ABSTRACT
Few businesses make the entire product they sell. Most are reliant to a great extent on their supplier's manufacturing processes. The sourcing of the raw materials, components, assemblies, and services that are so important to the business is a great responsibility. A range of well-known research indicates that a large part of the supply base and how the supply chain will work is determined at the design stage. The supply base selected largely during the design and development therefore needs to be right for the operation of the supply chain and manufacturing, and so they also have a part to play in sourcing. Design rules have been a standard way of working for electronic board manufacturing for as long as even the author can remember. Some are better than others, but at least they give rules for dimensions and components that suit the manufacturer's standards.
