Competitive advantages created by a cluster collaboration network for supplier management in notebook PC production

If the fierce competition among international brand-name notebook PC firms can be considered as a war, Quanta and other Taiwanese notebook PC producers are undoubtedly the major suppliers of ammunition behind the scene. Taiwanese firms based in Taiwan and China produced about 50% of the global output of notebook PCs in 2002, 60% in 2003, 70% in 2004 and 77% in 2008. It is clear that Taiwanese notebook PC producers have outperformed other competitors in this field of notebook PC production. How can Taiwanese notebook PC producers accomplish such a success? Our case study of Quanta, the no. 1 notebook PC producers in the world, shows that Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM)/Original Design Manufacturer (ODM) strategy supported by a well-managed supplier management system is the key. Based on the competitive advantages created by a cluster collaboration network for component procurement, Quanta as well as other Taiwanese firms can concentrate on product design and assembly as its core competence. The result is a benchmarking case of production management.