CONTRACT PURCHASING CASE STUDY

Electronic Parts Search

A large manufacturer of Electronic Printed Circuit Boards enlisted the help of Purchasing Services Co. (PSC) to source parts for a new board. Building circuit boards requires numerous small parts, sometimes available only from a select few suppliers. PSC was given a basic parts list, along with quantities needed, and asked to find sources, possible substitutes, best pricing, minimum order quantities, price break values, and availability.

There are many issues inherent in sourcing such parts:

• Long and varying turnaround times, which in turn have a major impact on engineering and production schedules
• Often one must buy parts from several sources since no distributor carries every brand of every part
• Little ability to consolidate orders to distributors
• Distributors' minimum order requirements
• Cross-referencing Manufacturer's part numbers with Distributors' part numbers
• Design changes continuously modify the material list

PSC's streamlined procurement service allowed the quick gathering and organizing of the bill of materials product information. Requests for Quote to multiple suppliers were proficiently generated. We quickly ascertained correct manufacturer part numbers, description and technical specifications, suggested substitutes, lead times, and pricing structures.

After suppliers' responses were received, PSC was able to consolidate the information and send it to the Customer in a timely manner on one easy-to-read report. Our buyers worked closely with engineering in linking our information with the company's internal part numbers. Our information could therefore be easily incorporated into their inventory system for management of the prototype, as well as the full production line process.

Our client's internal buyer was able to continue processing the day-to-day procurement transactions by outsourcing this project to PSC. After PSC completed this preliminary new product development work, its easy integration into their operations allowed a seamless transition to the production procurement process.