anyone familiar with making flashlights

[lasersandlights]

Hi guys,

We're kinda looking for some help in getting some high quality flashlights manufactured in China. If any or anyone you know that might be able to help please let me know.

Steve Liu

 

[gadget_lover]

Wow. That's kind of the antithesis of the purpose of this subforum.

We're more about creating and working on stuff for ourselves or others, building skills that may or may not bridge into a career.

Helping someone set up a production line in a foreign factory... does not seem to fit.

But good luck in your endeavor. The one thing I can contribute; quality requires the same steps no matter where the work is or who is doing it. You can not outsource quality with any confidence. The same guy who will take shortcuts will also happily sign off on the inspection sheets.

Daniel

 

[precisionworks]

high quality flashlights manufactured in China

There are lots of brokers who are happy to help you (as they help themselves to your money :nana. One of the larger ones is Gateway to China: http://www.yourgatewaytochina.com/

As they state " Our Chinese partners use the same machining techniques used by North American companies." (They put in the bold face type, probably figuring that Americans don't know the diff between the two countries )

Good luck. In a market already awash with Chinese lights, yet another Chinese light will be a welcomed addition.

 

[mototraxtech]

Just curious why make a high quality Chinese light when you can make a high quality American light. I realize that getting plastics and what not made in america is expensive but from my research getting high quality machined products in the states is not a problem.



Look into www.emachineshop.com They have a cad program you build the parts in and you can get a instant quote. They also have all the surface finishing you could want. And you will be support and GREAT American company.

Just a thought!

 

[350xfire]

Just curious why make a high quality Chinese light when you can make a high quality American light. I realize that getting plastics and what not made in america is expensive but from my research getting high quality machined products in the states is not a problem.



Look into www.emachineshop.com They have a cad program you build the parts in and you can get a instant quote. They also have all the surface finishing you could want. And you will be support and GREAT American company.

Just a thought!

Probably because what you can get here for $50 costs about $2 from China... LOL!

 

[mototraxtech]

with large quantities and cnc machinery you dont pay much more than material cost for the parts. Also the materials they use over their can and usually very sub par. Thats why there are not major car, or motorcycle companies over there. When your dealing with peoples lives you cant cut corners.

 

[gadget_lover]

While there is no reason why you can not produce high quality parts and materials in China (and other areas) the problem seems to be that people who go to China or India for production is doing so for the lower prices. Lower prices mean that something is being done cheaper. When you find the cheapest bidder to do a job, there's a good chance that he/she will be using the cheapest techniques and materials that will meet the specs.

China does have their own factories. They have their own line of cars. hey just don't export them to the US.

Daniel

 

[Norm]

Look at some Chinese made Apple products if you want to see what is possible in China.

 

[precisionworks]

Lower prices mean that something is being done cheaper

Labor is the biggest cost factor, and Chinese labor (even with recent increases) is still cheap. The New York Times ran an article in 02/2010 that the minimum wage in Guangdong Province was going from $113 to $146 ... per month Compare that to a USA factory worker at $3200 per month, and Chinese labor may be as much as 95% less. To be fair, some Chinese factories pay well above the minimum wage.

Tools & tooling are another area. Even though there are brokers who have ISO 9001 shops available like Phase II: (http://www.phase2plus.com/outsourcing-contractmanufacturing.htm) there are many shops that use old equipment, worn tooling, and have spotty inspection. Not to pick on Harbor Freight, but look at the amount of rework most people have to do just to get a HF machine to be usable. Or check out the stuff from Frank at CDCO (http://www.cdcotools.com/) - it doesn't get any cheaper than that, but not everything works the way it should :nana:

Lead time can be a killer, and it isn't unusual for a USA (or Euro) seller to have a 6-12 week back order for an item. Importers don't have much sway over a factory half way around the world, speaking a different language, that is government controlled.

