“Design by Digi-Key” only gets you so far - great for prototypes & low volume, and some suppliers won’t even talk to you unless you’re buying in the tens-of-thousands-per-month! Where’s the middle-ground? To get to market within budget you need access to a wide range of suppliers at various tiers of the supply chain.  Understanding that your manufacturing quantity usually dictates where in the supply chain is optimal can help you avoid wasting time on expensive low-volume or disinterested high-volume suppliers.