency of products produced. This increases trust in your brand and helps you expand into new markets.

Outsourcing Your Custom Electronics Project

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Outsourcing Your Custom Electronics Project

Any new project can create concerns. This is especially true for those involving the creation of custom electronics. An experienced contract manufacturer can help with the design, production, and testing of a variety of electronics.

Outsourcing can be an effective way to increase the quality of products produced, save money, and reduce time-to-market. The decision to outsource will be dependent on the unique requirements of each project. The following considerations should be taken into account.

Volume

If you only need to produce a small quantity, it might be more cost-effective to outsource production. Producing products in-house requires a significant amount of space, money, and other resources. An experienced contract manufacturer can help you produce the exact quantity you need, saving you the hassle of having to store large amounts of inventory.

Budget

Budget plays a big role in the decision to outsource. In order to determine whether outsourcing is right for your particular situation, you need to consider both your budget and expertise. If your team has the experience necessary to complete the project within budget, it might be a good option to keep production in-house. However, if the project is outside your level of expertise, and the budget is going to restrict your process, outsourcing is probably your best option. Outsourcing is an excellent way to make the most of both your budget and your customer’s.

Timeframe

The right partner can help reduce the time it takes for your products to reach consumers. It’s crucial that you make sure that the contract manufacturer you choose is able to complete the project in the timeframe you require.

Quality Control

Quality is extremely important to the success of any project. Outsourcing can help increase the overall quality and consistency of products produced. For the best results, check that the contract manufacturer you choose is ISO certified.

Anticipate Changes

As your company grows, so will your needs. Choose a partner that has experience with a wide range of industries. Ensure that they are able to produce a variety of products. This way, you’ll be well prepared for any changes your company experiences in the future.

 

 

Expanding Into New Markets

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Expanding Into New Markets

The manufacturing industry can be extremely unpredictable. What works today might not be relevant tomorrow. Relying on one company or sector to keep your business afloat can put your business in serious jeopardy. The best way to protect your business from risk is to expand into new markets.

Protect Your Business from Risk

Building your business across several markets helps protect against unexpected circumstances. While losing a large customer can have a major impact on any business, it won’t completely disable your operations if you have other markets to fall back on.

When trying to determine which sectors to move into, it’s a good idea to look at what your competitors are doing. If certain sectors are being underserved, these are the areas you should pursue. If you are able to gain trust and successfully fill a demand, you’ll not only gain new customers, you’ll also prevent your competitors from being able to do the same.

How Contract Manufacturing Can Help

Companies responsible for the production of products often have difficulty expanding into new markets. These companies can benefit from hiring an experienced contract manufacturer.

Everyday, contract manufacturers help businesses bring new products to market. By using a contract manufacturer, businesses can experiment in new markets without having to worry about enormous start-up costs. If the venture successful, the business has been able to penetrate the market with relatively low risk.

A qualified contract manufacturer can help businesses provide high quality products for a variety of industries. This helps increase trust in your brand, which is crucial for market expansion. Businesses that make contract manufacturing a part of their long-term strategy outperform their competition time and time again.

Contract manufacturers can help with the design, production, and testing of new products. Contract manufacturers reduce time-to-market and increase the quality of products produced.

When choosing a contract manufacturer to work with, it’s important to ensure that the company you choose has experience with a variety of industries. You will also want to make sure that they have taken the time and effort necessary to achieve ISO certification. This helps ensure the production of consistent, high quality products.

ABOUT US

MEI features depth of experience in medical, industrial, semiconductor equipment and military products. All product development efforts start with a unique set of requirements, yet we deliver results that share a common standard of excellence in form, function and design.

Our turn-key capabilities provide smart, simple solutions to cumbersome outsourcing issues, and provide our clients with an intelligent route from concept to market.

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