If the idea of starting your own manufacturing business is more than a passing thought, you’ve come to the right place. With a bit of imagination, creativity, and ambition, you can get your business up-and-running by the end of the year!
Nervous? Don’t be. We’ve created a step-by-step guide for newbie entrepreneurs who are interested in starting their own manufacturing company.
1. Do your research.
First, you should find out if your idea is unique (i.e. make sure no one else has thought of it first!) If another company has thought of your idea, learn how the potential competition operates, what exactly does it produce and whom does it market the product to. Your plan to produce face masks with sports team logos might not be so unique if there are five other companies making them in a small market. Knowing your potential market, your product, the cost of making it, and how and where you are going to distribute it are all essential to success.
2. Consider daily operations.
For basic operations, you’ll need electricity, water, and heating sources. When it comes to electricity, it’s crucial to have an emergency plan just in case there’s a power outage. A power outage can sacrifice an entire day’s work or more, which can be detrimental for a new business.
When seeking power solutions, you need reliability. Southern States is a high voltage power switching company that produces mobile power stations designed to meet the specifications of particular businesses. Their mobile transformers are available up to 230kV / 65 MVA and can be supplied with any preferred manufacturer’s transformer, circuit breakers, disconnect switches, protection schemes, or other switchgear per customer specifications.
Having an auxiliary power supply and mobile substation will also give you peace of mind in knowing your production process will never stop running.
2. Choose the perfect location.
Where do you plan to operate? Laws governing your facility and its size are going to differ from place to place. Access to the raw materials needed to make your product is also an issue to consider when thinking of location in North America.
In deciding where to locate your facility, remember it is not just about you and the companies you will contract for your manufacturing business. Your employees will expect to maintain a certain standard of living and quality of life. Wage standards differ greatly from country to country and from region to region within a country. Taxes are also something to consider for both employees and the business as a whole.
You also must think about what kind of worker you are trying to attract and how automated your manufacturing process will be. If you are in the United States, you might end up looking to Asia and countries overseas where labor costs are likely to be much cheaper. The caveat that comes with that is to consider how much training and formal education will be needed to do the job.
3. Find funding.
Of course, nothing will get produced unless you have the capital to produce it. This involves paying suppliers and basic operational costs including staff to operate manufacturing equipment and processes. You will also need to hire clerical and administrative professionals to handle the daily tasks that keep a business going.
Don’t have funds to get your business off the ground? You have several options. Conventional bank loans are one way. But, be sure to shop around for the right loan. The terms and rates can differ widely. There are numerous financing programs in the United States for public-private partnerships as detailed by manufacturing.gov.
The Small Business Administration also offers loan programs and various companies finance equipment purchases for manufacturing. Do your research to find what funding source will work best for you and your company.
Once you know what you want to produce, find the perfect location, and sort out operations, you should be on your way to opening your very own manufacturing business. Start with these basics and watch your business grow.
