I agree that in certain instances, it could benefit the company to outsource the design transfer. For one thing, it is more cost effective. If the vendor follows all the specifications and is trained well than effective design transfer can lower material and production costs, decrease product time to market, increase product quality, and generate customer enthusiasm. However, on the other hand as stated in the article, failure to transfer a design effectively can lead to situations in which specified parts are either unavailable or higher in cost than expected, production workflow is interrupted, and product quality suffers.

I would recommend that a smaller company conduct the design transfer in house, because a failed transfer could be devastating.