Contract manufacturing is giving business a new look, allowing companies to eliminate capital equipment and buildings and thus free up cash and improve their balance sheets. Few businesses do all of their own manufacturing today. In fact, industry analysts estimate that over one-third of manufacturing has been outsourced. And this trend continues to grow.
This, coupled with the fact that the vast majority of the world’s leading enterprises are expanding into new and emerging markets, and that as they globalize, they are seeking suppliers of direct materials that are green, diverse and reliably compliant with increasingly complex environmental and related regulatory requirements, has added a whole new layer of complexity—and risk—to direct materials sourcing and collaborative supply chain planning and execution.
