We hear a lot in the news about how China and various other developing nations have become the "workshop of the world". It's true that very large corporations have outsourced their manufacturing, mainly to save on the cost of labour. From simple toys to sophisticated electronics to designer clothing - it's all quite often made in foreign countries where labour is cheap so that companies can save money.
This may be the case for huge corporations who have the budget to buy large factories and maintain large workforces overseas, but what about the more niche or artisanal manufacturers? There is something of a new renaissance currently going on in the domestic manufacturing world, with a large proportion of small businesses manufacturing their goods for sale.
It's not everybody, mind you, but a significant proportion of manufacturers actively choose to have their products created domestically. These companies, although they can be quite large, usually have an ethical or political position which initiates this. This makes it even more important to save on costs, so how can businesses do this without outsourcing their manufacturing capabilities?
One way that they can do this is through advanced automation technologies; these can reduce the need for labour in the manufacturing process and speed up production rates quite significantly. The cutting edge of manufacturing technologies is constantly evolving, so there is a possibility that such technology could become outdated shortly after investing. Because the cost of this investment is likely to be quite high, it may not match the gains of a production increase - so it is possible to lose money in this case.
However, small manufacturers can use the machinery they already have to good effect and a significant amount of money can be saved by extending the lifespan of these machines. The best way to make sure machinery has a long lifespan is by ensuring that it works correctly and does not break. This not only saves on the cost of machines or machine parts but also on the loss of productivity that can occur when machines break down.
By using condition monitoring equipment, manufacturers can get a very accurate picture of the lifespan of their machine and also assess what part of a machine will fail and when this will happen. With this knowledge, you can perform maintenance on parts of a machine that are likely to fail before any failure occurs. By using condition monitoring equipment, you also avoid the loss of productivity that occurs when a machine breaks.
Condition monitoring equipment consists of a number of separate pieces. Many machines vibrate, and this can cause damage. As a result vibration monitoring equipment can be installed to measure these vibrations for any changes. This means the manufacturer can assess changes in the machine or machine part and perform maintenance when these changes occur. In addition, oil analysis equipment can be used to detect when machine parts need replacing.
Machines tend to wear quite easily, as they have many moving parts. Wear means that the part degrades and small pieces of metal begin to break off, tiny specks. These eventually weaken the part and can cause it to break. By analysing the oil used in many machines, one can determine whether there is a presence of trace metal contaminants and therefore determine whether any maintenance or replacement is needed.
Many niche manufacturers don't actually do a lot of machine work, and manufacture their goods by hand. This is a difficult area, as the cost of manufacturing is likely to be very high - and there's no real way to cut back on the cost of manufacturing using this method. What can be cut though is the cost of materials. Although some artisanal manufacturers will tend to favour luxurious materials - it is always possible to find alternatives.
There are often cheaper alternatives to materials, which means that the main materials or even the secondary materials can be changed to save costs. For example, if a manufacturer makes leather bags they might not wish to change the main material - but they could quite simply change the material used on the inner lining to save costs.
There are many ways that small scale manufacturers can save on costs in their operation, whatever their product. It may require some technology and innovative approaches, but even small scale operations can become more profitable - without the need for outsourcing.
This may be the case for huge corporations who have the budget to buy large factories and maintain large workforces overseas, but what about the more niche or artisanal manufacturers? There is something of a new renaissance currently going on in the domestic manufacturing world, with a large proportion of small businesses manufacturing their goods for sale.
It's not everybody, mind you, but a significant proportion of manufacturers actively choose to have their products created domestically. These companies, although they can be quite large, usually have an ethical or political position which initiates this. This makes it even more important to save on costs, so how can businesses do this without outsourcing their manufacturing capabilities?
One way that they can do this is through advanced automation technologies; these can reduce the need for labour in the manufacturing process and speed up production rates quite significantly. The cutting edge of manufacturing technologies is constantly evolving, so there is a possibility that such technology could become outdated shortly after investing. Because the cost of this investment is likely to be quite high, it may not match the gains of a production increase - so it is possible to lose money in this case.
However, small manufacturers can use the machinery they already have to good effect and a significant amount of money can be saved by extending the lifespan of these machines. The best way to make sure machinery has a long lifespan is by ensuring that it works correctly and does not break. This not only saves on the cost of machines or machine parts but also on the loss of productivity that can occur when machines break down.
By using condition monitoring equipment, manufacturers can get a very accurate picture of the lifespan of their machine and also assess what part of a machine will fail and when this will happen. With this knowledge, you can perform maintenance on parts of a machine that are likely to fail before any failure occurs. By using condition monitoring equipment, you also avoid the loss of productivity that occurs when a machine breaks.
Condition monitoring equipment consists of a number of separate pieces. Many machines vibrate, and this can cause damage. As a result vibration monitoring equipment can be installed to measure these vibrations for any changes. This means the manufacturer can assess changes in the machine or machine part and perform maintenance when these changes occur. In addition, oil analysis equipment can be used to detect when machine parts need replacing.
Machines tend to wear quite easily, as they have many moving parts. Wear means that the part degrades and small pieces of metal begin to break off, tiny specks. These eventually weaken the part and can cause it to break. By analysing the oil used in many machines, one can determine whether there is a presence of trace metal contaminants and therefore determine whether any maintenance or replacement is needed.
Many niche manufacturers don't actually do a lot of machine work, and manufacture their goods by hand. This is a difficult area, as the cost of manufacturing is likely to be very high - and there's no real way to cut back on the cost of manufacturing using this method. What can be cut though is the cost of materials. Although some artisanal manufacturers will tend to favour luxurious materials - it is always possible to find alternatives.
There are often cheaper alternatives to materials, which means that the main materials or even the secondary materials can be changed to save costs. For example, if a manufacturer makes leather bags they might not wish to change the main material - but they could quite simply change the material used on the inner lining to save costs.
There are many ways that small scale manufacturers can save on costs in their operation, whatever their product. It may require some technology and innovative approaches, but even small scale operations can become more profitable - without the need for outsourcing.