But, you get what you pay for, and you don't pay much for (most) Chinese products. Look at the shelves in any WalMart to see the "quality" or lack thereof.

Funny, now that Chinese prices are starting to rise, WalMart is stocking more items from Bangladesh. One of many articles: http://www.khaleejtimes.com/biz/ins...tor_September17.xml&section=economicindicator

If an importer really wants the low ball price, China may not be the answer. But there's always some one who will make it cheaper. As a friend of mine often says, "Quality is like buying oats: If you want clean, fresh oats you must pay a fair price. However, if you can be satisfied with oats that have already been through the horse, that comes a little cheaper..." :devil: (Quote attributed to John Ruskin, 1819-1900)

 

[precisionworks]

some help in getting some high quality flashlights manufactured in China

When Gene & Cathy Malkoff could no longer keep up with production of their M60 drop in for SureFire, they decided to outsource ... domestically. KIMCO in Boise, Idaho, now manufactures the product under their supervision. http://www.kimco.net/index.html

with large quantities and cnc machinery you dont pay much more than material cost for the parts

+1

USA job shops are starving for work, and more than a few will run a job and make almost nothing, simply to keep their employees at work. The OP did not list location, but there's probably a shop (probably quite a few shops) with an hour driving distance. After production gets started, email/fax/phone takes care of the rest ... just like working with China :thumbsup:

 

[unterhausen]

if you buy aftermarket car parts now, a lot of them are Chinese. But that's because nobody in the entire supply chain cares about anything other than cost, including the consumer. At least until the part breaks. My neighbor sells auto parts, you can hear the strain in his voice when he talks about the parts he sells that are from China. It wouldn't surprise me to find Chinese parts in American cars, they would kill their grandma for a fraction of a cent savings on a part.

From what I have heard, getting parts made in China is a lot of work, it's typical that the parts made for approval are different than the production parts. I would really consider finding someone here that you can get real references from.

 

[precisionworks]

I was curious about the highest quality manufacturers in China.

I don't believe you understand how manufacturing is done in China :nana:

Say that my company, Brand X Lights, wants to have components built in China. I don't build a factory, buy machinery, hire workers, etc. - instead, my company finds a broker like Phase II or Gateway to China who looks at available facilities & matches buyer & seller. Fenix operates the same way - there is no "Fenix Factory" in China, they contract with any shop that can make the parts for the price ... there are (best I can tell) no manufacturers (per se) in China, but there are lots of shops that will manufacture to your spec. That can cause problems down the road, as Shop #1 (used in 2009) and Shop #2 (used in 2010 because they are cheaper) use different calibration standards ... so there may be no parts interchangeability between lights made last year & lights made today.

If you want or need "highest quality", use only an ISO certified shop. At least they have a written standard with which they must comply or they stand to lose the ISO cert. When your parts arrive here, set up a decent QC lab & inspect 100% of the parts. Then you retain some control over what is being sold.

For a QC lab, nothing fancy is needed, just build a temp controlled clean room with HEPA filtration (as you aren't building knee replacements or other medical/aerospace parts). I've priced out site built clean rooms & they are not expensive, around $5k to $10k for a smallish room (about 200 square feet). More info here: http://www.coastwidelabs.com/Technical Articles/Cleaning the Cleanroom.htm Once the clean room is built, you'll need standard inspection tooling like an optical comparator, height gage, gage block set, surface plate, micrometers & calipers, etc. And then you'll need to hire an experienced QC inspector.

Paxton Products just brought out a HEPA filtered blower used for pressurizing clean rooms. They say it's suitable for use in a Class 10,000 clean room: http://paxtonpureair.com/

Unless you plan to inspect 100% of the parts, you'll have no idea how close they are to print dimensions. And just because the parts start off in compliance, that can change overnight. Constant inspection is the key to selling something made by someone else. Especially when you have almost zero control over the process.

 

[DM51]

lasersandlights, please read my post HERE.http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?p=3533332#post3533332