Modern companies have to deal with pressures to innovate more quickly, become more efficient, and reduce costs. Mechanical design and engineering are integral to creating new products, optimizing existing systems, and maintaining quality in production.
That said, running and managing an internal design team can be expensive, and at times less than ideal from a resource standpoint. For that reason, many companies have embraced outsourcing as a means to satisfy their design and engineering requirements.
Companies that utilize J.O.T. Engineering recruitment solutions often appreciate the benefits of outsourcing. They enjoy access to qualified professionals, the necessary tools or technology, and even tailor based models for staffing without the overhead of an employee.
For others, engaging with freelance mechanical engineer recruiters is a simple and quick way to scale teams for certain projects and engage in niche skill sets as needed.
Access to Specialized Expertise
Hiring mechanical design and engineering services lets you tap into a broad talent base of specialized professionals. Rather than relying only on internal resources, companies can partner with engineers with specialized knowledge in 3D modeling and simulation or stress and thermal analysis, and on manufacturing optimization.
Outsourced professionals also tend to have experience from across industries, bringing new viewpoints on complex design problems. For example, an outsourced design engineer may have worked in automotive, aerospace, and robotics environments and can therefore bring unique development approaches that full time staff may not have been exposed to before.
Reduced Operational Costs
Building and maintaining a fully capable internal mechanical design team can be costly. Just think of the cost of hiring and training employees, and getting software licenses and infrastructure in place.
Using an outsourced or offsite service provider is a way to avoid many of those costs. Companies can employ third-party specialists that have those services on a contract or project basis instead of having the overhead of maintaining those services internally.
Besides the overhead of not having an full-time internal team, outsourced firms typically have operations in regions with low labor costs, so you often save quite a bit and still get quality work.
Companies that outsource can also save on multiple other expense items, such as long term employee benefits, workspace, and maintenance of equipment, etc.
Faster Time-to-Market
Speed is key in product development. Delays due to design or prototyping can mean missed opportunities or increased costs. Outsourcing relationships enable companies to speed their project timelines by using teams dedicated to the project and its tasks.
Outside partners will have process workflows and templates for developing structured designs. Many of the partners utilise enhanced technology and software tools to improve the design process. This may include CAD/CAE systems, simulations to validate performance before production, etc.
When multiple design phases can take place simultaneously (design idea, proto-typing / testing, etc.), the project can move more quickly from an idea to an implementation. Speed to execute is important for companies to stay competitive in the tradable economy in consumer electronics, automotive, industrial equipment, manufacturing, etc.
Improved Quality and Innovation
Outsourcing mechanical engineers can provide perspectives to enhance quality and innovation. They are used to working with many products and many technologies, and will help to advance new avenues of innovation while avoiding pitfalls.
Outsourced partners usually have a rigorous quality control system to make sure all designs meet industry quality standards or government regulatory standards.
They are paid on quality and performance for the satisfaction of the client and success of the project, which drives them to be more quality oriented and participate in existing client relationships.
Flexibility and Scalability
Engineering needs differ from project to project, product lifecycle, and market demand. This makes employing a large staffed, fully stocked in-house engineering team inefficient when on-site workloads vary.
Outsourced engineering services allow companies to quickly ramp-up or ramp-down the size of their engineering team based on the need for technical resources.
Examples would include adding additional designers to assist with ramp-up during peak periods. It can also be common to simply use outsourcing designers to fill the gaps in engineering for short term work assignments to solve a specific technical issue.
After the project is completed, the company can quickly resume to their original team size without the burden of longer-term obligations or layoffs.
Scalability is especially helpful for startups or mid-sized manufacturers with multiple product lines or an architecture that need to react to client requests at very fast turnaround times. Scalable engineering services will help tire companies to be flexible, responsive, and competitive regardless of how simple or complicated the specific project is.
Focus on Core Business Activities
Mechanical design and engineering are important and may not be the primary role of every company. A consumer goods manufacturer may be someone who produces products that focus on branding and distribution, whereas a technology company may be focused primarily on software.
Out-sourcing will allow an internal team to focus in areas that produce strategic growth for the business while the design and engineering is done by a third party.
Dividing the work will increase productivity and create the necessary focus on the essential work functions of the business. Management can devote time to long term planning, customer interaction and revenue generation while the product design and development is done through the agency.
Access to the Latest Tools and Technology
Engineering service providers purchase newer design and analysis software to save their clients the expensive cost of licenses for state of the art engineering support. Software such as SolidWorks, AutoCAD, CATIA and ANSYS allow extreme detail of modeling of design iterations, as well as enable the engineer to stress test and run thermal analysis of a design in order to find flaws before even prototyping a design.
Outsourced engineering service providers have knowledge of modern design methods and tools also; generative design, additive manufacturing, and virtual prototyping, all of which help reduce material waste, decrease development cost and improve efficiency.
Risk Reduction and Compliance Assurance
Engineering projects involve a variety of risks such as design failures or compliance issues. By outsourcing engineering projects, a firm is able to spread the risk to the outsourced project and the engineering outsource has experience with local and international codes and standards.
Many outsourced engineering practices have a reliance on a strong performance quality assurance system which may include peer reviews, automation testing, and regulatory evaluations of the product or service.
This layered system of quality management will lessen the assumptions of design errors, delays or expensive rework. In addition, quality management systems enables assurance that the end product meets – all safety and performance standards before a product enters the marketplace. By using reliable suppliers, firms will protect their brand reputation and consumer confidence.
Enhanced Collaboration and Global Reach
Modern outsourcing has no geography obstacles. With the use of digital collaboration tools, teams can work efficiently across time zones. Cloud-based project management tools allow team members to share files, track project progress and provide feedback in real time.
The global nature of outsourcing implies that businesses can identify partners from regions that specialize in specific disciplines or offer attractive pricing. In fact, the difference in time zones can often work to an advantage, allowing teams from various parts of the world to work on the same task in a sequential manner.
Final Thought
Outsourcing mechanical design and engineering is not only a decision to save money; it is a now a strategic approach to greater flexibility, efficiency and innovation. By using third party experts to collaborate with in design development, teams can optimize development speed, reduce risk within their businesses, and access sophisticated tools and global talent.