Semiconductor manufacturers and component producers often agree prices, volumes, capacity and delivery conditions directly with their customers. This also includes Integrated Device Manufacturers (IDMs), which combine semiconductor design, manufacturing and sales within their own operations.
This is where the operational work begins: inventory needs to be allocated to individual programmes, call-offs need to be implemented and components need to be provided in the right form across different locations.
As variant diversity, multiple plants, international customers and different manufacturing partners increase, so does complexity. What is clearly agreed on paper needs to work reliably in day-to-day operations – including when requirements change at short notice, demand fluctuates or additional processing and documentation are required.
Direct Customer Agreements Need Reliable Processes
When manufacturers manage customer relationships directly, they retain control of product, price, quantities and capacity. Operational execution, however, creates requirements that extend far beyond storage and shipping.
Inventory needs clear allocation. Call-offs need to reflect the agreed programme. Material may need preparation for several locations, variants or production processes. For programmable components, firmware, certificates and process data need protected processing and documentation.
The question, therefore, is not simply whether material is available. It is whether it is assigned to the right customer programme, prepared correctly and available at the agreed time.
Clear Inventory Allocation
General inventory is not enough when material is intended for several customers, projects or plants. Manufacturers need inventory management that can clearly allocate agreed quantities, buffer stock and available coverage.
Clear separation by customer, project, delivery programme or packaging unit creates transparency. It simplifies call-offs, reduces coordination effort and shows which quantities are actually available for a specific programme.
Reliable Call-Off Execution
Delivery schedules change. Demand shifts. Production sites require material at different times. Manufacturers need call-offs not only to be recorded, but reliably translated into agreed provision.
This requires defined processes for call-offs, picking, shipping, status information and possible changes. The clearer these processes are, the less manual coordination is needed by manufacturer and customer.
Preparing Components for the Next Process
Not every component can be processed immediately after storage. Depending on the customer process, labelling, taping, repacking, testing, programming or a specific packaging format may be required.
These processing steps should not be separated from storage and call-off management. When integrated into the supply programme, components are available in the form required for production or service processes.
Traceable Processing of Programmable Components
For microcontrollers and other programmable components, loading firmware is not always enough. In many applications, firmware, keys, certificates and device identities require protected processing. Manufacturers also need reliable information about which data is associated with which component, lot or process step.
Traceable processes are especially relevant when several variants, sites or manufacturing partners are involved – or when regulatory and customer-specific requirements for documentation and traceability increase.
Fewer Interfaces. Continuous Evidence.
Customer programmes often involve several steps: managing inventory, processing call-offs, preparing components, programming, delivering and documenting process data. When these steps are handled through numerous separate interfaces, coordination effort increases. It also becomes more difficult to bring material movements, responsibilities and evidence together.
The storage infrastructure plays a role as well. At btv’s logistics centre in Werl, AutoStore supports the automated picking of components. This helps integrate material movements and provision processes into the agreed supply logic in a structured way – from inventory through component services to delivery.
An integrated supply structure reduces these breaks. It connects inventory, call-offs, component services, programming and provision in one coordinated process. This creates two connected lines of evidence:
- Chain of Custody: the traceable custody of components – from goods receipt and storage through picking and processing to handover and delivery.
- Chain of Trust: the protected processing and traceable allocation of firmware, keys, certificates and device identities for programmable components.
Depending on the customer programme, this can include:
- Customer-specific inventory management and segregated material allocation
- Documented goods receipt, storage, picking, processing and handovers
- Component services such as taping, labelling, repacking, testing or packaging
- Coordinated call-offs, provision windows and delivery status
- Secure programming and traceable allocation of firmware, certificates and device identities
- Clearly defined responsibilities between manufacturer, customer, manufacturing partner and service provider
This type of structure can be particularly helpful where expectations around supplier security, traceability and documented processes are increasing. NIS2 expressly includes supply-chain security as part of cybersecurity risk management. Affected essential and important entities must implement appropriate and proportionate technical, operational and organisational measures. This includes security-related aspects of relationships with direct suppliers and service providers. The measures required depend on the specific risk assessment, the product, the partners involved and the role of the respective organisation.
Managing Inventory, Call-Offs and Handovers with Traceability
Customer-specific inventory, call-offs and material movements need to remain clearly allocated and coordinated within a customer programme. With btv TAK®, agreed operational processes are managed through a shared supply logic – from inventory management and storage through picking and call-off execution to provision at the designated delivery location.
This supports a traceable Chain of Custody. Material movements and handovers can be documented in line with agreed processes, while manufacturers retain control of product, pricing, quantities, capacity and customer relationships.
btv TAK® keeps component price and service compensation separate. btv does not operate as a traditional distributor that earns a trading margin on component value. Instead, it manages clearly agreed operational tasks under a transparent service model.
Relevant when you need to:
- Manage inventory separately by customer, project, programme or packaging unit
- Coordinate call-offs and delivery schedules across several locations, regions or manufacturing partners
- Integrate material movements and handovers into a shared, traceable supply logic
- Retain direct customer agreements while organising operational execution in a coordinated way
Documented Custody Over the Agreed Period
For long storage periods and service requirements, documented custody becomes increasingly important. Components need more than suitable storage conditions; their inventory, movements and agreed provision need to remain traceable throughout the entire period.
btv Storage combines suitable storage conditions with a documented Chain of Custody – from goods receipt through inventory management, potential care processes and picking to agreed delivery. This enables critical inventory to be held in a structured way for phase-outs, service programmes or spare-parts requirements.
