The launch date slipped by six weeks and production was never the reason. The artwork was approved before the label text was frozen, the compliance wording changed during the sample review, and the print plates had to be cut twice. The sequence below exists to prevent that specific failure: every step has an entry condition, and the steps that sit on the critical path – the label and the print plates – are frozen early rather than last.
This guide is part of our OEM & ODM Charger Programmes. Read the full topic guide for the decisions that come before and after this step.
OEM charger factory programme: the seven steps and the checks after each
The programme runs through seven steps; each one has a deliverable and a check.
Freeze the specification, choose the platform, pass the sample gates, complete tooling and certification where the route requires them, approve the packaging proof, run the pilot, and release production. After each step there is a specific thing to confirm before the next one starts, and skipping the check is how a programme discovers a problem in the step that follows.
The reason the order matters more than the speed of any single step is that the later steps consume the earlier decisions. The label content depends on the certification scope; the packaging proof depends on the accessory decision; and the pilot validates a process that only exists after the tooling is accepted. A step started before its entry condition is met produces rework rather than progress.
Step 1: freeze the specification
State the wattage, port layout, plug strategy, cable rating, target markets, branding level and opening quantity in one document.
Check afterwards: can the factory restate the specification in its quotation without asking questions? If it cannot, the specification is not frozen, and the price that follows is an assumption. This step belongs to the brand; a factory cannot own a decision about someone else’s product.
Step 2: choose the platform
Ask which certified platform covers the specification and which changes stay inside its tested envelope.
Check afterwards: is the certification status of the platform stated in writing, with the markets it covers? A platform programme avoids tooling and a test submission; a new enclosure carries both, with a higher minimum and a longer calendar. The answer to this step determines the shape of everything that follows.
Step 3: pass the sample gates
Engineering sample, branded sample, packaging proof and golden sample.
Check afterwards: does each gate have a signed record and a retained physical reference? Approve colour and finish on a physical object, and record the artwork revision with the approval. For a platform programme, the engineering gate is often closed from existing records, leaving the branded and packaging gates as the substantive checks.
Step 4: tooling and certification
Where a new enclosure is involved, freeze the mechanical design before the tool is cut, and start certification in parallel once a representative build exists.
Check afterwards: is the label text frozen before the print plates are produced? This is the check that the opening example failed, and it is the cheapest one to perform. Where the programme uses a certified platform, this step reduces to a documentation update and a marking check.
Step 5: the packaging proof
Approve an assembled box rather than a flat artwork.
Check afterwards: do the insert, the print, the language versions and the accessories interact correctly, and are the carton dimensions recorded? The carton dimensions decide the pallet pattern and the units per container, and that figure belongs in the landed-cost calculation rather than in a separate conversation.
Step 6: the pilot
The pilot validates the process at production rate.
Check afterwards: does the report state the quantity, the yield, the defect categories and the corrective actions? A pilot that reports only that the units work has not tested the process. Where a supplier cannot produce a pilot report, the first container becomes the pilot and the defects arrive with the product.
Step 7: release production
Commit the production schedule only after the golden sample is approved and the pilot has passed.
Check afterwards: is the purchase order linked to the platform, the approved sample and the artwork revision? That linkage is what makes a repeat order a repeat rather than a renegotiation, and it is also the basis for a claim if the shipment differs from what was approved.
| Step | Deliverable | Check before moving on |
|---|---|---|
| 1 Specification | Frozen specification | Factory can restate it in the quotation |
| 2 Platform | Platform and certification statement | Markets and reports stated in writing |
| 3 Samples | Approved branded and golden samples | Signed records and retained references |
| 4 Tooling and certification | Accepted tool and reports | Label text frozen before print plates |
| 5 Packaging | Assembled proof | Insert, print, languages, carton dimensions |
| 6 Pilot | Process validation | Yield and defect categories reported |
| 7 Release | Production schedule | Order linked to sample and artwork revision |
Who owns which step
The brand owns the specification, the market list, the artwork approval and the launch date.
The factory owns the platform recommendation, the worst-case build for testing, the test submission and the process validation. Where ownership is shared without a tie-breaker, the programme waits. A single project owner on the factory side, from quotation through reorders, removes most of the daily friction and gives the brand one person to hold accountable.
FAQ
How long does an OEM charger programme take?
A platform programme is driven by artwork approval and the production slot; a new enclosure adds tooling loops and a certification review. Plan backwards from the shipment date with a buffer. A platform programme is driven by artwork approval and the production slot, while a new enclosure adds tooling loops and a certification review, so plan backwards from the shipment date with a buffer.
Which step causes the most delays?
The label and print stage, because it sits immediately before printing where the float is smallest. Freezing the label text early prevents most of these delays. The label and print stage causes most of the delays, because it sits immediately before printing where the float is smallest, and freezing the label text early prevents most of them rather than some of them. Freezing the label text early is the cheapest control available.
Can steps run in parallel?
Certification and packaging artwork can run in parallel once the label content is settled. Tooling cannot start before the mechanical design is frozen. Certification and packaging artwork can run in parallel once the label content is settled, while tooling cannot start before the mechanical design is frozen, which is why the two sequences are planned separately. Ask which of the two sequences the programme is waiting on.
What should the purchase order reference?
The platform or design revision, the approved sample and the artwork revision, together with the certification scope, MOQ, lead time and Incoterm. The platform or design revision, the approved sample and the artwork revision, together with the certification scope, the MOQ, the lead time and the Incoterm, are what the order references so that a repeat is a repeat rather than a new project.
Next step
Send the specification and the required shipment date to Wecent Group through the contact page. The reply provides a staged plan with the platform, the MOQ, the certification scope and the milestone owners. Related reading: our charger factory, OEM/ODM manufacturing and quality control. External references: USB-IF documentation, IEC standards, EU CE marking, FCC equipment authorisation, ISO 9001 and ICC Incoterms.