The Monthly Newsletter - June 2023

What can be found in the June 2023 Newsletter:

1. What Has Been Happening in the Industry This Month?
2. What are this Months Opportunities?
3. Supply Chain Issues
4. Employee of the Month - May 2023

What Has Been Happening in the Industry This Month?

France Invest €2.9 Billion into ST Micro/GlobalFoundries Fab - France have announced that they will be providing €2.9 billion in state aid to help support the €7.5 billion semiconductor factory which STMicroelectronics & GlobalFoundries are developing in Crolles, southeastern France.

Intel to Invest €25 Billion into Israel Facility - Chip giant Intel have agreed in principle to invest $25 billion into their wafer fab site in Kiryat Gat, Israel, in what may prove to be the largest investment ever by an international company in the country.

Intel to Spend $33 Billion on 2 Advanced Fabs in Germany - Intel are set to spend over €30 billion to develop two chip making plants in Magdeburg, Germany as part of into investment into European operations. The move was recently hailed by Chancellor Olaf Scholtz as Germany's biggest ever foreign investment.

UK Sales Roles:

Field Sales Manager - Franchised / Up to ￡50k + benefits / UK Wide

Field Sales Engineer (Power) - Franchised / Up to ￡60k + benefits / UK Wide

Field Sales Engineer (Photonics) - Franchised / Up to ￡45k + benefits / UK Wide

Interconnect Specialist - Franchised / Up to ￡50k + benefits / UK Wide

Area Sales Manager - OEM / Up to ￡44k + benefits / South West

Business Development Manager - EMS/ Up to ￡55k + benefits / West Midlands

Business Development Manager - CEM / Up to ￡50k + benefits / North UK

Business Development Manager - OEM / Up to ￡60k + benefits / EMEA

Business Development Manager - Franchised / Up to ￡50k + benefits / North

Technical Sales Manager - Franchised / Up to ￡45k + benefits / UK Wide

Account Representative - Franchised / Up to ￡40k + benefits / Hybrid, Buckinghamshire

UK Internal Sales Roles:

Key Account Manager - EMS / Up to ￡40k + benefits / Internal, Berkshire

Internal Account Manager - Independent / Up to ￡35k + benefits / West Essex

Internal Sales - Franchised / Up to ￡30k + benefits / Hybrid, Harrogate Area

Internal Sales Engineer - Franchised / Up to ￡34k + benefits / Internal, West Sussex

Technical Sales - CEM / Up to ￡35k / Internal, Warwickshire

UK Product Management Roles:

Head of Semis - Franchised / Up to ￡60k + benefits / Hybrid, Manchester

Head of Passives, Emech, Connectors - Franchised / Up to ￡60k + benefits / Hybrid, Manchester

Product Marketing Manager (Opto/Semis) - Franchised / Up to ￡45k / Internal, Manchester

Product Marketing Manager (Emech) - Franchised / Up to ￡45k / Internal, Manchester

UK Purchasing Roles:

Purchasing Manager - CEM / Up to ￡45k / Internal, Manchester

UK Engineering Roles:

NPI Engineer - CEM / Up to ￡40k / Internal, Warwickshire

Quality Engineer - EMS / Up to ￡34k + benefits / Internal, Berkshire

European Roles:

Regional Sales Manager (Baltics) - OEM / Up to €170k + benefits / Stockholm

Regional Sales Manager (Iberia) - OEM / Up to €80k + benefits / France

Lead Internal Sales Rep - OEM / Up to €72k + benefits / Munich

Internal Sales Rep - OEM / Up to €39k + benefits / Toulouse

US Roles:

Sales Account Manager - Independent/ Up to $80k / Remote

Please Note: Any other roles posted during February that aren't on this newsletter are now closed.

If you are interested in finding out more about these roles, simply click on the direct link to the role or you can click on the link below to view all of our active opportunities.

Supply Chain Issues within the Electronic Component Industry

Many Geopolitical events such as Brexit, growing tension between China and Russia, and China and the US alongside the pandemic have led to the supply chain issues that the industry is still facing in 2023 such as chip shortages, quality issues, cyber risks and many more. This section breaks down the most common supply chain problems into their causes and how these can be avoided or mitigated in the coming months/years.

As a result of the pandemic lead times were approximately 52 weeks for many semiconductors in comparison with 16 weeks prior to 2020 leading to reduced dependency on Chinese manufacturing becoming a priority. As we identified in the previous article, Asia-Pacific is currently dominating the manufacturing industry, generating 71.8% of the world’s overall shipments in 2021. Many companies have continued to sub-manufacture their components in China due to their cost-effectiveness and dependable quality however in recent decades, labour costs have begun to rise growing by 37.9% between 2010 and 2021 to many companies looking to build their manufacturing presence outside of China. For example, in 2022 Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing announces the launch of its second semiconductor chip plant in Arizona, raising investments in the states to US$40 billion from US$12 billion, in addition, Apple plans to move a considerable amount of its production outside of China.

