Here is a case study by Dragon Sourcing on Steel Shelving Rack from the Industrial Products sector for the year 2018 covering Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, Czech Rep, Bulgaria, Slovenia, Romania, Serbia, Croatia and India. For details contact: www.dragonsourcing.com

1. Dragon Sourcing - 龙 源
Delivering sustainable sourcing value from emerging markets
Steel Shelving Rack
Case Study

2. 222222222
Agenda
1. Sourcing Project Introduction
2. Sourcing Approach
3. Conclusions

3. - Client Introduction & Project Objectives,
 Client Introduction: USA based client in the business of
business of manufacturing, assembling, designing and marketing
cabinets, shelving, files, lockers, toolboxes and plastic storage.
 Project Objectives: To identify and qualify potential suppliers by
potential suppliers by running Request for Information/Request for
Quote (RFI-RFQ) process through procurement and sourcing direct
from manufacturers in 10 countries.
 Category
• Steel Shelving Rack (Complete unit)
• Component – Beams and Post for steel shelving racks
 Geographical scope: Covering10 Countries.
• Eastern Europe: Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, Czech Rep, Bulgaria,
Slovenia, Romania, Serbia and Croatia.
• Asia: India.
 Supplier key requirement: Supplier should have all the production
the production process in house mainly the powder coating facility.
Quality management certification will be considered as advantage.
3
 Dragon Sourcing approach in 2 stages
Stage 1: Supplier Pre-Qualification
1. Demand Analysis
2. Supply Market Analysis
3. Develop RFI/RFQ
4. Administer RFI/RFQ
5. Analyse RFI/RFQ Responses
 Deliverables: Stage 1
- Supplier database
- RFI-RFQ template & analysis report
- Supplier profiles including factory and product
pictures, suppliers location, price analysis, supplier
recommendation.
 Stage 2: Audits, Selection & Contracting to be finalised
post stage 1 completion.
- Audit Report
- Samples
- Contract(s)

4. 4
# Complete unit Number of SKU’s in category Description
1 Complete unit- Product 1
• Heavy Duty 5-Shelf steel unit
• Wooden shelves
• 72' Height, 36' width, 18' depth
2 Complete unit – Product 2
• Heavy Duty 5-Shelf steel unit
• Wooden shelves
• 78' Height, 48' width, 24' depth
# Components Number of SKU’s in category Description
1
• Z BEAM
Part # 1 • 18 inch brace
2 Part # 2 • 24 inch brace
3 Part # 3 • 36 inch beam
4 Part # 4 • 48 inch beam
5 Part # 5 • 60 inch beam
6
• POST
Part # 6 • 30inch post
7 Part # 7 • 36 inch post
8 Part # 8 • 39 inch post
- 2 styles from complete unit and 8 components were selected for RFQ,
- And suppliers were asked to offer their existing boltless designs.

5. 555555555
Agenda
1. Sourcing Project Introduction
2. Sourcing Approach
3. Conclusions

6. - Following steps were covered under stage 1: Supplier Pre-Qualification
No. Step Deliverables
1.
Demand Analysis
Work with client to define and understand the Products and requirements (specs, volumes, current unit
prices, delivery destinations of delivery/consumption). Collect samples of the products in order to ensure
potential suppliers fully understand them
• Kick-Off Report
2.
Supply Market Analysis
Identify long list of potential manufacturers in countries in scope by leveraging B2B websites, DS database,
fair catalogues, Chamber of Commerce, magazines, network, references.
• Supplier Long List
3.
Telephone Pre-screening
Selection of manufacturers to be included in the RFI/RFP process by telephone pre-screening based on
agreed simple criteria (e.g. capability to make the product, can export, quality certifications, interest in
participating, etc.
• Shortlist for RFI-RFQ
process
4.
Develop RFI/RFQ document
Prepare an RFI/RFQ document, with an aligned balanced scorecard that has the objective to pre-qualify the
competitiveness and capabilities of the manufacturers, including: background, financial, client and product
experience, quality certification & processes, social responsibility, manufacturing/technology capability, R&D
capability.
• RFI-RFQ Template
• Balanced Scorecard
5.
Administer RFI/RFQ:
The RFI/RFQ is translated to the local languages as relevant, and distributed to the relevant manufacturers,
with telephone follow-up to push for maximum participation.
• Completed RFI-RFQ’s
6.
Analyze RFI/RFQ Responses:
Analysis of RFI/RFQ responses, estimation of logistics costs, and preparation of a report, which profiles &
objectively ranks the manufacturers by capability and competitiveness, including a recommendation for
those to be audited.
• RFI-RFQ Report
• Supplier Profiles
• Proposed Shortlist for
sampling and/or audit.
6

