By this I mean sourced from outside of Shimanos proprietary factories? The only reason I ask is I was discussing reels last night with a buddy who is a supply chain engineer for a large US pump manufacturer, and he was curious.
Thanks
How many of Shimanos reel parts are sourced?
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lifeofRiley
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lifeofRiley
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Re: How many of Shimanos reel parts are sourced?
?Slazmo wrote:F
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Slazmo
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Re: How many of Shimanos reel parts are sourced?
F = Following. Bit cryptic but yeh... Keen to hear info.
Re: How many of Shimanos reel parts are sourced?
We use outside suppliers for certain parts. Bearings are obvious. Some of the molded internal parts are as well. Outside of this I am not going to give exact details for two reasons: I am not 100% sure which parts for all of our reels. The important parts are made by us. It's also not something that we need to divulge to the public.
Many are not aware that most of the outside factories we use in Japan are owned by ex Shimano employees. They only make parts for Shimano products. There are some companies that manufacture parts like seals that make parts for automotive and other industries as well. As a business it doesn't make sense to spend all that development money and tool up to make certain parts because of the cost of investment. For the same reason rod companies do not manufacture their own carbon or glass to build rods. Standing up a new factory is a huge investment.
Now with most of the parts we use that are specific to our reels, we work with these companies to manufacture what we need. It's not like you go to a supplier and use an off the shelf clutch cam or handle. We design the part, give the specs to the company and pay the cost for molds or whatever is associated to make that specific part. Sometimes we keep that in house due to proprietary reasons or the factories simply cannot make the parts or hold the tolerances we need. At that point we will invest in the machines or maybe buy out the company and make them our own factory.
Many are not aware that most of the outside factories we use in Japan are owned by ex Shimano employees. They only make parts for Shimano products. There are some companies that manufacture parts like seals that make parts for automotive and other industries as well. As a business it doesn't make sense to spend all that development money and tool up to make certain parts because of the cost of investment. For the same reason rod companies do not manufacture their own carbon or glass to build rods. Standing up a new factory is a huge investment.
Now with most of the parts we use that are specific to our reels, we work with these companies to manufacture what we need. It's not like you go to a supplier and use an off the shelf clutch cam or handle. We design the part, give the specs to the company and pay the cost for molds or whatever is associated to make that specific part. Sometimes we keep that in house due to proprietary reasons or the factories simply cannot make the parts or hold the tolerances we need. At that point we will invest in the machines or maybe buy out the company and make them our own factory.