Factory Sourcing and Procurement

SRI will help your company find sources to produce your product in Asia. Because SRI has staff on the ground in Asia, they are uniquely positioned to find and evaluate sources for your product. We can provide numerous sourcing options for your product. To date, SRI has sourced and managed the production of paper, plastic, wood, textiles and metal products.

Save yourself precious time and money, and avoid the headaches! We can do for you in days what it typically takes a U.S.-based company weeks or months of planning and time to accomplish. Oftentimes, trips to Asia are filled with hopes of finding just the right supplier – yet these trips are often too short, fraught with frustration, and less than fruitful. There's a reason why this happens. Read on.

Email, faxing and telephone calls just don't do the trick!
Modern communication technology is a wonderful thing. Unfortunately, technology is not enough to bridge the gap between Asian suppliers and U.S. customers. Far too many details need to be communicated, and the most advanced technology cannot solve some basic problems. In general, Asian manufacturers do not have the required communications skills to effectively communicate the needed information, be it by phone, fax or email (this is even the case with large Asian companies who have English-fluent staff).

In fact, language is not the primary issue. Local understanding is the issue. This, coupled with cultural differences, and you have a hurdle that technology cannot bridge. Not yet, anyway. SRI is the bridge. We speak face-to-face with suppliers in their language; we go to the factories to explain all details of a product, to witness your product being made, and to inspect your product before it ships. We sit and have highly detailed problem-solving sessions about product details that cannot effectively be communicated using email, telephone, or even photographs. In addition, this information is communicated to our U.S. office on a daily basis.

Product Showroom
Take a look at some of the products we have sourced for clients in the past, or search our online catalog of thousands of ready-made products available direct from our factory contacts here in China.

Local Area Knowledge
Being truly familiar with the local environment is critical to planning your project and getting your product done right. One common problem we have seen with U.S. companies trying to manage production of their products from a stateside office is their unfamiliarity with the local conditions. For example, we can tell you how long it "really" takes to travel to and from a certain factory on a certain day. This may seem quite elementary, but when planning production of your product, it is very helpful. This knowledge can save plenty of time and money.

Have you ever gone to see something with great expectations, only to arrive and discover it is totally different? We've contacted factories that claim they can deliver the world. Yet when we go to see them with our own eyes, we discover that they can't deliver even a pizza. The value of firsthand knowledge cannot be overstated. It is a critical component of getting what you want when you want it.

International visitors often do not plan nearly enough time when going abroad to do business. The western approach does not work. Normal western efficiencies are not present in Asia. However, other efficiencies are present when a network of relationships has been developed.

Our Network
Asia is a region that lives and dies on guanxi or relationships. One of the major advantages of living in Asia is the opportunity to develop a board network of contacts. SRI has developed and continues to develop a strong network of manufacturing companies in various industries. Beyond our network is our network's network; factories that we have worked with have contacts in their own industries. If they are unable to accept an order, they will have a network of their own that can assist us in finding a factory that can take the order. Thus, our network is not limited to just the factories we have dealt with already, but extends many of the factories that they know as well.

Case in point, SRI recently sourced a specialized metal product. When the specifications changed and the first factory was unable to handle the new item, the primary factory quickly contacted 3-4 other vendors that could manufacture the needed product. In other words, the network solved a problem before it became a problem.

Speed
As soon as SRI receives enough information about a product or project, the Asian offices are informed and they immediately go to work finding a source for procurement or manufacturing. We usually have your information into factories within 48 hours of receiving your completed product questionnaire.

Online Project Questionnaire
Get the process started by filling out our online project questionnaire. A SRI representative will contact you within 48 hours with factory information.

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