7. Complete Unit – Steel Shelving Rack,
Yearly volumes and estimated yearly spend value was over US$ 30 million collected at the
project kick off stage.
7
# Category
Number of SKU’s in
category
Description
Estimated Yearly
Volumes
Estimated
yearly spend
in US$
FOB Target
Price in US$
1
Steel
Shelving
Rack
Product 1
• 5 Shelf steel unit, wire shelves
• 78' Height, 48' width, 24' depth
units XX XX XX
2 Product 2
• 5 Shelf steel unit, wire shelves
• 78' Height, 60' width, 24' depth
units XX XX XX
3 Product 3
• Heavy Duty 5-Shelf steel unit
• Wooden shelves
• 72' Height, 36' width, 18' depth
units 500,000 XX XX
4 Product 4
• Heavy Duty 5-Shelf steel unit
• Wooden shelves
• 78' Height, 48' width, 24' depth
units 250,000 XX XX
5 Product 5
• Bulk Steel 4 Storage Rack,
• Adjustable wooden shelves
• 60' Height, 36' width, 18' depth
units XX XX XX
RFQ selected styles

8. Yearly volume are 30 million units of components,
Estimated yearly spend value was over US$ 15 million collected at the project kick off
stage.
8
# Components
Number of SKU’s in
category
Description
Estimated Yearly
Volumes in million
Estimated yearly
spend in US$ M
FOB Target
Price in US$
per unit
1
Z BEAM
Part # 1 • 18 inch brace units XX XX XX
2 Part # 2 • 24 inch brace units XX XX XX
3 Part # 3 • 36 inch beam units XX XX XX
4 Part # 4 • 48 inch beam units XX XX XX
5 Part # 5 • 60 inch beam units XX XX XX
6
POST
Part # 6 • 30inch post units XX XX XX
7 Part # 7 • 36 inch post units XX XX XX
8 Part # 8 • 39 inch post units XX XX XX

9. • Project timeline was same in all the 10 target Countries.
• Weekly progress report was sent every Friday.
Steps
Duration/week
commencing
Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 Week 5 Week 6 Week 7 Week 8 Week 9
10 - 14
Sep
17 - 21
Sep
24 - 28
Sep
1- 5
Oct
8 - 12
Oct
15 - 19
Oct
22 - 26
Oct
29 Oct -
2 Nov
5- 9
Nov
1. Demand Analysis 1
2. Supply Market Analysis
(Long list supplier database)
2
3. Pre-screening the identified suppliers 2
4. Develop RFI/RFQ template and validate
from customer.
1
5. Administer RFI/RFQ process 3
6. Analyze responses & submit RFQ
report
2
1
2
9
Not started Done
In process Delay
Project Schedule,
- Stage 1: Supplier Pre-Qualification timeframe.
- Project was completed within 8 weeks as per schedule.
Timelinereducedto8weeks

10. 10
• Full sourcing process including building long list of supplier databasewas done online on the DS e-sourcing tool GSP
- An extensive supplier data base as per target country wise was built by
leveraging multiple sources of information & from existing DS database.
Confidential

11. 11
• Full sourcing process including pre-screening the suppliers was done online on the DS e-sourcing tool GSP
- Pre-screening process was initiated after receiving client validation,
- This process was to filter the long list of suppliers prior moving them to the RFI-RFQ step

