Medical Device Link.

Originally Published EMDM September 2003

SPECIAL REPORT: ELECTRONICS OUTSOURCING

It’s work finding the right subcontractor for your company’s medical electronics. Taking the following steps can help streamline the process and put you on the path to picking your perfect partner.

Evaluate potential savings. A subcontract manufacturer should have the wherewithal to help OEMs reduce overhead and free up resources. What’s key here, says Paul Kavanagh, sales and marketing manager for SMTEK Europe Ltd., is that the OEM still be able to “control the design and end-customer relationships. If not entirely, then very substantially, [the partnership should] offset the capital costs of the manufacturing portion.” 

Determine product requirements. “Take a look at the core competencies and understand [a subcontractor’s] ability to really address the design requirements,” says sales and marketing vice president Chris Newman of Advanced Input Devices Europe. He advises assessing whether a subcontractor’s mechanical and electrical experience is sufficient to assist in the creation of next-generation products. “Medical products tend to be [on the market] for anywhere from five to 10 years, and have to be supported beyond that,” he adds. It’s imperative that a subcontractor have a sophisticated supply chain and can provide such support.

Know a partner’s limitations. OEMs must determine their own needs and understand to what extent an outsourcing partner can meet them. A device firm “should look for someone that clearly has the capability to produce their product, both from a technical and a quality and regulatory standpoint,” says Tom M. Larrichio, US-based vice president of business development for medical electronics manufacturer Trivirix International. 

The relationship the OEM desires—in terms of the comfort level and flexibility—is also part of the equation, he says. Web portals providing real-time access to inventory levels, work in process, and other data, such as Trivirix’s AllianceNet, are one way subcontractors are enhancing communication and building trust.

Be realistic. Considering recent advancements in electronics, be realistic about in-house strengths; it may be advantageous to work with a subcontract specialist. “There have been huge [increases] in the processing power of devices and in the memory capacity of chips that go along to help that processing power,” says SMTEK’s Kavanagh. “In the analysis of very complex things like body fluids, electronic devices have the capability to process many times more information than they could only five or six years ago.”

Copyright ©2003 European Medical Device Manufacturer