New Member Profile: Contract Manufacturing Consultants, Inc.

Too often electronics outsourcing relationships begin with great expectations only to end in frustration because of a mismatch between customer requirements and contract manufacturer capabilities.

For the first time, relief is in sight. Original equipment manufacturers now have a new resource to help develop successful electronics assembly outsourcing programs.

Contract Manufacturing Consultants was incorporated in April to assist companies in the outsourcing of printed circuit board and end-product assemblies. The Bellevue firm, founded by Robert G. Freid, is the first and only one of its kind to specialize in offering comprehensive research and implementation assistance that the industry has long needed.

"Often companies want to consider change in outsourcing strategy but they don't have the time and expertise on staff to identify and evaluate options," Freid said. "That's where we can help by providing full time expert assistance, working independently or as a part of their project team."

Freid has over 20 years of experience in marketing, sales and engineering program management. Prior to founding Contract Manufacturing Consultants, he was new business development manager for Solectron Washington, a leading international contract manufacturer. While at Solectron, he set new account qualification criteria, negotiated multiyear manufacturing agreements, and won customer awards for successful start-up program management.

Freid began his career as a manufacturing engineer with the General Electric Company. After earning a MBA, he joined McKinsey & Company as a general management consultant and resolved complex strategic and operating issues for major industrial corporations. He also served as marketing executive with fast growing electronic equipment companies including Asyst Technologies of Milpitas, CA.

Freid received a bachelor of science degree in industrial engineering and operations research from Berkeley and a master's degree in business administration from Stanford.

Key issues addressed by Contract Manufacturing Consultants in its work with original equipment manufacturers include determining what and when to outsource, who to outsource to, what to pay, what services to expect, and how to organize for maximum performance. At the core of these services is a proprietary cost and pricing model developed exclusively for use with CMC clients.

"Our economic model is activity-based and utilizes our clients own product, process, test and support requirements as key inputs. With these and other built-in parameters, it can be reliably used to estimate a contract manufacturer s PCBA and/or end product production costs, overhead costs, likely pricing and profitability," Freid said.

CMC can quickly answer a wide variety of what-it questions with their model, such as how costs might shift as volume and mix change, and contract manufacturer cost and pricing in key regions of the US, Mexico, Asia and Europe. The model can also be used to assess pricing proposals and longer-term pricing viability.

Freid says that considerable effort will be spent on due diligence of key business processes and true performance, at contract manufactures, at their customers and with other knowledgeable industry sources. Once a contractor is selected CMC will then assist in creating contracts and support processes that will be a win for both parties.

"Our goal is to help develop outsourcing programs that give our clients a distinct competitive advantage in their industry," Freid said. "Our work will typically take three to four months to complete, and we need to begin at least six months prior to the client's planned first-article delivery."

May / June 1999
Reprinted With Permission