How to successfully outsource manufacturing to China

Businesses commit time and financial resources to identify reliable suppliers and then pay them to manufacture their products. Outsourcing manufacturing therefore carries with it a number of risks – such as fraud, of quality not being up to the mark, or of delivery delays that drive up project costs, result in irate customers and lost sales opportunities that hurt revenue. There are also challenges such as the difference in language, business culture and the time zone. But none of these challenges are insurmountable, which is why many businesses that once were preoccupied with how to find a manufacturer in China have been successfully sourcing from China and other low-cost regions for decades. These orders helped China beat the US to become the world leader in manufacturing by output in 2011, a position it has retained since.