Depending on requirements, this ranges from climate-controlled and ESD-safe storage to long-term storage concepts with btv LONGEVITY®.
Relevant when you need to:
- Keep components available beyond the series-production phase
- Support service and spare-parts programmes over many years
- Manage inventory in protected, segregated and traceable conditions
- Provide material at a later defined point in time or in accordance with an agreed call-off process
Integrating Processing Steps with Traceability
Taping, labelling, repacking, testing, packaging and programming change the process status of a component. For these steps to remain traceable within a customer programme, they need to be clearly defined, documented and allocated to the relevant lot, packaging unit or material structure.
btv integrates component services into the agreed supply logic. Components are not processed in isolation; they are prepared in line with inventory, call-offs and the subsequent production or service process.
This keeps processing steps within a traceable Chain of Custody – from storage through the service stage to provision or delivery.
Relevant when you need to:
- Prepare components for production requirements
- Link processing steps with inventory management, call-offs and delivery
- Manage multiple packaging formats, variants or customer-specific requirements
- Document which services a lot or unit has undergone
A Chain of Trust for Programmable Components
The Chain of Custody documents the physical movement and processing of a component. Programmable components add another layer: the protected processing and clear allocation of firmware, keys, certificates and device identities.
btv SEEL® complements the physical material and process flow with a Chain of Trust. Encrypted firmware is processed in volatile memory. With btv SEEL® INTERCONNECT, customer-owned PKI can remain with the manufacturer or customer. btv SEEL® UNLIMITED enables individual device identities and process steps to be documented cryptographically.
This makes it possible to trace which security-relevant data has been allocated to which component, lot or process step – including where multiple variants, sites or manufacturing partners are involved.
Relevant when you need to:
- Provide components with firmware, cryptographic keys, certificates or device identities
- Retain control of your own PKI
- Demonstrate programming processes and certificate allocation through documented evidence
- Establish a solid basis for traceability, Security by Design and future audit requirements
Where btv technologies Supports
btv technologies manages defined operational tasks within customer-specific supply programmes. These include:
- Customer-specific inventory management
- Call-off execution and logistics
- Storage and picking
- Component services and customer-specific preparation
- Secure programming, chain of trust and documented device identities
- Support for long-term service and spare-parts requirements
Manufacturers retain responsibility for product, specification, pricing, capacity, customer relationships and their own regulatory obligations. btv manages the agreed operational processes and helps bring material, data and evidence together through as few coordinated interfaces as possible.
From Customer Programme to Execution
1. Assess Requirements
The starting point is an assessment of customer structure, delivery locations, quantities, variants, inventory requirements, call-off logic and potential processing steps. For programmable components, this also includes firmware sources, control of keys, certificate processes and required evidence.
2. Define Roles and Processes
Manufacturers, customers, manufacturing partners and service providers need clear responsibilities. Together, the roles are defined, along with how material, information and evidence move through the process.
3. Set Up the Operational Supply Structure
Inventory management, storage, services, programming, call-offs and reporting are set up in line with the agreed model. For security-relevant programming, interfaces, approvals and documentation are aligned across the chain of trust.
4. Develop Programmes Over Time
Customer programmes change. New locations, additional variants, different call-off patterns or longer-term service requirements can be integrated into existing processes without rebuilding the underlying supply structure.
Which manufacturers is this relevant for?
These requirements are particularly relevant for:
- Semiconductor manufacturers and Integrated Device Manufacturers (IDMs)
- Manufacturers of microcontrollers, memory devices and power semiconductors
- Manufacturers of sensors, modules and electronic assemblies
- Manufacturers of passive, electromechanical and interconnect components
- Manufacturers of programmable and connected components
FAQ – direct, honest, to the point
Chain of Custody describes the documented custody of a component throughout its operational stages: from goods receipt and storage through picking and processing to handover and delivery. It makes it possible to trace which steps a component has gone through and how responsibilities are managed at the relevant handover points.
At btv, this line of evidence can connect inventory management, storage, component services, picking and agreed provision. For programmable components, the Chain of Trust complements this physical and operational perspective through protected processing of firmware, keys, certificates and device identities.
Every handover between storage, a service provider, a manufacturing partner or a programming process adds coordination and documentation effort. When inventory, component services, programming and provision are organised in a coordinated way, it becomes easier to trace material movements, process steps and responsibilities. This can strengthen the basis for a reliable chain of trust.
NIS2 explicitly identifies supply-chain security as part of cybersecurity risk management. Affected organisations must take appropriate and proportionate measures, including consideration of security-related aspects in their relationships with direct suppliers and service providers. The measures required depend on the individual risk assessment, the organisation’s role, and the relevant products, systems and partners.
btv can support with documented processes, clear handovers and secure programming. The assessment of specific NIS2 obligations and overall regulatory responsibility remain with the respective organisation.
