• You have a sample of a product; or a detailed and accurate description, and/or a pictorial representation of an existing product that you would like prototyped. Usually this is done so that you can make a decision as to whether it is feasible for you to manufacture in Asia.
• You have a clearly defined modification of an existing product and need it prototyped in order to decide whether the modification makes commercial sense for you.
• You have a concept for a new product, and have developed detailed specifications and now want to prototype it, in order to determine the feasibility of proceeding further.
• You have a concept which you have developed as far as you can, but need final developmental assistance and prototyping.

The first step in developing a prototype is sourcing a suitable counterparty in Asia. Our sourcing service operates across Asia. The likelihood is that the most suitable counterparty will be found in China. This is because China combines a broad manufacturing base and widely available technical skills with very competitive costs. The key to successful prototyping lies in finding a reliable knowledgeable and helpful counterparty. While this is a general truism, in China this is particularly true for the following reasons:

• China is in the process of changing from a Government controlled economy to an open economy. There has been insufficient time to develop sophisticated commercial law. In consequence much of the protections provided in the West by commercial law and precedents are non existent. Government regulations are often vague and frequently subject to bureaucratic interpretation. Essentially your protection lies in the integrity of the counterparty with whom you are dealing.
• Intellectual property pirates are very active in China. The government has taken a number of steps to curb their activities but the problem remains serious. Certainly you do not want your prototype knocked off and manufactured by intellectual pirates. The US government has developed a methodology called the IPR tool kit to help cope with the problem. While this does provide some degree of assistance, in the final analysis your real protection lies in sourcing a knowledgeable and well connected counterparty for your prototype.
• Because in China the reliability of your counterparty is so vital, this is one area in which you would be ill advised to cut corners. No responsible sourcing service would claim that it can always find the “right” counterparty for you. What we do claim is that with our twenty years of Asian experience and our solid connections using our services greatly enhances your chance of succeeding. In light of our modest fees there is very little downside.

Our location service will provide you with information on one or more potential counterparties. It is then up to you to contact them and decide with whom you wish to deal, and indeed whether you wish to proceed at all. Once you have decided to proceed with a particular counterparty the next step is to commence negotiations. Before finalizing negotiations there is real benefit, to you, in using our negotiating services.

• We are likely to be more familiar than you with best prices in Asia, hence likely to negotiate a better price than you.
• Asian negotiating practices differ greatly from Western practices. We understand Asian practices and are therefore more likely to produce favorable outcomes.
• Contract negotiations between Westerners and an Asian counterparty can be very protracted. In the west it is common to first create a business relationship then develop a personal relationship. In China it is quite the opposite. Your Chinese counterparty will probably avoid serious negotiations until he gets to know you. We can speed this up.
• In China, business meetings and negotiations are much more formal than in the west, and there is a maze of accepted business etiquette involved. Getting us to negotiate for you can enable you to avoid creating unintended offence.