Business development for a Western European supplier

SNECI is currently supporting a European manufacturer specializing in plastic injection and overmolded parts for the automotive industry. The equipment manufacturer in question is historically present in the powertrain parts market but is now in transition towards electric vehicle applications. This company has three factories (in France and Germany) with available capacity. It therefore launched an “on-demand” production offer and asked SNECI to help it find business/customers. SNECI does business development for this supplier.

International prospecting: business development for a supplier

SNECI targets foreign suppliers likely to locate part of their production in Europe. The company offers them a service offering aimed at producing for them in Western Europe within sites (already) certified by automobile manufacturers.

For a customer, the main advantages of this type of “production on-demand” offer are as follows:

• Have existing resources (industrial means in particular),
• Limit investments,
• Limit the risks,
• Accelerate production launches,
• Test a “life-size” project before a possible investment in your own factory.

SNECI is well structured to support this type of project, which may include:

• Industrial transfer,
• Quality audit,
• Monitoring of suppliers,
• Training.

Arguments in favor of localizing production in Western Europe

SNECI puts forward several arguments in favor of locating production in Western Europe (versus Eastern Europe), for which customers would in particular benefit from:

• More automation,
• Qualified and stable staff,
• Geographical proximity to the main automobile manufacturers (limited logistics costs),
• Production sites already certified by manufacturers,
• Local R&D and Engineering plant resources allow projects to be industrialized easily.

Analysis

The equipment manufacturer’s “production on demand” offer is an interesting initiative that could allow it to diversify its activity, position itself on new markets, and better use its factories’ capacities (avoid oversizing).

This strategy has several advantages, including:

• It is allowing the manufacturer to make the most of its existing resources, particularly its certified and underutilized production sites.
• It is allowing its customers to:
  >>> Test new projects before committing to larger-scale production,
  >>> Limit investments and risks (financial, human, etc.).

On the other hand, this initiative also presents some difficulties:

• It is complex to find potential customers interested in this offer (timing is a determining factor here),
• Its implementation can be complicated and requires good coordination between the different actors.

Well aware of these potential difficulties, the equipment manufacturer called on SNECI to support it in this undertaking. Indeed, SNECI has an experienced team capable of understanding and deploying this type of project.

Key figures

As part of its prospecting to find new customers for its partner’s “production on demand” offer, SNECI carries out between 5 to 10 visits from potential customers monthly. SNECI focuses on sectors of the future, particularly electric vehicle applications.

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