Because it reduces the need for maintaining high-skilled internal teams and gives the organization to quickly scale up or down, outsourcing specialty components and equipment is common practice in most industries. However, despite a trend over previous decades to internationalize outsourcing, many US organizations are now discovering that “American Made” is the best solution for OEM supply chains. This is where onshoring comes into play. Also known as domestic outsourcing, onshoring is the process of securing third-party component suppliers from the same country.
The Benefits of Choosing US-Based Industrial Control Panel Manufacturers
There are several reasons why onshoring production to domestic industrial control panel manufacturers is better for business. Below we’ll look at how onshoring can improve business on several levels.
Supply Chain Security
The pandemic disrupted manufacturing and transport on a global level. The world retreated within national borders very quickly, and “American Made” became a statement of quality and availability. Industries requiring control panels for retrofits, replacements, or new projects looked to onshore OEM production to domestic industrial control panel manufacturers so they could stabilize their supply chains and keep projects on schedule. Pandemic restrictions may have been lifted, but global supply chains have yet to fully recover. As such, onshoring is still a byword for supply security.
Regulatory Compliance
Domestic control panel manufacturers are highly experienced in building designs that meet the relevant regulatory standards in North America. This includes the design specifications for control panels, such as UL508A and UL698A; different components, such as UL1558 for circuit breakers and UL891 for electrical switchgear; NFPA 70E for operator electrical safety; and NFPA 110 for emergency and standby power. Onshoring OEM panel manufacturing means less explaining of standards that must be met and having a manufacturer guarantee that reduces your risk profile.
Quick Turnaround
Onshore domestic production also means equipment and components travel significantly shorter distances and avoid any unloading delays at entry points. Though pandemic restrictions have eased, slow-downs at ports and processing paperwork are a constant threat in any potential trade war. This may not be a headline-making action, but it still impacts those waiting for the equipment and components.
Immediate Action
Not only can you expect faster turnaround times from order to delivery, but the response times of onshore industrial control panel manufacturers are also faster. This is critical when midway through an installation or replacement project, you realize that a control panel’s sizing, spacing, or components aren’t correct. Shipping the piece back or getting a new one sent over can be done within working-day timelines, significantly reducing overruns compared to shipping over an ocean.
Market Understanding
Working with domestic industrial control panel manufacturers does not just mean greater security around regulatory compliance but also the assurance of an OEM with an innate knowledge of typical job specifications and environmental requirements. This can make communication of specs much quicker and result in less off-spec deliveries. The capacity of onshore domestic industrial control panel manufacturers to easily send a consulting team out to a facility or installation site to assess needs also translates into job requirements that are fully met.
Circular Economy
Buying “American Made” and onshoring OEM capacity with domestic industrial control panel manufacturers supports the whole national economy, indirectly supporting your own business. The more work one manufacturer has, the more machinery and inputs it needs to meet demand, which, if they also onshore their supply chain, means more work for all other manufacturers along the line. Even if your product is consumer focused, the more labor required to fulfill orders means more money for consumer products.
Shipping Costs
Equipment shipped over the ocean in containers that still have to be hauled from port to destination is more expensive than transporting over land or rail in the continental United States. For certain projects running within a financial or carbon budget, working with onshore industrial control panel manufacturers can help to reduce outlays in both.
Protection of Intellectual Property
In many industries, industrial secrets and patented technologies are highly valuable and central to a business’s value proposition. With increased international competition in precision engineering fields, such as chip and semiconductor manufacturing, industrial espionage is a very real threat. Onshore industrial control panel manufacturers must abide by laws and standards applicable in the United States and face intense litigation if they don’t. Non-disclosure agreements are vital for protecting a company’s intellectual property, and onshore OEM production makes that more easily enforceable.
Onshore with Enercon
Onshoring industrial control panels can deliver a range of benefits for your business. Among the most tangible of these are the supply chain security and ensuring regulatory compliance that domestic industrial control panel manufacturers provide, reducing risk for your organization. However, working with domestic OEMs also delivers fast turnaround times, smoother communication and needs assessment, and forms contractual relationships that are easier to enforce.
At Enercon, from our extensive facility in Illinois, we supply US-made industrial control panels, both standard and custom-built, across the United States and the world. To find out how we can help you meet your project’s control panel and component needs, get in contact with our team.