Supply chain risk has been a hot topic in the manufacturing industry, now more than ever. From the pandemic in 2020 to the recent tariff changes in the U.S., manufacturing has seen more and more just how fragile global supply chains really are. And now the age-old question of domestic or overseas manufacturing has returned–and domestic manufacturing is looking more and more attractive, including when it comes to sourcing rubber molding services and molded rubber components.

The Risk of Offshore Rubber Molding and Manufacturing

Typically, overseas manufacturers are less costly than domestic suppliers, especially in terms of upfront costs, and even with the tariffs, that hasn’t changed. However, the real costs come in the long-term–shipping delays, unexpected tariff increases, quality issues, geopolitical and geoeconomical events. All of these factors and more make global supply chains prone to breaking down in an instant and without warning. And that’s just the start.

• Limited Oversight and Flexibility: One of the biggest downsides to sourcing molded rubber components from an overseas supplier is the limited amount of oversight you’ll have over the process, and in turn the little flexibility you’ll have to make design changes or scale production to meet customer demand. Visiting the facility, communicating with the manufacturer–all of these things are far more difficult and expensive when it comes to offshore molding services compared to working with a domestic supplier.
• Increased Risks to Quality: Limited oversight over your supplier is just one of the potential risks to the quality of the molded rubber components you’d receive from them. Despite increasing standardization, quality regulations can still vary between different countries, which may lead to issues with consistency and performance. Plus, due to the extended distance that comes from working with an offshore manufacturer, your products will be at much higher risk of damage during shipping than they’d be coming from a domestic supplier.
• Potential Risk to Customer Relationships: The ‘made in America’ label has always been popular for customers, but that’s not the only reason why domestic partners have more advantages to offer when it comes to customer relationships. Sourcing molded rubber components from foreign manufacturers is often fraught with time delays that you often can’t predict or account for. Shipping delays, problems with production or communication, and more–all contribute to receiving your parts later than when you need them, meaning you’ll have a much harder time getting your product to the market on time or delivering it to your customers on schedule.

Work with a U.S.-based Supplier of Molded Rubber Components

Triangle Rubber & Plastics has been manufacturing and supplying high-quality plastic parts and molded rubber components since 1950, and we’ve been doing so from right here in the U.S. If you’re looking to improve your supply chain and ensure that you’ll get quality service with every project, consider partnering with us–get in touch with a member of our team today!