Overview
Contract Manufacturers (CM) and Electronic Manufacturing Services (EMS) providers operate in high-volume, cost-sensitive environments where excess inventory management and procurement cost optimization are critical to profitability. These workflows help CM/EMS companies recover value from excess materials while driving down material costs through structured supplier engagement.- Centralize and standardize partner engagement and quoting
- Recover value from excess materials
- Manage shortage mitigation and communication
- Drive procurement cost reductions through competitive quoting
- Leverage artificial intelligence in your supply chain
These workflows are currently in beta and being reviewed by supply chain experts at the world’s top CMs & EMS.
Excess Disposition Workflow
1. Onboarding & Setup
Add Customer Partners
- Navigate to the Partners tab in the left sidebar.
- Click + Add Partner.
- Select Partner Type:
- Internal Partner – for companies already on Seminode. You’ll need to search their name or add their Public Key.
- External Partner – for companies not on Seminode. Enter their Email Domain (e.g.,
company.com) and Email Addresses (e.g.,john@company.com).
- Fill in other required fields (Company Name, Contact Person, etc.).
- Click Create Partner.
Configure Company Quoting Email
- In Settings , configure a central quoting email (e.g.,
quotes@company.com) for all customer and supplier communications. Read more at Outlook Email Integration . - All external partner quoting threads will be routed here and then stored successfully in your Inbox .
Create Excess Inventory Node
- Navigate to My Nodes in the Network Tab.
- Select Create Node.
- Provide a name, contact information, and description.
- Configure authentication (read/write) and discoverability options. When checked, read/write protection requires authorization - when unchecked the data becomes public and anyone with the node URL can read or post data.
- Click Create Node to finalize.
2. Posting Excess Inventory
Upload Supply List
Prepare and upload your excess inventory data. See Upload Tools for detailed field requirements and examples. You can also email lists directly to external partners from the platform.3. Customer Actions
A. Customers with Seminode
- Search materials, filter, export, and upload mass quote files.
- Centralized and structured quoting threads in-platform.
- Intelligent pricing analysis from network and web data.
- API usage to programmatically quote and create unique workflows.
B. Customers without Seminode
- Receive an Excel excess list via email to your shared email.
- Submit quotes on excess via email to your shared email.
4. Recieving Quotes
- All quotes from internal partners (in-platform) and external partners (via email) will appear in your Inbox .
- Use Inbox Analysis to compare quotes, filter by customer, and calculate margins.
- Respond by Accepting, Rejecting, or Quote Response directly in-platform. External partners will automatically receive email notifications based on your response actions.
4. Orders
Double accepted quotes by both parties will turn into Orders and be shown in the app at Orders . You can also click on the 3 dots to generate invoices and PO’s.Cost Reduction / PPV Workflow
1. Onboarding & Setup
Add Supplier Partners
- Navigate to the Partners tab in the left sidebar.
- Click + Add Partner.
- Select Partner Type:
- Internal Partner – for companies already on Seminode. You’ll need to search their name or add their Public Key.
- External Partner – for companies not on Seminode. Enter their Email Domain (e.g.,
company.com) and Email Addresses (e.g.,john@company.com).
- Fill in other required fields (Company Name, Contact Person, etc.).
- Click Create Partner.
Configure Company Quoting Email
- In Settings , configure a central quoting email (e.g.,
quotes@company.com) for all customer and supplier communications. Read more at Outlook Email Integration . - All external partner quoting threads will be routed here and then stored successfully in your Inbox .
Create Demand / Purchase Requisition / Shortage Node
- Navigate to My Nodes in the Network Tab.
- Select Create Node.
- Provide a name, contact information, and description.
- Configure authentication (read/write) and discoverability options. When checked, read/write protection requires authorization - when unchecked the data becomes public and anyone with the node URL can read or post data.
- Click Create Node to finalize.
2. Posting Demand
Upload Demand List / BOMs
Prepare and upload your demand data. See Upload Tools for detailed field requirements and examples. You can also email lists directly to external partners from the platform.3. Suppier Actions
A. Supplier with Seminode
- Search materials, filter, export, and upload mass quote files.
- Centralized and structured quoting threads in-platform.
- Intelligent pricing analysis from network and web data.
- API usage to programmatically quote and create unique workflows.
B. Suppliers without Seminode
- Receive an Excel list via email to your shared email.
- Submit quotes via email to your shared email.
4. Recieving Quotes
- All quotes from internal partners (in-platform) and external partners (via email) will appear in your Inbox .
- Use Inbox Analysis to compare quotes, filter by customer, and calculate margins.
- Respond by Accepting, Rejecting, or Quote Response directly in-platform. External partners will automatically receive email notifications based on your response actions.
4. Orders
Double accepted quotes by both parties will turn into Orders and be shown in the app at Orders . You can also click on the 3 dots to generate invoices and PO’s.Expected Outcomes
- Faster Excess Recovery: Standardized processes reduce time-to-sale for excess inventory.
- Measurable PPV Improvement: Structured comparison highlights genuine cost savings opportunities.
- Better Supplier Coverage: Automated notifications ensure all suppliers are engaged.
- Cross-Site Coordination: Centralized platform aligns procurement across sites.
- Audit-Ready Documentation: Full trail supports compliance and reporting.