The due-diligence questions, answered before you ask.
These are the questions a careful hardware director asks any manufacturing partner. If yours isn't here, email it — the answer comes back within one business day.
The company
Where are you located, and can we visit?
The team is based in Greater Taipei, Taiwan, one high-speed-rail stop from the Taoyuan manufacturing belt where most partner facilities sit. Yes, you can visit — audits of Essen and of the production facilities assigned to your program are welcome, and inviting them is deliberate.
Are you the manufacturer or a broker?
Straight answer: Essen manages and is accountable for production across our own team and vetted specialist facilities. We are not a broker who forwards your files and marks up the reply — we run the BOM, the inspection criteria, and the schedule, and you contract with one party: us. We also don't pretend to own every machine; each process runs at the facility that does it best.
What certifications apply?
Our production facilities in Taiwan operate under ISO 9001:2015 quality management systems. Electronic assembly is performed to IPC-A-610 Class 2 acceptability. Facility certificates are provided during vendor qualification for the specific line assigned to your project — you see the real certificate, not a badge on a website.
Working together
What volumes and MOQs do you run?
High-mix, low-to-medium volume is the sweet spot. For standalone HMI components: typically 100–250 pieces for membrane switches and overlays, 250–500 for molded keypads. Box builds are quoted per program against the BOM and build complexity — prototype-first starts are normal here, not an exception.
How do you protect our IP?
Mutual NDA before files move. Source files are split across suppliers by design: the enclosure shop never sees your circuit files, the board shop never sees the enclosure, and only final assembly sees the whole product. Firmware is loaded as a production step and remains entirely yours.
What are your payment terms and Incoterms?
USD invoicing, Net 30 on approved credit; deposit or prepay on first orders until credit is established. DDP to your dock is available and quoted as one landed number — or EXW/FOB if you prefer to run your own freight.
What lead times should we expect?
Honestly: it depends on the BOM, and we quote it rather than promise it. Component-level prototypes run days-to-weeks; box-build first articles depend on longest-lead parts. Every quote states the lead time against your actual BOM, and reorders run faster once tooling and specs are locked.
Ask the question your program actually hinges on.
Send it with your files or without them — plain-English answers, one business day.