Moving electronics design or manufacturing from China to Europe can start with a difficult discovery: your current supplier holds much of the knowledge needed to keep your product running.

You may have working devices but incomplete design files. Firmware may be difficult to update. Documentation may be outdated, or important technical decisions may sit with a supplier you can no longer rely on.

We help companies explore the technical side of nearshoring and reshoring: understanding an existing product, identifying gaps, and developing the electronics, embedded software, and documentation needed to move forward.

Nearshoring and reshoring: what is the difference?

Nearshoring means moving activities to a country closer to your home operations. For a European company working with suppliers in China, this could mean bringing electronics development to Estonia.

Reshoring means returning previously offshored activities to your home country. For example, a German company bringing development or production back to Germany.

Both can involve design, manufacturing, or selected parts of the product lifecycle. You can change your development partner while keeping your existing manufacturer, or prepare the technical groundwork for a future production transfer.

For either approach, an early question is whether another team has enough information to understand, modify, and support your product.

Missing documentation? Start with what you have

Companies do not always have a complete technical package ready to hand over. Sometimes documentation was never maintained properly. Sometimes the original developer is no longer available. In other cases, access to design files and software remains with the supplier, making it difficult to change partners.

These gaps are a reason to start a technical discussion with Krakul I Bercman Engineering.

We can review the materials available, such as devices, schematics, PCB files, component lists, firmware, and test information. Then we assess what they tell us about the product. From there, we can identify what needs updating, what can be documented from the available information, and what may require redesign or new development.

For example, having a working device without editable design files may call for a different approach from having a complete electronics design with outdated firmware. The scope depends on what is available, what you are entitled to use, and what the product needs to do next.

The first step is to understand that starting point.

Where Krakul I Bercman Engineering can help

Our role centres on product development and the technical work that supports a potential transfer. Depending on your needs, that can include:

  • Reviewing the existing product: examining its electronics, embedded software, and available documentation to identify gaps and technical constraints.
  • Updating or developing the design: adapting electronics and firmware where the existing solution cannot be maintained, modified, or handed over effectively.
  • Improving technical documentation: preparing or updating design files, component lists, build instructions, and other materials within the agreed scope.
  • Developing testing approaches: helping define how product functionality should be checked and developing relevant test software or equipment.
  • Supporting technical discussions with partners: helping explain product requirements and connecting you with relevant contacts in our network.

The appropriate outcome may be an updated documentation package, a defined redesign project, or a clearer understanding of the work needed before a manufacturer can assess the product.

The assessment may also show that keeping parts of the current arrangement makes sense. Moving development closer does not require moving every production activity at the same time.

Start with a consultation with Krakul

You may already be planning a move from China to Europe, or you may simply need greater control over your product’s development. In either case, the first useful step is to understand your technical position and available options.

Bring the information you have and the challenges you want to solve. Together, we can identify what needs investigation, where our engineering team can help, and which additional partners may be needed.

Book a consultation with us to explore the technical next steps for your nearshoring plans.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nearshoring means moving electronics design or manufacturing to a country closer to your home operations. Reshoring means bringing previously offshored activities back to your home country. For example, a German company transferring production from China to Estonia is nearshoring; transferring it back to Germany is reshoring.

Yes. Electronics design, embedded software development, and prototyping can move independently of manufacturing. You can work with a European engineering partner while retaining your existing production supplier, then assess whether transferring assembly or testing would bring additional benefits.

It depends on the product, production volume, and supply chain. European assembly may have a higher unit price, but shorter transport routes, smaller batches, and closer engineering collaboration may reduce other costs. A useful comparison includes inventory, quality, engineering changes, and the one-time cost of transferring production.

Typically, you need editable electronics design files, a bill of materials, firmware source code and build instructions, mechanical drawings, and production test specifications. You should also establish ownership and access rights for tooling, software, and design data. Missing or outdated documentation may require additional engineering before the transfer can begin.

There is no standard timeline. It depends on documentation quality, component availability, tooling, product complexity, and validation requirements. A technical assessment helps establish a realistic schedule, including pilot production and any testing needed before the new supplier can take over.

Yes and no. Products assembled in Europe may still use components, PCBs, materials, or tooling sourced from China and other Asian countries. Reducing those dependencies requires examining the supply chain beyond the assembly partner and, where practical, qualifying alternatives.

Yes. Maintaining existing production while validating a new supplier can help protect delivery continuity. A phased approach allows you to compare quality, cost, and delivery performance before transferring larger volumes. Some companies may also benefit from retaining production in both regions.

Start with a consultation with Krakul to discuss your product, current supply chain, and business goals. You do not need to have decided what to move or where. We can help clarify your options and outline the next steps.

From there, Krakul can assess your existing product and support the electronics design, embedded software, documentation, testing, and manufacturing preparation needed for a transfer. We also support supplier selection and production coordination through our manufacturing partner network. Whether you are returning activities to your home country or moving them to a nearby European location, we can help you plan and carry out the transition.