Our knowledge of contract electronic manufacturing (a.k.a. EMS) agreements is founded on over 30 years’ experience in creating and negotiating contracts for leading OEM’s of telecommunications, medical devices, computing and other technology products.

CMC typically creates the first draft of the agreement for review and edit by the client and its attorney firm. Using our proprietary contract templates (specialized by industry) we extensively customize it to meet the needs of all parties. This work is assisted by advisors with working understanding of best practices in EMS contract provisions. Contracts include order and forecast procedures, service and support requirements (e.g., DFM, vendor managed inventory, product design), pricing based on CMC-assisted RFQ process, cost reduction sharing, performance measures, liability and other key terms and conditions. For pricing, CMC has developed a "should cost" production cost model often used for global cost and price benchmarking. It is activity-based and similar to what EMS companies themselves use to quote product pricing.

It is important that the manufacturing agreement be established prior to the beginning of work. This ensures that mutual expectations are clear and good mechanisms are in place for continued improvement. During negotiation, CMC can act as a facilitator between the two parties or work behind the scenes in an advisory capacity. In either role, our objective is to help achieve the best pricing and service levels at which the electronic contract manufacturer can still make acceptable return on capital employed (ROCE) - a "win-win" business relationship.