What is the exact process of an engineering services offshore outsourcing assignment?

Some engineering fields are more technologically advanced and are utilizing current computer and technological capabilities. These firms are most prone to outsourcing as items can easily be sent electronically. This strongly affects the computer and electrical engineers first, and then the mechanical and chemical engineers. Civil engineers are the least prone to be affected due to the type of work and how the work is performed.

It is currently easier for large engineering firms to offshore outsource (examples of which were given previously in the section titled ‘Current situation’). Very large firms already have engineering and manufacturing sites offshore. So they outsource engineering work to their own engineers in another country. (Boeing currently has an engineering team in Russia.) Small firms are less likely to use outsourcing as it is costly to setup a counterpart in a foreign country at a small scale. After outsourcing consulting companies are setup, it will be easier for smaller companies to outsource the smaller quantities of work. Examples of such companies that offer globalization services (facilitates offshore outsourcing) is Genesys International and Continental Design & Engineering. Genesys International is an engineering consulting firm that offshore outsources. It sends abroad such services as “Detailed engineering for distributed generation, co-generation and tri-generation …Realtime Performance monitoring and Verification…Preventive Monitoring and Diagnostic MaintenanceTraining”. Its website outlines the following process for offshore outsourcing:

  • First, a US-based Customer Process Manager (CPM) will work with you to assess the specific talent, training and number of hours your project/process requires. The CPM is your prime contact.
  • Next, an India-based Project Leader/Outsourced Process Manager (OPM) is selected and brought to your site by the CPM for the project's first few days. This Project Leader/OPM will manage all activities of the team offshore.
  • After gaining an in-depth knowledge of your needs and requirements, the Project Leader/OPM will select the remote team members, chart out roles and responsibilities, and develop the specifications for the milestones and deliverables involved. A communication protocol will be established and reporting mechanism deployed so that you know exactly what has been accomplished and what needs to be accomplished at any point in time
  • Finally, your project leader will return to India to direct all activities of the team.

Source: http://www.wise-intern.org/journal/2004/WISE2004-LoriSimpsonFinalPaper.pdf , page 34

Process of Engineering Work Including Offshore Outsourcing

  • I. Idea Phase - Identification of a problem or an idea (new building, product, improvement)
  • II. Design Phase - The engineer analyzes the idea or problem. Designs solution under guiding factors listed below.
  • IIa. Design Phase - The engineer conveys the scope of the work to be done to the foreign engineer. The foreign engineer either does design work or manufacturing work.
  • III. Test Phase - The engineer applies the design to a model to test - can be done domestically or abroad at the offshore site. This applies to manufactured products.
  • IV. Manufacturing or Construction Phase— The engineer supervises the manufacturing processes domestically or abroad (for elec. and mech. engineers). Construction (mainly for civil engrs.), or improvements made to a plant or operating system, all done domestically.
  • IV. Product Completion - Engineer or manufacturer may simply hand product over to the client (i.e. electrical device), may sell the product (i.e. scientific instrument), may actually operate the product (power plant), or may teach the operation to the user (i.e. office building).

Source: http://www.wise-intern.org/journal/2004/WISE2004-LoriSimpsonFinalPaper.pdf, pg 35

An excellent offshore outsourcing case study - http://www.wise-intern.org/journal/2004/WISE2004-LoriSimpsonFinalPaper.pdf , page 36