Sourcing Custom Cable Harnesses

BACKGROUND

An automotive company urgently needed over 80,000 custom cable harnesses for a project.  Prototypes had yet to be built for approval and stringent requirements meant that standard commercial cables could not be used.  To build the cables, individual wires would need to be sourced, cut, stripped, terminals added and bundled as a cable harness.  This project needed to launch quickly as the delivery window was narrowing.

CHALLENGE

The automotive company did not have enough time to build these cables in-house or find a new supplier. MISUMI was tapped for this project because of their ability to tackle custom projects and would have to:

1. Begin production less than two months after receiving drawings and prototypes.
2. Output over 80,000 of these cable harnesses within weeks of production beginning.
3. Incorporate design changes into the cables during production.

SOLUTION

MISUMI has a wide network of custom manufacturing partners including one of that specializes in electrical harnesses for medical equipment.  Inquiring to this partner, MISUMI discovered they had the production capacity to meet the rigorous schedule while meeting the customer’s budget.  This manufacturer was able to commit to the requested volume and offered design recommendations.  These recommendations helped maintain the products quality while making it more manufacturable.

MISUMI was able to offer a solution to the customer, deliver prototypes, and commit to the schedule.  Production began immediately upon the customer’s approval.

Around the same time, the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in work-from-home orders and made it difficult to manage projects in person.  Daily meetings became necessary to overcome these difficulties and maintain the original delivery schedule.  Any new design proposals and production issues were addressed with pictures by email instead of in person.  This resulted in quick approvals for change orders and allowed the customer to properly schedule their staff for new delivery dates.

RESULTS

More than 80,000 cables were delivered to the customer as promised.  Maintaining a steady production output also helped reduce overhead and kept the project in budget.

The regular communication between all parties helped MISUMI’s customer plan their operations.  Production efficiencies resulting from manufacturing improvements helped reduce the lead times for several custom cables.  The customer had enough notification to schedule internal resources to receive, test and integrate the cables into their product.

In the end, MISUMI’s customer was able to maintain the promised lead time to their end customer.  Moreover, because of the ability to integrate design changes during production, the end user received a higher quality product than originally designed.

SUMMARY

Challenge:

• Produce and deliver more than 80,000 custom cable harnesses in a short lead time.

Solution

• MISUMI tapped its network of custom electrical manufacturers to find one that had the capacity, knowledge, and capability to deliver high-quality cables in time.

How MISUMI provided value:

• Direct access to custom manufacturing
• High-quality products
• Short delivery times
• Ability to change product design mid-production
• Skilled and focused team

Contact the MISUMI Electrical Team for any custom cable harness requests you may have at [email protected].