Manufacturing in the UK instead of abroad

[JCKST1]

I started another company last year, manufacturing & retail based (sport industry).

I have a few more products in the design stage which are made from aluminium so nothing extravagant and a relatively simple design for an engineering firm to put on the CNC machine and let it plod away.
At the moment everything is imported from the far east and priced well however I am curious to hear if any one on here has moved production closer to home, if so how did you find it cost wise?

The easiest thing would be to get a price here and compare but I dont want to waste any ones time and look like a timewaster so I am just testing the water to get some feedback.

Long term plan is to get a unit and manufacture ourselves however that will require investment and thats another story!


Thanks

[Ean218]

Just done that with some ally parts we used to get from the far east. Actual cost is a bit higher but the intangibles like delivery and quality are under our control and we can mess about with batch sizes.

That's making the bits ourselves though so the margin swapped from the bought in parts covers our overheads and internal manufacturing profit. If you sub it out they would still have to make a profit too so I would expect the cost to be higher.

[JCKST1]

Thats what I thought. I expect it to be slightly more but I cant go OTT with it.

Having control of production is a huge bonus though plus we can cut out the delivery time and uncertainty of pricing with the way the USD is going at the moment!

[Grandad Gaz]

We have become a nation of market traders and delivery drivers, so I'd say go for it!

I'll always support British industry.

[spikeyhead]

Quelch were my preferred Ally machinists 20 years back when I used to be involved with that. No idea what they are like now, but they did well enough then to be my first port of call should I need some more doing.

http://www.quelcheng.co.uk/index.html

[Jag_NE]

JCKST1 said:

I started another company last year, manufacturing & retail based (sport industry).

I have a few more products in the design stage which are made from aluminium so nothing extravagant and a relatively simple design for an engineering firm to put on the CNC machine and let it plod away.
At the moment everything is imported from the far east and priced well however I am curious to hear if any one on here has moved production closer to home, if so how did you find it cost wise?

The easiest thing would be to get a price here and compare but I dont want to waste any ones time and look like a timewaster so I am just testing the water to get some feedback.

Long term plan is to get a unit and manufacture ourselves however that will require investment and thats another story!


Thanks

Trust me, you aren't wasting anyones time if you are acting in good faith.

[Ean218]

spikeyhead said:

Quelch were my preferred Ally machinists 20 years back when I used to be involved with that. No idea what they are like now, but they did well enough then to be my first port of call should I need some more doing.

http://www.quelcheng.co.uk/index.html

Just looked at their website, I don't reckon Doug's changed his photo in 20 years!

[spikeyhead]

Ean218 said:

spikeyhead said:

Quelch were my preferred Ally machinists 20 years back when I used to be involved with that. No idea what they are like now, but they did well enough then to be my first port of call should I need some more doing.

http://www.quelcheng.co.uk/index.html

Just looked at their website, I don't reckon Doug's changed his photo in 20 years!

I've just found that photo, if it's recent he should be selling his skin care regime and not machining.

[anonymous-user]

Jag_NE said:

Trust me, you aren't wasting anyones time if you are acting in good faith.

I agree.

[Choppers]

If you want you can send me the drawings & I'll give you a price (we're pretty competitive). Depending on the type of part it is & the quantity you may be better off looking at a company with sliding head equipment rather than CNC, but I can tell you that once I've seen the drawings. You can get my details through our website, there's a link in my profile.

I know Doug very well, they frequently sub parts out to us & I can confirm his hair is definitely the same !!

[JCKST1]

Thanks everyone, suppose its got to be worth a punt and see how things compare.

Its only small scale at the moment but we have plans for continuous growth via new products, increasing orders etc.

Choppers - I will send some info to you this week. Thanks again

[MyM2006]

We make turned parts, we quite often get companies inquiring about changing from China to UK, usually down to wanting to hold less stock, lead-time and flexibility although it's quite obvious when you speak to a customer if they will even entertain a slight price increase or if a part is ridiculously cheap but we would always quote. Sometimes you may not get that order but they may consider you for smaller volume stuff that isn't practical abroad.

[Wills82]

Afternoon,

If anyone is currently manufacturing in China, or any other part of the world, importing into the UK, drop me a PM. I work for a Freight Forwarder, and would be happy to provide competitive pricing in way of comparison on any other forwarder you are currently using. China is particularly strong as we have our own offices there, so we aren't relying on third parties to act on our behalf, meaning we get the best rates direct from the shipping lines, airlines and couriers for anything coming to the UK.

And don't forget the Pistonhead Member discount

Thanks
Ross

[Hainey]

Wills82 said:

Afternoon,

If anyone is currently manufacturing in China, or any other part of the world, importing into the UK, drop me a PM. I work for a Freight Forwarder, and would be happy to provide competitive pricing in way of comparison on any other forwarder you are currently using. China is particularly strong as we have our own offices there, so we aren't relying on third parties to act on our behalf, meaning we get the best rates direct from the shipping lines, airlines and couriers for anything coming to the UK.

And don't forget the Pistonhead Member discount

Thanks
Ross

Ross, I currently use SEKO for this. I'm moving big parts, 2.5 tonnes each, 3 to a container. How do you compare on price?

[slybynight]

These guys help connect companies to manufacturers across the world, I'm fairly sure they have suppliers spanning UK and China, might be able to help you get a comparison.

http://rpdintl.com

[Bodo]

JCKST1 said:

The easiest thing would be to get a price here and compare but I dont want to waste any ones time and look like a timewaster so I am just testing the water to get some feedback.

Best thing you could do is specify the parts you need, and the volume over time and delivery conditions, and then put a target price on it. That way, every candidate supplier can decide on their own if it is worth to provide you a quote.