The manufacturing industry used to be a symbol of stability, solidity, and steady employment.

Today, that’s somewhat different. Although global manufacturing companies will see substantial growth opportunities in the future, the environment that they’re developing in is much more uncertain. Globalization, for all the opportunities it’s brought to manufacturing, has also disrupted many of the processes and standards that the industry relied on in the past.

Because of this, companies manufacturing products today need to be aware of certain things about global manufacturing and the global supply chain. Here are three things most product companies don’t know about global manufacturing.

1. Products must be able to compete on a global scale.

Product competition on a global scale has the benefits of reducing costs and pricing. For certain types of products, especially consumer products, moving manufacturing overseas can often result in lower costs for required materials without reducing product quality. The ability to save costs allows companies to adjust pricing as required to meet the market demand.

Product companies are also able to pull resources from around the world in order to develop products that are more specialized for each market they serve. Common cost challenges can be overcome by outsourcing manufacturing internationally.

2. Supply chains are far more sophisticated.

Supply chain management and globalization are interconnected. Although many companies may outsource their supply chain management, they still need to remain actively engaged in the process. Pivot International can help with the management of your supply chain so you can spend your time in other areas of your business. Pivot uses Enterprise Resource Planning and Manufacturing Resource Planning Systems to ensure your supply chain is managed efficiently and actively.

3. Emerging markets require a greater supply of goods.

Managing a supply to match the demand in emerging markets is one of the biggest challenges product development companies are facing today.

Although these emerging markets in developing countries are requiring more goods, many multinational companies are still failing to deliver. Many North American companies shy away from emerging markets because they don’t know what the product demand is like and there is a lack of end-to-end logistics companies able to deliver the required products.

Market infrastructure also varies greatly from country to country and product companies need to keep that in mind when developing their emerging market strategy. The same strategies used at home won’t work in developing countries. Working with a company that has global manufacturing resources can play a big part in emerging market strategy.

Global manufacturing allows companies to meet the demand of international markets through the use of more sophisticated supply chains, helping their products to compete on a global scale. If your company is having trouble competing internationally, you may want towork with a business development or manufacturing specialist at Pivot.

For more, read “5 Developments in the Manufacturing Sector Every Product Developer Should Know About.”