EMSNOW Interview: WinSource

The severe component shortage experience has led purchasing managers to look for parts outside the traditional channel. EMSNOW caught up with Win-Source.net, a respected online marketplace for electronic components based in Asia to learn more.

EMSNOW: Tell us more about your company and the products and services you provide to the industry.

WIN SOURCE was founded in 1999, and focuses on optimizing the procurement chain of the electronics industry. With more than 3,000 brand suppliers and more than 1 million sku, we provide a one-stop online service to purchase electronic components for B2B customers worldwide through our extensive supply chain. In addition, we guarantee a 24-hour lightning delivery and a 365-day warranty. Our platform enables us to always strive to meet customer needs, achieve one-stop BOM procurement, quickly acquire outdated inventory, and continuously reduce procurement and production costs. We are rated by SOURCETODAY as one of the top international distributors in Asia in 2022 and enjoy a good reputation in the electronic supply chain at home and abroad.

EMSNOW: Win-Source has been in business for 24 years. Give us some highlights of your history. When and where was the company started and by whom?

The company was founded in 1999 in Shenzhen. We started with small retail shops but with the trend of globalization in the 1990s, our business expanded to international trade. WIN SOURCE observed the pain points in the procurement process for small and medium-sized electronic manufacturing enterprises. In order to break the information asymmetry in the procurement process of electronic components, we expanded the traditional service model going beyond the electronic components supply chain. In 2012, we established Asia’s first overseas B2B e-commerce platform, WIN SOURCE Online Store (www.win-source.net). In addition, by focusing on EMS, OEM and other customer groups in the electronics industry, we can integrate global supply chain data for customers through a one-stop online platform.

EMSNOW: How has Win-Source.net helped customers who experienced long lead times and supply chain disruptions during the past few quarters?

We conduct a supplier risk assessment and review every quarter to optimize our supply chain and maintain flexibility in procurement and distribution strategies. Based on our customer-centric business philosophy, we do not allow customers to conduct a time-consuming, risk-filled global search for electronic components, but rather link available inventory to each customer shortage immediately before they contact brokers and less reputable supply chain partners. We created our own inventory to buy the scarce  components from different regions. In this way we help address customers’ needs whether they seek to shorten the lead time or find outdated and / or obsolete electronic components, semiconductors, and other difficult to locate parts.

EMSNOW: What is your competitive advantage for global EMS companies?

We benefit the purchasing team of EMS companies by virtue of our flexible supply ability, professional stocking ability and good payment terms. EMS companies can use our professional stocking and supply chain service capabilities to further reduce inventory, obtain supply chain flexibility and reduce risk. When the supply chain is out of stock, we have a long history as a strong independent distributor in Asia, which is one of the priority choices of EMS companies. To summarize some of our advantages:

①Production and procurement costs are greatly reduced

②Ours is the most direct source in Asia, the BOM one-stop solution

③Global sourcing, avoiding shortages, and supply-chain disruptions

④Collect excess stock to help reduce inventory pressure

⑤Fast transportation speed, flexible payment cycle

 

EMSNOW: What measures do you take to prevent counterfeit components from entering into your inventory?

We are very selective about our suppliers. Only high-standard distributors that meet our incredibly high supplier standards, such as manufacturers, franchised distributors, OEM, CM, and independent and reputable distributors, can become partners in our strict supply chain. We leverage the resources of our parent company. WIN SOURCE has a set of strict testing standards, uses the most advanced testing equipment, knowledgeable field application engineers, and is committed to reviewing all component sources and products. All components are shipped to the WIN SOURCE Quality Testing Center where they are checked and verified (through our 200 x magnification, X-ray, and acetone verification tests, etc.) before being stocked and shipped to the end customer. Since our establishment in 1999 to now, we have passed a variety of high-level standard certifications, including AS9120B (aviation quality certification), ISO13485 (medical device quality certification), and ESDS20 (static protection management) quality system. We actively participate in all kinds of quality certifications, to prevent counterfeits from entering our inventory.

EMSNOW: What end market segments are you seeing the strongest growth for 2023 and beyond?

New energy vehicles, medical and health care, data communication, intelligent industrial market segments and other hot segments will see the strongest growth. The main reasons are as follows: first, a new round of energy conservation and emission reduction, the pace of new energy vehicles adoption is accelerating; second, due to the impact of COVID-19 and aging, the social demand for key digital health technology products continues to be strong; third, the digital economy is engaging an expanding range of applications; data centers will experience a period of rapid development.

EMSNOW: How will regionalization/reshoring impact your business?

This challenge reflects the change of the rules of the game of supply chain, reflects the fact that cheap labor is no longer the only factor of manufacturing, new considerations focus on the active management of the global supply chain, near the end customers. Companies see the value of production facilities distributed in multiple areas to manage risk. It is not hard to see this is the era of change, where everyone began to pay more attention to supply chain security. Regionalization / re-outsourcing is good for us. One of our main businesses is global inventory solutions. Regionalization / re-outsourcing spreads the capacity layout, enhances the resilience of the supply chain, and forces the growth of some local companies, thereby improving production capacity. For WIN Source, an independent distributor, global inventory solutions are one of the businesses we are good at, which undoubtedly helps us expand our supply sources, strengthen our stocking capacity, and provide customers with a wider range of components to reduce costs.

EMSNOW: How do you see the global electronic components supply chain changing in response to all the disruptions of the past 3 years? How will your company respond?

Over the past three years, the outbreak of COVID-19 around the world has caused supply chain disruptions, creating unprecedented challenges and a ripple effect throughout the global economy. The pandemic has curbed supply, causing unexpected fluctuations in demand. Some downstream industries have reduced production and chip purchases, while others have seen demand for semiconductors soar in order to maintain key functions during the global lockdown. Behind this dynamic is the disarray in the vast global logistics and transportation network, coupled with the shortage of raw materials, key components and middleware, exposing the broad vulnerability of the highly interdependent global value chain, which had been weakened by geopolitical friction and lean production strategies long before the 2019 outbreak. More companies are beginning to realize that it is necessary to diversify their supply chains geographically to reduce their dependence on a single location. Strong supplier partnerships enhance the EMS industry’s ability to deal with supply chain dilemmas. Companies that interact with suppliers only after shortages occur are hit hardest by the supply chain crisis. These shocks include excessive costs and product quality problems. WIN SOURCE, through our own supplier network, help partners to solve the supply crisis caused by extended delivery time, geopolitical factors, component price rise, component product elimination, and other factors.

EMSNOW: Do you have anything else to say to EMSNOW readers?

Thank you very much for providing us with a platform to communicate with people from the global EMS industry; I hope our insights can help EMSNOW readers, and we also hope to get valuable feedback from them.