There are literally thousands of companies that opt to outsource part or all of their manufacturing to overseas companies, with China being the primary source of overseas manufacturing. Even so, there are some companies that engage in this practice more than others. Following are the five companies that, at present, engage in the most overseas manufacturing.

Apple

Apple’s relationship with Chinese manufacturing firm Foxconn is well known. While it is almost certain that Apple would not be able to sell its iPhones, iPads and other popular products at a reasonable price were it not for overseas manufacturing, the company has been criticized for having most of its production done overseas rather than at home. Even so, Apple notes that a shortage of skilled workers in the United States means that it could take up to nine months for the company to find experienced employees who could create Apple’s products. In China, this took only fifteen days.

Nike

Sportswear giant Nike outsources the production of all its footwear to various overseas manufacturing plants. China has a larger share of Nike manufacturing plants than other countries, but Nike does maintain quite a few manufacturing plants in Thailand, South Korea, Vietnam and India.

Cisco Systems

In 2010, just over a quarter of Cisco’s workforce consisted of overseas workers. However, in the last four years, this number has dramatically risen to 46% of the company’s workforce. China and India are currently the greatest beneficiaries of the company’s decision to move a large percentage of its operations abroad. However, how long this trend will last is uncertain, as Cisco is also pushing for a law to be passed that will allow the company to bring a large percentage of its capital back into the United States without having to pay a high tax.

Wal-Mart

Wal-Mart benefits greatly from having the vast majority of its goods manufactured in China. While the company has recently vowed to invest up to $10 million in moving some of its manufacturing work back to the United States, this is a pittance when compared to the fact that the company still works with about ten thousand different manufacturing plants in various parts of China.

IBM

The fact that IBM currently employs more workers in India than it does in the United States underscores how interested the company is in creating a global workforce. China is also a popular destination for this large company, as IBM outsources literally thousands of high paying programming jobs to China in an attempt to lower costs for the company and consumers alike.

Many companies keep their outsourcing statistics confidential to a certain degree, so it is not easy to state which companies do more overseas manufacturing than others. Even so, it is clear that the above mentioned five companies are leading the way in terms of manufacturing a great deal of their products in China and other countries. It is clear that manufacturing in China keeps costs low for companies, enabling them to earn higher profits and sell goods at a cheaper price than would have otherwise been possible.

If you seek the same success for your product that Apple, Nike, Cisco, Wal-Mart and IBM all have, you will find great potential in allowing ITI to handle your overseas manufacturing needs.