15 September 2018

4 Potential Pitfalls of Manufacturing Your Product in China

Manufacturing in China Journey

You’ve created your product concept and now you’re ready to get it manufactured in China. While this may seem like a time to celebrate an important milestone, the journey to product completion may be just beginning.

Why? For western companies, navigating through manufacturing in China is complex. Not only are there thousands of suppliers to choose from, but it can be
difficult to ensure high quality standards.

In fact, in our experience talking with clients, we’ve come across 4 common pitfalls companies encounter when attempting to manufacture their products in China.

1. Can’t ensure integrity of product

What if your designer creates an amazing concept, but the manufacturer can’t deliver the real product? Design concept is one thing. But manufacturing can be a whole different beast. And the truth is that some Chinese manufacturers won’t be able to ensure the original design manufacturing (ODM) or produce a design to your standards.

2. Poor quality design

To go along with product integrity, the fact of the matter is many manufacturers have different quality standards. What we perceive as low quality may be perceived as good enough quality to some. For this reason, you must choose your manufacture wisely in order to avoid a poor quality delivered design.

3. Poor service and running out of stock

All around the world, every business is anxious to close a deal. A salesman may put on his best suit and smile to win the sale, and then once it’s sealed, the outstanding customer service goes out the window.

This can be a common problem in China. And for those who are getting a product designed, it can be a costly mistake because once your manufacturer develops your product tooling, you’re linked with them.

lf you need to restock your product fast, you may not get the glowing customer service you had when you first signed the contract. Instead, you may have to wait.

4. Language barriers

English is not always widely spoken in China. Therefore communication issues can be a headache, especially since your manufacturer is likely thousands of kilometers away and the only way you can talk with them is via phone.

For companies looking for western product design, Asia may seem like the ideal place. And with Appart_ it can be, as we can help you avoid all of the above issues. With offices located in Hong Kong and Bangkok, we have an exceptional network of suppliers for printing, manufacturing and creating packaging solutions. There’s no need to worry about finding a manufacturer able to produce large quantities of your product or restock it fast. Our trusted suppliers will deliver.

What’s more, we provide a turnkey solution, starting with conceptualization and development, all the way to manufacturing of the product in China or Asia.
We specialize in helping European customers design their ideal product while ensuring its integrity and ODM.

How do we do that? Because we have experience working with Chinese manufacturers, our creative engineers understand how their machines work and how their products are made.

Therefore, we immediately know whether or not a particular design feature is possible and if it’s not,
we creatively find a workaround or alternative solution.

Here’s a few of our clients we’ve helped
with manufacturing in China

Nimbus

For this client, Appart_ was responsible for their concept design ideation and development including the engineering feasibility that would ensure the product could be manufactured and assembled with our Chinese manufacturing partners. As part of the engineering process Appart_ worked on making sure the integrity of the initial concept was kept.

Vind

This client was looking for turnkey product design. Thailand’s Appart_ delivered. We worked on their brand strategy, identity design, website and created their product. Speaking of their product, we helped them through the entire process, from creation of visual identity, to product conceptualization aligned with their brand, all the way through assisting the client with the manufacturing process in China.

If you need product design, Bangkok’s Appart_ is here for you. Our multilingual team can not only create your product design, but also help you navigate the manufacturing maze in China. Get in touch with us today to learn more.

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