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Ensuring Profitability
March 2, 2016 | Stephen Las Marias, I-Connect007Estimated reading time: 1 minute

I don’t think there is a one-size-fits-all approach to ensuring a profitable business. This is especially true in the intensely competitive electronics manufacturing and assembly industry, where product lifecycles and the ever-increasing complexity and sophistication of electronics products, among others, more often than not dictate the business strategies of these electronics manufacturers.
But there are definitely sure-fire formulas for success when it comes to improving the bottom line and profits. According to an Entrepreneur article, there are three top secrets to market leadership: operational excellence—the ability to produce a company’s products and services at a cost substantially lower than its competitors; customer intimacy—having a close relationship with customers based on an excellent knowledge of your customers’ needs or business; and technological superiority—offering a product or service that’s (technologically) superior to that of your competitors.
Figure 1: According to our survey, labor costs provide the greatest impact to profit.
We did a survey about profitability challenges and issues that electronics assemblers and contract manufacturers face. Based on our survey, chief among the issues are cost, process improvement, changing customer demand, design, training, and Lean manufacturing. When it comes to cost, labor provides the greatest impact to profit, according to 54% of our respondents, followed by raw material costs, and then fixed costs.
In line with those challenges, this issue of SMT Magazine highlights processes and strategies that will help electronics manufacturers address those issues and achieve profitability in their operations.
Suggested Items
We Have the Best Practice for That
08/13/2018 | Stephen Las Marias, I-Connect007Most best practices have been developed over time, based on the many different experiences that people encounter in the manufacturing line. And it is important to institute these best practices to make sure that your processes will result in outstanding job at the end of the day.
Automotive Electronics Still in the Driver’s Seat
04/11/2018 | Stephen Las Marias, I-Connect007The past year was one of the strongest years that the PCB supply chain and the rest of the electronics manufacturing industry in general, has seen. Everyone we talked to at the shows were optimistic that the strong growth in the industry in 2017 will continue through 2018. And most industry players point to one thing when it comes to what’s driving this strong growth—automotive electronics.
April 2018 Issue of SMT007 Magazine Now Available
04/04/2018 | I-Connect007The April 2018 issue of SMT007 Magazine looks into the latest developments, challenges, and opportunities in automotive electronics, and why this market continues to drive the overall electronics manufacturing industry. Hear from experts from National Instruments, Asteelflash, Alpha Assembly, NXP Semiconductors, KIC, and Flex.
Electronics Manufacturing (R)evolution
03/13/2018 | Stephen Las Marias, I-Connect0072018 is going to be the year of Industry 4.0, where we will see how enabling technologies including sensors, big data, analytics, and the Internet of Things (IoT), will transform the electronics manufacturing landscape.
March 2018 Issue of SMT007 Magazine Now Available
03/01/2018 | I-Connect007The smart manufacturing revolution is happening, whether we like it or not, and Industry 4.0 is upon us. The March 2018 issue of SMT007 Magazine examines how Industry 4.0 and the increasing power of data impact the PCB assembly industry. Read on.