Before you commit a dollar to manufacturing in China, know what could go wrong.
30+ years in China supply chains: 15 buying for a global brand, 10+ running the floor in Shenzhen. Both sides of the table, on your side, distilled into a free 15-minute read.
You are not careless. The system is built so these bite first-time founders.
China Landing: 10 Landmines
A field guide for Western hardware founders. The 10 ways smart products stall, blow budget, or lose their IP on the China side, and what to do instead.
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Tony Ma
Founder · Flaming Field
Both sides of the table, on your side
- 30+ years across China supply chains, including 15 buying for Newell Brands as senior sourcing director & senior program director.
- 10+ years running factory operations: product development, program management, quality & manufacturing.
- COO of Rootsense, a Shenzhen product company that develops its own hardware — real product risk, not just advisory risk.
- Flaming Field is a Hong Kong independent entity.
- No suppliers to sell you. No commissions. No factory kickbacks.
- You pay me. That is the only incentive I have.
Feasibility audits from $199
When you are serious about a China build, I deliver a written audit you can keep, forward, or act on the same day. Two ways to buy it.
Lite
US$199
Written go / no-go verdict · top-5 risk map with severity · forwardable cost & lead-time table · one round of email Q&A. Fully async.
Buy Sourcing Audit · Lite · $199Standard
US$599
Lite + landed-cost model with tariff & FX sensitivity · risk register with mitigations · stage-map timeline · 30-minute debrief call.
Buy Sourcing Audit · Standard · $599Deep
US$999
Standard + preliminary supplier shortlist (desktop-screened) · NNN-ready IP checklist · compliance gap analysis · 30/60/90 roadmap · 2-week WhatsApp Q&A.
Buy Sourcing Audit · Deep · $999The full audit fee carries as credit into the matching phase package. After payment you get a confirmation page with next steps, and Tony emails you within one business day to kick off.
Stage 0 · China Diagnostics (entry layer)
Small-commitment, decision-grade answers before you commit money.
- Sourcing Audit (landing feasibility & risk audit) — $199 · $599 · $999
- Supplier Diagnostic — Desktop $199 · On-site $599
- On-Site Factory Verification — $599 per factory · +$399 second factory same trip
Each answers one question with a written report. Fees carry as credit into the matching package.
Stage 1 · Sourcing Package $1,000 – $2,000
Qualified supplier shortlist for one product category, plus the cost intelligence to negotiate with it.
What you get
- Supplier shortlist with capability & capacity profiles
- RFQ comparison table: unit price, MOQ, lead time, Incoterms
- Audit summary report
- Weekly Intelligence Memo: copper / plastics / steel cost intelligence
Not included: prototyping & sampling; engineering or spec changes; contract negotiation.
Stage 2 · Development Package $5,000 – $10,000
End-to-end ODM program management: spec, factory selection, prototyping, and production readiness.
What you get
- Product specification book
- Factory & tooling selection
- Prototype milestone plan with sign-off checkpoints
- Weekly decision log + production schedule & launch checklist
Not included: tooling / mold costs (billed client-direct); regulatory certifications; on-site supervision beyond agreed milestones.
Stage 3 · Inspection Package $150 – $500 / batch
Pre-shipment inspection per batch + a 30-day post-shipment follow-up window.
What you get
- PSI report: quantity, quality, packaging, loading check
- Photo & video evidence
- Corrective-action tracking
- 30-day post-shipment follow-up note
Not included: full-time resident QC; laboratory testing; product recall handling.
Diagnostics carry a credit toward the matching package. Sourcing + Development + Inspection can be combined into one engagement at a bundled rate.
See what a full audit looks like
Prices are illustrative anchors; every engagement is quoted project-based.
Buy the documents I use on every China engagement
The same editable delivery documents I run real engagements on, packaged for you to run them on every order. Instant download. Yours to keep. One-time price.
The China Delivery Vault
All 21 delivery documents across the three kits — Sourcing (6), Development (10), Inspection (5) — plus the Weekly Intelligence Memo.
Sourcing Kit
6 docs: shortlist, RFQ comparison, audit summary, quote normalizer, fraud checklist, bilingual RFQ package.
$37
Development Kit
10 docs: spec book, milestone & tooling plan, decision log, production schedule, launch checklist, ECO tracker, milestone payment schedule, golden sample sign-off, mold lifecycle tracker, DFM review.
$47
Inspection Kit
5 docs: PSI report, corrective-action tracker, post-shipment follow-up, inspection failure decision tree, supplier KPI dashboard.
$27
Cost anchor: under 1% of the deposit you're about to wire. Where a document talks to the factory, it is bilingual English / Chinese.
Instant download after payment, delivered from your confirmation page. Yours to keep and edit, one-time price.
Questions, answered straight
Are you another sourcing agent trying to sell me a factory?
No. Flaming Field takes no supplier commission and binds to no factory. I am paid by you, to protect your side of the table.
Why should I trust a 15-minute read over my supplier's assurances?
Because your supplier's job is to make the sale. My job is to tell you the 10 things that bite founders after the contract is signed, when it is expensive to undo.
What is actually in the audit, and what does $199 buy?
A written go/no-go with a top-5 risk map and a cost and lead-time range you can hand to a co-founder. No live call required on Lite; the Standard and Deep tiers add a 30-minute debrief call.
Two ways to start
Grab the free field guide now, or book a 15-minute scoping call and I will tell you, straight, whether your China build is ready.