EMS–TRADE Electronics export trading
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Two technicians seen from behind at a pale bench reviewing a printed document of grey placeholder bars, one pointing at it with a pen

Service 01 · sourcing & matching

Sourcing and matching:
the factory that actually makes your product.

An experienced buyer assumes the quotation is layered. Our job is to make the layer visible before you commit.

Send us the product you need sourced What you receive
Trade markup
15–30%
Typical layering a trading company adds between you and the producer
Agent fee
3–5%
A sourcing agent's service fee on order value — a very different economics
Factory kickback
10–15%
Collected on the far side when an agent is paid by the factory
On a $20,000 order
$2–3k
Hidden cost, against a quoted 5–7% fee of $1,000–1,400

01The fear

A trading company
wearing the factory's name.

4 failure modesall invisible in the price
A single technical drawing sheet on a pale surface with a pen, folding dividers and one teal sticky tab FEAR-01

The quotation is layered

A trading company marks up 15–30%. An agent charges 3–5%. Identical-looking quotes, very different economics.

15–30% markup3–5% agent fee
A blank unmarked form on a clipboard with a pen, abstract ruled lines and empty tick boxes FEAR-02

The layer is invisible

The failure is not the layer. It is not knowing who makes the product or who holds the liability.

who makes itwho is liable
A technical drawing flat on a pale bench with digital calipers, a drafting triangle and three sample parts FEAR-03

The agent is paid by the factory

Kickbacks run 10–15% of order value; hidden markups run 10–30%. A “free” agent is never free.

10–15% kickback10–30% markup
Two technicians seen from behind at a pale bench reviewing a printed document of grey placeholder bars, one pointing at it with a pen FEAR-04

You cannot detect it from the quotation

Industry estimates put more than half of sourcing agents in that category. The exact number matters less than the fact.

estimatenot visible in price

02Mechanism · six steps

How the matching
actually works.

6 stepsprocess before price
A close view down one SMT line with pick-and-place heads and feeder reels in strict alignment STEP 01

Start from the process

A PCBA enquiry and a control-board enquiry route differently even when the drawing looks the same.

A wide production floor seen from a raised viewpoint, with three rows of identical assembly machinery and painted walkways STEP 02

The capability envelope first

Layer count, placement rate, MOQ, lead time, line count. A failed envelope cannot be rescued by price.

A single technical drawing sheet on a pale surface with a pen, folding dividers and one teal sticky tab STEP 03

The commercial screen

Who is the legal seller, where the money goes, and whether the bank payee matches the contracting entity.

Two technicians seen from behind at a pale bench reviewing a printed document of grey placeholder bars, one pointing at it with a pen STEP 04

The six-anchor identity chain

Registered entity, contracting seller, bank payee, production site, process route and shipper — all one company.

A blank unmarked form on a clipboard with a pen, abstract ruled lines and empty tick boxes STEP 05

Terms before tooling

50% mould deposit refundable after the third order, moulds kept five years, and payment at 30/70 or LC at sight.

A production panel of identical boards held in a white inspection fixture with gold pads and a teal solder mask STEP 06

The sample, then the order

A first article you keep, and a third-party laboratory test you commission directly.

03Deliverable · the sourcing report

What you receive,
in writing.

6 identity anchors7 mismatch signals
Two technicians seen from behind at a pale bench reviewing a printed document of grey placeholder bars, one pointing at it with a pen
DOC-01 The identity chain. Six anchors completed and signed, all pointing at the same operating company.
A blank unmarked form on a clipboard with a pen, abstract ruled lines and empty tick boxes
DOC-02 The mismatch screen. Seven signals screened — changed payment instructions, vague site identity, unlocatable imagery — and what each returned.
A single technical drawing sheet on a pale surface with a pen, folding dividers and one teal sticky tab
DOC-03 The original quotation set. Shown as the factory issued it, so the layer between you and the producer is priced in the open.
An engineering bench under an inspection lamp with a finished board assembly, a magnifier arm and sample connectors
DOC-04 The certificate check. Each published certificate read against the issuing body's register by scope — never the PDF that was emailed.
A technical drawing flat on a bench with a thin pen and folding dividers beside it
DOC-05 The no-kickback declaration. Signed: no commission, rebate or referral fee from any factory, with all pricing on the final quotation.
A production panel of identical boards held in a white inspection fixture with gold pads and a teal solder mask
DOC-06 The sample record. What the first article was made of, on which line, and where the retained sample sits.

04Screening · red flags

Six signals we screen for
— and you should too.

6 signalseach one written into the report
A single technical drawing sheet on a pale surface with a pen, folding dividers and one teal sticky tab FLAG-01

The original quotation is refused

Or a proforma invoice is issued in the supplier's own name rather than the producer's.

A blank unmarked form on a clipboard with a pen, abstract ruled lines and empty tick boxes FLAG-02

Vague handling charges

“Handling” or “service” lines that appear on the invoice but never on the quotation.

Parallel rows of finished server racks and power shelves staged on pallets in a pale dispatch hall FLAG-03

Storage appears late

A warehousing charge that only shows up after the goods are already made and boxed.

A wide production floor seen from a raised viewpoint, with three rows of identical assembly machinery and painted walkways FLAG-04

One supplier, every time

The same site is proposed for every enquiry, at every specification, whatever the process route.

A technical drawing flat on a bench with a thin pen and folding dividers beside it FLAG-05

The rate card is never written

A commission percentage that stays verbal is a percentage nobody can audit later.

A technical drawing flat on a pale bench with digital calipers, a drafting triangle and three sample parts FLAG-06

A fee far below 3%

Usually means the fee is being collected on the other side of the transaction.

05Inputs · what we need from you

Four things,
and we can start.

4 inputsthen a sourcing report
A single technical drawing sheet on a pale surface with a pen, folding dividers and one teal sticky tab IN-01

The product

A drawing, a sample photograph, or a competitor part with its specification.

A rack battery shelf, a supercapacitor module, a supply module, a vertical PDU and a manifold plate grouped on a pale bench IN-02

Volume and target price

First-order quantity, annual volume, and the unit price the programme has to reach.

A blank unmarked form on a clipboard with a pen, abstract ruled lines and empty tick boxes IN-03

The acceptance you will hold

The class, standard and inspection level you intend to write into the purchase order.

A wide production floor seen from a raised viewpoint, with three rows of identical assembly machinery and painted walkways IN-04

Any factory you already have

Tell us and we will say plainly whether you need sourcing at all.

06Where it fits

Sourcing is the first
of six lines.

6 services1 contract

No partner factory is named on this page. Naming one would read as an endorsement; every partner is listed on the network pages.

07Start

Send us the product you need sourced.

Name the part or attach the drawing. We will say which process route fits, and who makes it.

Recorded. An engineer will reply.

Written technical assessment, from eric@dfshk.cn.

Book a factory visit eric@dfshk.cn · +86 152 3512 7440