Wafer-thin market for suppliers of graphite wafers

INDUSTRY LIFE SCIENCES

SEARCH

USE CASE

WAFERS

SUSTAINABILITY

PREMIUM GRAPHITE

COST SAVING

Wafer-thin market for suppliers of graphite wafers

A procurement manager at a multinational conglomerate corporation, which has a significant presence in the medical technology sector, was searching for suppliers of premium graphite wafers for use in MRI / MRT devices.

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The procurement manager was not having an easy time of it. For several weeks, he’d been trying to find these specialized suppliers, ideally located in Asia, but kept coming up empty handed.

His organization was hoping to leverage the region’s expertise, cost efficiency, and strong supply chain for high-quality graphite. Additionally, Asia’s manufacturing capabilities

However, it turned out that, while Asia is a major hub for manufacturing and raw materials, finding premium graphite suppliers in the region that also met medicalgrade standards, as well as his organization’s stringent customization requirements, was a challenge.

often aligned with global standards for medical technology production.

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WAFER-THIN MARKET FOR SUPPLIERS OF GRAPHITE WAFERS

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On top of that, even if these suppliers

The procurement manager was

existed, shipping delays, export

starting to realize that he really had his

restrictions, or raw material shortages

work cut out for him with this sourcing

could complicate sourcing from Asia,

project. He’d already exhausted all

particularly for a highly specialized

of his previous methods, like going

product like premium graphite wafers.

through internal supplier databases,

Because of the importance of these

doing Google searches, and asking

medical devices, he really needed

his network for recommendations. So

to be sure that these suppliers were

far, he’d gotten nowhere and he was

reliable and could deliver.

running out of time if he wanted to meet the looming internal deadline.

As if all that wasn’t enough, his company was placing an increasing

Despite his colleagues not having

focus on sustainability, so he was

any recommendations, per se, one of

looking for suppliers who could

them had mentioned a new supplier

provide ethically sourced and

scouting solution the organization

environmentally friendly premium

had recently licensed - Scoutbee

graphite. Given that mining and

Discovery.

processing graphite can have environmental impacts, the

Since he was having absolutely zero

suppliers needed to adhere to strict

success using his traditional methods,

environmental and ethical sourcing

he thought he may as well give it a go!

practices. This was making his job even trickier as, especially in Asia, environmental regulations can vary.

WAFER-THIN MARKET FOR SUPPLIERS OF GRAPHITE WAFERS

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He opened up Discovery and was

He entered his search criteria -

pleased to see that the search form

premium graphite wafers to be used

looked really user friendly. More than

in the medical sector, key terms like

that, it was specifically designed for

MRI and MRT, and the preferred

procurement’s needs so maybe it

geographic location of Asia. He also

would succeed where more generic

entered the required certifications the

search tools like Google had failed.

suppliers would need. And search!

Scoutbee Discovery informed him that it would return a list of suppliers that matched his criteria in a day or two.

The next afternoon, he received a notification that Discovery had found 24 previously unknown suppliers in Asia, the US, and Germany. 24! This was so much better than he had been hoping for! Upon closer inspection, he saw that the suppliers were ranked in order of relevance, their profiles enriched with information on revenue, employees, and certifications.

He would definitely be taking his colleague out for a slap-up lunch to thank him for recommending Scoutbee!

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WAFER-THIN MARKET FOR SUPPLIERS OF GRAPHITE WAFERS

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After meeting with his team, they decided to shortlist 11 suppliers from China, Japan, the US, and Germany. With that, they had significantly grown their supply pool, ensuring supply chain continuity, increased cost efficiency, and compliance with strict regulations regarding medical devices.

In addition, sourcing sustainable graphite materials would align with the company’s broader corporate social responsibility goals and enhance its reputation as an environmentally responsible player in the medical device industry.

This might be worth more than just one lunch…

WAFER-THIN MARKET FOR SUPPLIERS OF GRAPHITE WAFERS

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Better Data. Better Decisions. Better World.

If you’re looking for a way to save costs and increase sustainability in your supply chain, get in touch with us today to see how we can help.

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