Many companies can benefit from moving their production to the US and Europe as it contributes to reducing transportation costs, shorter lead times and allowing companies to respond quickly to market changes. This is shown through the recent plans to build a semiconductor plant in Europe which is supported by the European Unions Chip Act which was passed earlier this year; this plant is set to support the growth of the Automotive and IoT sectors with a large percentage of Automakers in nearby regions, such as Germany, benefitting from shorter lead times and the ability to adapt to market conditions, helping to fortify the EUs resiliency against future disruptions.

Out-of-stock situations became increasingly more common during the pandemic because of port closures and shortages alongside severe weather conditions, port congestions and production/transportation delays. This contributed towards the global semiconductor shortage in 2021 which according to Gartner, these disruptions cost the industry $121 billion in lost revenue. As highlighted above, this can be mitigated by the movement of production to the US and EU but can also be supported by the investment in digital transformation and automation to help improve operational efficiency and customer satisfaction. In addition, alternative shipment transportation can also be considered because of the rising cost of sea freight. Another factor contributing towards disruptions due to the long transit time and risk to quality. Alternatives include air freight which is faster but more expensive, and rail which offers a good balance of speed and cost but has limited availability and can be subject to border control.

Another factor affecting the efficiency of the Electronic Component supply chain is the increasing cyber security risks. Data breaches and out-of-stock situations can not only lead to a loss of revenue but can also damage a company’s reputation because of unsatisfied customers. In 2020, IBM Security and Poneman Institute published a report that found the average cost of a data breach globally was $3.86 million highlighting the severity of cyber risks. In addition, Deloitte revealed that 55% of manufacturers do not have complete visibility of their supply chain, leaving them vulnerable to cyber risks and breaches. This data alone highlights how a lack of visibility within the supply chain can lead to major disruptions with 82% of data breaches in 2020 being a result of weaknesses within the supply chain.

In addition, the current changes in the cost of living prices have also led to a higher turnover rate of employees as many are moving for better compensation and benefits. This is also causing a lack of skilled workers in the industry which could cause quality issues in the manufacturing process, especially for those reshoring their production and trying to find skilled staff with more than 70% of manufacturers reporting a shortage of skilled workers and 49% of IT managers saying that they lost an employee due to salary issues in 2022. The lack of skilled workers can also hinder a company's ability to meet customer demand resulting in production delays and missing revenue targets.

How can we manage these supply challenges?

The implementation of rigorous inspection protocols can ensure that products meet quality standards and that components are up-to-date and compliant with safety regulations. If stricter protocols are implemented the risk of quality standards dropping is safely mitigated and the need for experienced talent within the market is reduced. This can also support the reshoring of production to the US and EU by ensuring that standards are still met despite moving away from manufacturing supremacy. This can also help to reduce costs associated with product defects/recalls and increase customer satisfaction.

Begin working with a larger supplier pool; this helps to reduce reliance on a single supplier whilst increasing access to high-quality components and materials. Inventory levels and purchasing costs can also be managed more efficiently helping to gain greater control over delivery times, quality standards and pricing negotiations.

A big one which we have consistently discussed throughout the article is moving production to less affected regions, giving access to more reliable suppliers, and reducing costs associated with shipping and material procurement whilst also potentially benefiting from tax incentives in certain regions. However, some companies may be restricted to do this as it requires a lot of research and consideration.

Improving supply chain visibility can allow better control over operations, enabling risks to be identified earlier helping companies to prevent significant damage and rectify risk and inefficiency before they have a drastic impact. This can be done using systems such as ERP, Digital Sensors, RFID, GPS tracking systems and s IOT devices. This also links with better data management which includes carefully tracking and collecting and analysing data which similarly provides an early insight into potential issues and discrepancies before they happen. ?

Simplifying your demand forecast enables companies to order the right number of resources at the right time, keeping customer service levels high and costs minimised.

Employee of the Month - May 2023

Employee of the Month for May 2023 is Marcus Jacques !!

Marcus has made a conscious effort to learn and improve his processes over the past few months and is starting to benefit from his hard work!

For more information about MR-Solutions or to speak to a member of the team, get in touch, our details are down below! ????

MR-Solutions Ltd -?+44 (0)1908 752 080

MR-Engineers -?+44 (0)1908 014 437

Michael Roberts?- Founder/Director - [email protected]

Lewis Macknight?- Commercial Director - [email protected]

Zoe Carter?- Delivery Manager - [email protected]

Marcus Jacques?- Recruitment Consultant - [email protected]

Richard Hepburn?- Recruitment Consultant - [email protected]

Jamie Bye?- Market Resourcer - [email protected]

James Neale?- Market Resourcer - [email protected]