How do I tell a development company from a trading company?

Ask who does the engineering, to see the team, and what you receive before production. A development company can show people, process and deliverables; a trading company shows catalogues.

Should I visit in person?

If the project is large, yes. A visit shows the team, the lab and the line, and how the company talks about problems.

What references should I ask for?

Products taken through a similar process, described by path rather than only by photos, and a contact where possible. Respect confidentiality, but expect some detail.

What are warning signs?

Quotes with no scope, unwillingness to discuss ownership, promises of fixed prices before requirements are known, and no mention of certification or validation.

How to Evaluate a Hardware Development Company in Shenzhen: A Buyer Checklist

Most hardware development websites say the same things: full service, experienced, fast. A buyer needs questions that separate them. This is a checklist, not a ranking.

1. Who does the engineering?

Ask to meet the team that will do the work. Industrial design, structure, hardware, firmware, app and server are separate disciplines. A company with all of them in one team has fewer handoffs and fewer places for a problem to hide.

2. What is the scope, in writing?

A good partner can write the scope by discipline and list the deliverables. A quote that says only “development” is not a scope.

3. What process do they follow?

Ask which stages they run and which validation builds are included. See EVT, DVT and PVT for what each should deliver.

4. Who owns what?

Schematics, mechanical files, firmware source, app and server, accounts and tooling. Ask this early. See who owns the design files.

5. How is certification handled?

The target markets should be discussed at the start, and the compliance path planned alongside design. A partner who raises it only at the end is a risk.

6. How do they start a project?

A development plan with a written scope is a sign of a team that does real engineering. See what NRE covers.

7. What can they show?

Products taken through a similar process, described step by step. Be wary of galleries without a path behind them.

8. How do they talk about problems?

Ask what went wrong on a past project and how it was fixed. A team that can answer honestly is a team that will tell you early when something breaks.

9. What do they decline?

A good partner says what is not a fit. A partner that accepts everything usually has no process to protect.

Where we stand

3CBAY is a Shenzhen hardware development company with industrial design, structure, hardware, firmware, app, server and production in one team. Tell us your idea and we will agree a written scope and the development and sample plan together. Samples available. More on the services page.

Evaluating partners? Tell us what you are building.