White Paper: Manufacturing Without Factories -- From Classic Sub-Contracting to a New Optimised Model

By Wavecom, Inc.

In today's world, technology is changing at an astonishing rate. Growing competition forces companies to constantly work towards improving production by speeding up the process and reducing the costs involved. In this context, an increasing number of businesses are turning to sub-contractors in a bid to optimize their own performance; a company that outsources its manufacturing to others can spend more time focusing on the field in which it excels, whilst also being secure in the knowledge that the work is being done by people with the necessary skills and know-how. Evidence of this shift in business practice can be seen in the fact that sub-contracting firms are, in many cases, becoming highly sought-after specialists.

This outsourced business model is how Wavecom, a leading provider of integrated technology solutions for wireless voice and data applications, has become a "buyer", when the extent of its production gives the impression that factories are at the heart of its organizational structure! Wavecom is what we call a "fabless" company, in other words one that has no factories... at least not on the face of things. But in that case, what do all those people working in the Manufacturing department do?

Since Wavecom was founded, its entire production has been outsourced to sub-contractors. The company began by following a classic sub-contracting model and developed it into a new business model in which responsibility for strategic decision-making rests with the contractor. The optimized sub-contracting model, established by Wavecom, is designed to meet its industrial needs and is based around six key objectives:

• Risk limitation
  
• Competitiveness
  
• "Time to market"
  
• "Time to volume"
  
• Allocation of production capacity
  
• High quality products

Click here to download the complete white paper in pdf format.