Hardware startups is hot nowadays! For them, having a innovative idea running is easy, but scaling a concept from prototype to production can be difficult. As there are tons manufacturers in either you own country or overseas. From a multinational manufacturing company with global presence to a small workshop near where you are to ‘’moulding & manufacturing towns’’ in the Far East. How do the startups identify whether any of these companies can meet their needs and provide a smooth production experience?

ATOM’s creator Sean Connell shared his belief in searching for the manufacturer for his multitool key that was pledged over $80,000 in Kickstarter.

Sean said: ''In an attempt to mitigate potential risk associated with production, I have selected a manufacturer led by industry veterans with over 150 years of combined experience. The manufacturer specialises in product development and has established a global presence based on quality and reliability. Experience, solid design and a strong relationship with a successful manufacturer will help create a quality product in a timely manner.’'

Such a simple product with a great design that brings a big convenience to our daily life! A year later, regrettably, Sean had to announce that the project cannot be continued due to a number of difficulties during the production which includes the issue from the multinational manufacturer itself. He identified a few issues associated with the manufacturer and explain why the project is put on hold.

Problem 1: ATOM was manufactured by a multinational corporation better suited for mass producing goods on a larger scale. The company did not invest the required man power or attention to completing the smaller order of ATOM units.

Problem 2: The initial ATOM prototypes that were used to market the product were machined by hand in the USA by the manufacturer’s development department. However, the final units were produced overseas with metal injection molding by an entirely different department. The disconnect between processes and departments introduced a number of previously unforeseen manufacturing issues that severely delayed the project.

Problem 3 : The company that produced ATOM was headquartered in the United States, but the production was outsourced to overseas contractors. The distance  made it difficult to solve problems in a timely and efficient manner.

Due to the above issues along with the product’s manufacturing complexity, ATOM has to stop and Sean is developing his next project. What a shame!

ATOM’s story has taught us some lessons when it comes to selecting manufacturer, and we believe this can be some useful advices for hardware startups.

Advice 1 : If your order is relatively small, which most startups do, never go for these multinational companies with global presence for prototyping or production. It is undeniable that these companies have proven record to provide quality parts and services. But most of their clients are major companies in FMCG, aviation, medical and electrical appliance industries; their purchasing order is normally 1000k plus a year. Compared to startup’s order, we can somehow understand why the importance of your project comes second to your manufacturer.

Advice 2: If you can find a manufacturer who are specialised in building both the prototype and production, that would be the most ideal situation.  As when a shop is working on the prototype for you, they can already foresee the potential issues when the product is going to be mass produced. You can then study the issue, physically and functionally,  at early stage and apply engineering change to develop another prototype until no potential problem can be found. Fortunately if your product is committed to be mass manufactured, the same shop who has been working with you on your prototype can right away pick up all the critical elements in your product and implement the production process in a most effective way. This continuous working process greatly ease the communication  and minimise the possibility of misunderstanding etc. between the two parties. At the end of day, you can’t imagine how much benefits you can get from the smoothness in this manufacturing process.

Advice 3: Remember! Even though you look for a great, reputable and reliable, industry leader for making your parts, after all they are most likely not the actual body who makes your part. They normally outsource the parts to overseas contractors which generate two drawbacks for you, one, as mentioned in the manufacturing Myth 1 - cost, the price will be at least double than if you find a manufacturer overseas on your own, the second, one more layer of communication passed on through which means you are not getting the first hand feedback plus possible language barrier due to outsourcing overseas. Really, how much can you loss?!

Looking for a suitable manufacturer is the key to the whole startup process. A great idea won’t present without a right maker, in fact, it could die because of a unsuitable manufacturer. Seeking help from the large corporation is not always the solution. If you have chance to approach the oversea manufacturer, be open minded and have a try.

Read more articles about what are the important factors when you are looking for oversea manufacturer.