Summary
In contrast to other phones which were manufactured by Flextronics on a contract basis using designs created by its customers, the OEM's (Original Equipment Manufacturers), Phone 4 was designed and manufactured entirely by Flextronics. This new initiative by this EMS (Electronics Manufacturing Services) is not only a product design initiative, but an entirely new business approach that have Intellectual Property (IP), product design and supplier development implications, among others.
Who is Flextronics?
Flextronics is a Singapore-base global corporation with more than USD 13 billion in revenues, around 78,000 employees and offices and facilities in 30 countries on five continents. It was originally founded in Newark, California, USA back in 1969 and nowadays is the second largest company in the Electronics Manufacturing Services business sector.
The EMS industry
During the 1990's the industry experienced a success era than characterized by:
-Purchase of underutilized manufacturing assets from OEMs, such acquisitions increased the scale of their existing manufacturing capabilities and enlarged the scope of the capabilities that could be offered to customers.
Flextronics at San Jose Airport
Closeup of an Employee Working with a Solderer on ...
au CDMA 1X WIN W31SAII is a mobile phone.-Acquisition of independent companies that possessed capabilities in key areas of manufacturing or product design.
-EMS Industry acquired companies from countries where labour was significantly cheaper.
From all the events that have happened, there are several business segments that appear in the scene, such as:
-Contract Manufacturing (CM): "Build to print" .EMS firms looked to receive a completed product design from the OEM and would focus on manufacturing assembly.
-Contract Design and Manufacturing (CDM). EMS firms looked to provide other services such as product design, supply chain management, logistical support, and contract engineering services. EMS firms took over responsibility for the selection of component suppliers. Intellectual property (IP) for products remained solely with the OEM.
-Original Design and Manufacturing (ODM). An ODM would actually initiate a new...