# EMS@C-LEVEL Season #1 Episode #5 with Liam Casey of PCH International

- Show: [EMS@C-LEVEL](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ems-c-level)
- Published: 2020-09-08
- Length: 48m
- Episode: 5
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ems-c-level/2020-09-08-ems-c-level-season-1-episode-5-with-liam-casey-of-pch-international

## Summary

Liam Casey, founder and CEO of PCH International, explains how the company’s asset-light, expertise-heavy model enabled a rapid pivot to sourcing and delivering vast quantities of PPE during the pandemic, including fulfilling a request from Bono for hospitals in Ireland. He details the operational challenges of navigating Chinese customs bottlenecks and negotiating air freight capacity to achieve 18-hour door-to-door delivery times. Casey also discusses the long-term industry shift toward ‘China Plus’ strategies, the collapse of pre-COVID PPE pricing due to massive new capacity, and the critical role of digital traceability and software in managing complex, distributed supply chains.

## Chapters

- [0:07](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ems-c-level/2020-09-08-ems-c-level-season-1-episode-5-with-liam-casey-of-pch-international#t=7) Introduction: Liam Casey and PCH International's Business Model
- [2:37](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ems-c-level/2020-09-08-ems-c-level-season-1-episode-5-with-liam-casey-of-pch-international#t=157) Highway One: Incubating Hardware Startups and Managing Risk
- [9:41](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ems-c-level/2020-09-08-ems-c-level-season-1-episode-5-with-liam-casey-of-pch-international#t=581) PPE Sourcing Strategy and Quality Control in China
- [14:49](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ems-c-level/2020-09-08-ems-c-level-season-1-episode-5-with-liam-casey-of-pch-international#t=889) Logistics: Air Freight Negotiations and Customs Bottlenecks
- [21:56](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ems-c-level/2020-09-08-ems-c-level-season-1-episode-5-with-liam-casey-of-pch-international#t=1316) The Future of PPE Pricing and China's Manufacturing Dominance
- [28:18](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ems-c-level/2020-09-08-ems-c-level-season-1-episode-5-with-liam-casey-of-pch-international#t=1698) Asset-Light Model vs. Traditional EMS and Capital Markets
- [32:42](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ems-c-level/2020-09-08-ems-c-level-season-1-episode-5-with-liam-casey-of-pch-international#t=1962) Digital Traceability, QR Codes, and Customer Experience
- [38:06](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ems-c-level/2020-09-08-ems-c-level-season-1-episode-5-with-liam-casey-of-pch-international#t=2286) Sustainability, Waste Reduction, and Remote Work Adaptation

## Topics

- [Manufacturing partners & offshoring](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/manufacturing-partners)
- [Logistics & fulfilment](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/logistics-and-fulfillment)
- [Sourcing & supply chain](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/sourcing-and-supply-chain)
- [Connected products & IoT](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/connected-products-and-iot)
- [Sustainability & circular products](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/sustainability-and-circularity)

## Most relevant to

companies scaling up

## Mentioned

- PCH International (company)
- Highway One (product)
- Bono (other)
- UCSF (company)
- DYD (company)
- Luxshare (company)
- Wistron (company)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [Ep. 15 | The Emergence of the Virtual Supply Chain in a COVID-19 World](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/moores-lobby/2020-12-17-ep-15-the-emergence-of-the-virtual-supply-chain-in-a-covid-19-world) (Moore's Lobby)
- [54 - George Dempsey, CEO of Dempsey International and Raptor Packaging](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/people-of-packaging/2021-03-22-54-george-dempsey-ceo-of-dempsey-international-and-raptor-packaging) (People of Packaging)
- [Contract Manufacturing: Takin’ Care of Business](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ee-times-current/2022-01-28-contract-manufacturing-takin-care-of-business) (EE Times Current)
- [How I Built Resilience: Live with John Foley](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2020-07-18-how-i-built-resilience-live-with-john-foley) (How I Built This)
- [#331: 28 Days To Save The World: Lessons Learned from a Pandemic Month of Supply Chain Issues](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/global-medical-device-podcast/2023-08-10-331-28-days-to-save-the-world-lessons-learned-from-a-pandemic-month-of-supply-ch) (Global Medical Device Podcast)

## Citing this page

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