The goal of attaining growth through market expansion is not uncommon. At some point, every product manufacturer will reach its market cap in a particular region and will have to expand if it wants to have continued growth. As such the next logical step would be to expand overseas and target other regional markets.
However, for manufacturers to expand their reach globally, they must first have their products certified in the countries they wish to export to and sell in. To accomplish this, manufacturers who do not have the knowledge and experience to do so, ought to team up with organisations that already have the right processes in place to help secure such certifications or approvals. This service provided by such organisations is known as Global Market Access or GMA. GMA generally refers to determining applicable regulations and managing product compliance in relation to those technical regulations specified by the relevant countries.
In the absence of standardised rules and requirements due to differing national standards across countries and regions, manufacturers need to be aware of the regulations for each country and/or region they hope to break into. For example, some countries and their respective jurisdictions specific technical restrictions - such as prerequisite product testing, certification, and shipment inspection requirements.
Further information that product manufacturers must be aware of also includes conformity requirements specific to each product and the target market. For example, energy efficiency has become a highly discussed factor and a significant factor of consideration when it comes to importing regulations. As of 2019, a decision laid out by the Eurasian Economic Commission stated that product manufacturers of electronic goods imported must focus on environmental protection and energy efficiency and avoid actions that might potentially mislead consumers on the product’s energy efficiency. Failure to comply would result in goods being denied entry into EU member states.
How is GMA Beneficial?
Apart from providing access to additional global product markets, with GMA, manufacturers can significantly reduce cost and time needed to market products. Possessing a single point of contact allows manufacturers to deal with the respective regulators of their intended target markets, in this manner any logistics issue that arises will be dealt with smoothly. Consolidated testing or homologation for a particular product or a range of products also accounts for regional requirements as well as national and modal differences in each product (i.e., the type of outlets, plugs, voltages, and frequencies used). This reduces net time-to-market, which is a crucial factor for product manufacturers. Additionally, this helps minimise costs on unnecessary duplicate tests. Ideally, GMA partners also provide regular and timely updates of changes in the global regulatory landscape, giving manufacturers lead time to adjust and prepare for issues that might affect their operations.
What Happens when GMA Processes are not Adhered to?
A good example would be the incident of electronic products being stranded at a country’s customs. In 2019, due to suspended import permits that stemmed from poor compliance with e-waste rules, India’s Central Pollution Control Board halted the entry of premium smartphones and electronic merchandise from 10 tech companies. This delay resulted in goods worth millions of dollars remaining in limbo at the customs. In hindsight, the tech companies could have engaged the services of a GMA service provider to obtain the appropriate permits and avoid such an incident from happening.
Issues such as the above are commonplace when dealing with imports/exports on an international level. When taking further governmental regulations into account, such as the need for blueprint and software transparency in countries such as China, it stands to reason that GMA inevitably forms the cornerstone of any aspiring businesses attempting to broaden their international reach.
How does PCI Help Its Clients
Picture this scenario - a product is about to be launched in various regional markets such as North America Asia Pacific, and the Middle East. Taking the regional differences in compliance and regulations into consideration, launching this product will present many potential obstacles and pitfalls.
Enter PCI as the GMA service provider you need, with the knowledge and processes to efficiently navigate global markets from start to finish. Manufacturers can better manage the conformity processes across international boundaries and smoothly market their products with our expertise.
The processes established by PCI are as follows; we will take lead and anchor the processes, as well as submit the application on behalf of our clients to conduct product pre-scanning and actual certification test. Following that, we will follow through with the submission of samples, and if any of the designs are done by us inhouse, we will even work on fine tuning the products to comply with regulations and pass all the required certification tests.
To provide further value of being compliant with the regulatory guidelines in each product’s specific target market, we will assist our clients in identifying the necessary wireless and safety marks to be added on the respective packaging, labels, and manuals. For electronic manufactured products, this entails detailing the electrical safety, electromagnetic compatibility, materials and/or chemicals used.
In relation to these regulatory guidelines, our experts will provide guidance on the compliance requirements and approval strategies for each country, as well as perform product testing to meet the mark of the correct test standards as required. In some cases, whenever necessary; for clients with no presence in the respective countries/regions, we will even provide access to our cache of local representation. We will prepare applications on your behalf and perform a post-submission follow-up with the relevant authorities and certification bodies to guarantee a smooth and positive resolution to any regulatory assessment.
PCI’s Assurance and Quality
Navigating the regulatory landscape of global markets is a complex and challenging task. To expand your business reach and grow your revenue, product manufacturers will have to expand beyond their own domestic markets. Even though strict regulatory requirements exist, you can be assured that your products manufactured by us are subjected to stringent reliability and quality tests, so that they are fully functional and compliant with regulations regardless of the market they are planned for. Here at PCI, we deploy analytical tools such as Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA), traceability systems, Production Part Approval Process, and Ongoing Reliability Testing (ORT) to ensure that your products meet or even surpass industry standards.
By constantly evaluating and updating our certifications as well as being kept abreast of the industry’s best practices to ensure compliance, we are proud to say that we can and will attain the necessary certifications and approvals of the respective countries for you. All these without the need for retesting or working with multiple organisations. As a result, you can achieve a faster time-to-market for your products with reduced costs.
As a GMA service provider working closely with manufacturers, we understand that quality is vital. We will take the best of your ideas as well as feedback and bring them to life through our designing and fabricating of your prototypes as per the blueprints provided by you. At PCI, we are always ready to provide expert input in a collaborative value-adding manner, to help you manufacture your products and ensure that they meet all the required regulatory and compliance standards. Once these products are ready for mass production, we will continue on that journey with you to remove any roadblocks or obstacles.
Choose PCI
With the right technology as well as wealth of experience and industry knowledge in place to address the needs of our existing clients, PCI is the industry leading one-stop service provider for you. Not only are we able to advise our clients on the correct processes and regulatory requirements with regards to the various regional markets they intend to ship their products to, we are also able to provide sustainable design engineering and manufacturing processes to aid them in the creation of their products.
Having built our capabilities for well over 50 years, our partners can rest assured knowing that they are able to fully leverage on our expertise to achieve success. Through the years, we have worked hard to establish collaborative efforts with other independent design houses that possess complementary technologies to our core competencies. It is through such win-win partnerships and cost-effective solutions that we can keep costs low for our clients.
Contact us today to find out how we can work hand in hand with you to achieve your goals.
Summary
Navigating a country or region’s regulations and specific compliance requirements for products can be a daunting task for manufacturers, especially when each country’s market has its own requirements, rules, and regulations. In such a situation, Global Market Access (GMA) is of priority when it comes to breaking into overseas markets. Businesses seeking to leverage on uncharted territories to expand their reach must be fully prepared for the potential roadblocks and obstacles. With the help of a GMA service provider that is also capable of providing sustainable design engineering as well as manufacturing, accessing these markets is no longer a difficult task.