12. 12
Supplier rejection analysis was shared with client for each step,
60
31
26
26
11
12
3
1 1 1
2
Key production process not in-house
Cannot Export
Traders or Importers only,
Unable to contact/Stopped Producing/ Company shutdown
Do not have In house powder coating facility
Not interested
Cannot meet the technical requirement / quality standard
Told to contact their USA branch
Don't speak English
Duplicate supplier
Very small capacity for domestic sales only

13. 13
• Post pre-screening the suppliers,
• RFI-RFQ process was administered to filter out most capable suppliers,
Supplier Profile example

14. 14
RFI process was administered to filter out most capable suppliers
Supplier Profile example

15. 15
- Category specific technical questions were added in the RFI to understand supplier
capability and capacity.
Supplier Profile example

16. # Item# Product & box picture Description
Dimensions
(HxWxD)
Reference
Finished
material
Shelf
Capacity
Annual
Qty in
units
Ex-
work
Price in
USD/U
nit
FOB
Price in
USD/U
nit
Produc
tion
lead
time in
(Weeks
)
MOQ
Packag
ing
Units in
20'ft
container
(loading
capacity)
1
Product
1
BLK Black Steel
Heavy Duty 5-Shelf
Shelving Unit,
4000lbs Capacity
with Wooden/particle
board shelves
72' height,
36' width,
18' depth
•10 each 36 inch
beams
•10 each 18 inch
braces
•8 each 36 inch
posts
• XX
• XX
• XX
Each
shelf must
hold
363KG or
800
pounds
500,000
2
Product
2
WGB steel shelving
in silver vein,
4000lbs Capacity
with Wooden/particle
board shelves
72' height,
48' width,
24' depth
Each
shelf must
hold
363KG or
800
pounds
250,000
16
Part of the RFQ sheet,
• Cost sheet was sent to the suppliers,

17. 17
Part of the RFQ sheet,
• Cost sheet was sent to the suppliers,
#
Componen
ts - Angles
Part number
Drawing
name
Description
Steel
Thickness
Part
weight
in KGS
Annual
Deman
d in
PCS
Ex-work
Price in
USD/PC
FOB Price
in USD/PC
Producti
on lead
time in
(Weeks)
MOQ
Can you offer
required steel
thickness
PCS in 20'ft
container
(loading
capacity)
1
Component
s "Z BEAM"
styles
Part # 1 XX 18" BEAM XX XX XX
Part # 2 XX 24" BEAM XX XX XX
Part # 3 XX 36" BEAM XX XX XX
Part # 4 XX 48" BEAM XX XX XX
Part # 5 XX 60" BEAM XX XX XX
2
POSTS -
Slotted
Angles
Part # 6 XX 30" POSTS XX XX XX
Part # 7 XX 36" POSTS XX XX XX
Part # 8 XX 39" POSTS XX XX XX

18. Process Steps Hungary Poland Slovakia
Czech
Rep
Bulgaria Slovenia Romania Serbia Croatia. India Total
Supplier
Identification
• Suppliers
identified
12 33 9 19 11 11 32 23 19 65 234
Pre-
screening
Completed
• Supplier
passed pre-
screening
XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX 60
• Suppliers
failed Pre-
screening
XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX 174
RFI-RFQ
Administration
Completed
• RFI-RFQ sent XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX 60
• RFI-RFQ
received
XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX 20
• Don't intend to
respond
XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX 40
18
- Supply market analysis country wise was shared in the weekly progress and final
RFI/RFQ report,

