Assembly is a vital step in the manufacture of a wide range of parts and products. However, some original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) do not have the resources available to establish and perform assembly operations in-house. In these situations, they may choose to contract the assembly of their components to a third-party company. The contracted company is known as a contract assembler; they specialize in contract assembly services, which involve combining and connecting components and/or subassemblies as needed for final assembly operations or consumer distribution.
Below, we provide an overview of this process. We highlight what contract assembly entails, what benefits it offers, and what services are commonly offered.
What Is Contract Assembly?
Contract assembly refers to a manufacturing practice in which one company outsources their assembly operations to another company. The contracted company (i.e., the contract assembler) specializes in assembly work and performs it on a project-by-project basis.
Benefits of Contract Assembly
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There are many benefits to outsourcing your assembly operations to a contract assembly house, such as:
Lowered Operating Costs
A contract assembly relationship enables the contracting company to keep up with customer demand for assembled parts and products without having to invest in the equipment, space, and labor needed for assembly operations. As a result, they can maintain their revenue stream while lowering overhead costs, which results in greater profit margins.
Reduced Labor Expense
Since the contracted company is in charge of performing assembly operations in a contract assembly relationship, they are also responsible for hiring, training, and managing employees to perform them. As such, the contracting company does not have to worry about whether they have too many or too few employees to meet assembly demand.
Increased Product Quality
Since a contract assembly house specializes in assembly work, they can often achieve a higher level of assembly quality than is possible by a manufacturing company that does not focus on assembly.
Common Contract Assembly Services
Contract assembly solutions can take many forms depending on what industry they serve, what part or product is being made, what processes the assembly requires, and how integrated into the total production process the assembly needs to be. Common contract assembly services include:
- Cable and wire harness assembly: This assembly service involves combining wires/cables with other electrical components to form an organized electrical wiring system.
- Electromechanical assembly: This assembly service involves combining mechanical and electrical components to create a device or system that utilizes electricity to perform mechanical tasks.
- Hand assembly: This assembly service involves using trained human workers to perform assembly operations that require dexterity, agility, and high-level decision-making capabilities.
- Full system integration: This assembly service involves integrating components and subassemblies to form a fully finished device or system.
Partec, Your Contract Assembly House
Looking for a contract assembly house for your next manufacturing project? Partec is the ideal partner! We have vast manufacturing experience, advanced assembly equipment, and broad assembly capabilities, which provide us with everything we need to handle virtually any contract assembly need.
For more information on our contract assembly capabilities, contact us today. To discuss your project requirements with one of our representatives, request a quote.
