The Future is Custom: Why OEMs Are Shifting Production

Why In-House Manufacturing Falls Short

In-house production may appear to offer control, but it comes with significant limitations that can hinder innovation, slow speed-to-market, and dilute core business focus.

1. 1. High Capital Investment

      Maintaining your own production facilities demands substantial capital outlay—investments in machinery, real estate, utilities, and workforce infrastructure. These fixed costs lock up resources that could otherwise fuel R&D, product innovation, or strategic growth.

   2. Labor Challenges and Talent Gaps
      Hiring, training, and retaining skilled manufacturing labor is more difficult than ever. According to industry forecasts, over 2.1 million manufacturing jobs in the U.S. may go unfilled by 2030. This leads to:
      • Increased training costs and onboarding delays
      • Rising wages and competitive benefits packages
      • High employee turnover and productivity loss
   3. Limited Flexibility
      Adapting in-house systems to new product requirements or changing demand is often slow and expensive. Long lead times for redesigning production lines or implementing new technologies hinder the ability to react quickly to market shifts.
   4. Operational Risk and Liability
      In-house production places full responsibility for safety, equipment failure, intellectual property protection, and regulatory compliance on the OEM. These risks carry legal, financial, and reputational consequences that are difficult to quantify—but very real.

Advantages of Custom Manufacturing

Outsourcing to a custom manufacturing partner like Polo Custom Products allows OEMs to bypass these challenges while enhancing production flexibility, cost control, and innovation capacity.

1. Agility and Scalability: Custom manufacturers are built to flex that’s why “Custom” is in the name. Whether ramping up volume for a product launch or adjusting output for fluctuating demand, they offer capacity that can scale without delay or infrastructure investments. This helps OEMs stay responsive to dynamic market needs and avoid costly bottlenecks.
2. Cost Savings and Process Optimization: By outsourcing, OEMs can potentially avoid the capital costs of equipment and facilities while benefiting from:
   • Economies of scale in procurement and logistics
   • Lean manufacturing and value-engineering insights
   • Ongoing process improvements and cost reductions

   Experienced custom manufacturers help identify better materials, suggest design optimizations, and eliminate inefficiencies—all while reducing waste and overhead.

3. Access to Specialized Expertise and Technologies: Polo Custom Products brings advanced capabilities that would be cost-prohibitive for most OEMs to implement internally, including:
   • High-frequency RF welding for airtight, waterproof seals
   • Complex film and fabric thermoforming
   • Industrial sewing for mission-critical bags, harnesses, and covers

   This technical depth allows Polo to support highly specialized applications across medical, defense, fire & safety, government, aviation, and powersports industries—ensuring quality, durability, and performance.

4. Superior Quality Control and Compliance: Custom manufacturers invest heavily in quality management systems (QMS) and regulatory compliance. Polo, for example, offers:
   • Stringent QA testing at every stage of production
   • Proven compliance with standards like Berry Amendment and  most up to date ISO certifications
   • Long-term experience serving highly regulated industries 

   This minimizes risk for OEMs and accelerates go-to-market timelines for complex or safety-critical products.

5. Focus on Core Competencies: Outsourcing frees OEMs from the distractions of managing production details—allowing leadership teams to focus on what they do best:
   • Designing innovative products
   • Strengthening customer relationships
   • Developing go-to-market strategies
   • Driving revenue growth

   Rather than being bogged down by operational burdens and bureaucracy red tape. Teams can direct their time and energy toward value-added activities.

Leader in Custom Manufacturing

With over 75 years of experience, Polo Custom Products is a proven leader in U.S.-based custom manufacturing. Since 1947, Polo has partnered with OEMs to bring complex, high-quality products to life. Our end-to-end capabilities—ranging from concept development and engineering to final assembly and warehousing—allow OEMs to consolidate suppliers, reduce production risk, and accelerate timelines.

We specialize in serving critical industries, including:

• Medical Devices – Custom carrying cases and sewn assemblies built to precise regulatory and functional specifications.
• Fire & Safety – Durable, performance-critical components for first responders and industrial safety teams.
• Government & Defense – Fully Berry-compliant tactical gear, field kits, and medical response bags built for mission-critical applications.
• Aviation & Powersports – Rugged, specialized sewn solutions for demanding environments and fast-moving markets.

Polo’s technical depth, process controls, and long-term reliability make us a de-risked manufacturing partner capable of handling complex, high-volume OEM projects.