19. 59%
57%
60%61%
Supplier1-IN
Supplier2-IN
Supplier3-PL
Supplier4-IN
Supplier5-IN
Supplier6-IN
Supplier7-IN
Supplier8-PL
Supplier9-IN
Supplier10-IN
Supplier11-IN
Supplier12-IN
Supplier13-IN
Supplier14-IN
Supplier15-IN
Supplier16-PL
Supplier17-IN
Supplier18-PL
Supplier19-PL
Supplier20-PL
RFI Scoring Chart
RFQ - Product Capability Score Production Score Quality management Score
Business information Score Certificate, documents and pictures Score Corporate Social Responsibility Score
19
Average RFI scoring: 62%
75%
72% 71% 70%
69% 68% 67% 66% 65% 64% 63% 63%
62%
55%
51%
29%
Suppliers Assessment,
- Suppliers were assessed and ranked based on their Company profile,
- Scoring and ranking of the suppliers were done on the e-sourcing tool GSP,

20. # Supplier
Countr
y
RFI
Score
%
Export
license
Main Producing
items
Process: In-house
Can offer
boltless
shelving as
per RFQ
designs
Can offer
component
s (Beam
and Post -
Angles)
Items offered from RFQ,
Certification,
Yes/No
Rivetin
g
Powder
coating
Complete
units
Component
s
Supplier
similar
boltless
range
available
1 Supplier 1 India 75 Yes
Sheet metal
components and
assemblies
Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No ISO 9001 certified only
2 Supplier 2 India 72 Yes
Steel doors, steel
windows, racks.
Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No
ISO 9001, ISO 14001 &
OHSAS 18001
3 Supplier 3 Poland 71 Yes
metal shelving's,
aluminum ladders,
safes, metal boxes,
metal furniture
Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes ISO 9001 certified only
4 Supplier 4 India 70 Yes Storage system Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No ISO 9001 certified only
5 Supplier 5 India 69 Yes All types of racks Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No ISO 9001 certified only
6 Supplier 6 India 68 Yes Steel shelving racks Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No ISO 9001 certified only
7 Supplier 7 India 67 Yes XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX
8 Supplier 8 Poland 66 Yes XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX
9 Supplier 9 India 65 Yes XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX
10 Supplier 10 India 64 Yes XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX
11 Supplier 11 India 63 Yes XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX
12 Supplier 12 India 63 Yes XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX
13 Supplier 13 India 62 Yes XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX
14 Supplier 14 India 61 Yes XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX
15 Supplier 15 India 60 Yes XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX
16 Supplier 16 Poland 59 Yes XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX
17 Supplier 17 India 57 Yes XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX
18 Supplier 18 Poland 55 Yes XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX
19 Supplier 19 Poland 51 Yes XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX
20 Supplier 20 Poland 29 Yes XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX
20
- Executive summary with key information was shared with the client,

21. 21
- Suppliers company profiles as per ranking wise were shared in the final report.
RFI Score 75%
RFI Ranking 1

22. 22
- Recommended suppliers location was shared on the map

23. Next Steps was suggested to the client
Actions Responsible Deadline Remarks
1. Collect similar samples from recommended
suppliers
DS/Client - Process to start immediately.
2. Send original samples to recommended
suppliers
Client - Process to start immediately.
3. On site audit
(Technical/ Social/ or Hybrid model)
DS and/or
Client
- To be confirmed
4. XX
DS and/or
Client
- XX
5. XX
DS and/or
Client
- XX
6. XX
DS and/or
Client
- XX
Below are the proposed next steps with responsibilities.
23

24. 242424242424242424
Agenda
1. Sourcing Project Introduction
2. Sourcing Approach
3. Conclusions

25. Conclusions
 Whole project was carried out in 8 weeks with 234 suppliers identified & 20 complete RFI-RFQ
received.
 All the recommended suppliers are certified with quality management certification.
 All the recommended suppliers had key production process in-house including powder coating
facility.
 Indian suppliers were currently not doing boltless designs however they are willing to
develop/customize as per client requirement.
 Sampling process was initiated with the recommended suppliers.
 A plan was framed to audit the recommended suppliers as a next step post sampling.
 Overall based on our report, It helped client to identify potential suppliers with some substantial
savings
** Dragon Sourcing has experienced team for performing Technical and Social Corporate Responsibility
(CSR) audit or hybrid model combing both.
1525