FOSTER CITY, CA – PLM software provider Arena Solutions has issued a white paper on manufacturing outsourcing, the company said today.

Manufacturing Outsourcing: Seven Common Pitfalls to Avoid details selecting the wrong contract manufacturer; the quote-and-go approach; negotiating a weak contract, or no contract at all; poor NPI project management; inadequate change management processes and infrastructure; broken environmental compliance management, and ignoring the hidden costs of going offshore.

Written by Bijan Dastmalchi, cofounder and president of Symphony Consulting Inc., specializing in manufacturing outsourcing and supply chain management, and Richard Vermeij, senior director of product marketing at Arena Solutions, the paper is directed primarily at small-to-mid-sized OEMs. It discusses the challenges associated with outsourcing and the importance of putting in place the right strategy, processes, people and tools.

The free white paper is available for download at www.arenaplm.com/forms/media_outsourcingpitfalls_07q3.