By 2023, CelLink Corporation had produced high-conductance flexible circuits for over one million electric vehicles — proving its flat, lightweight “flex harness” as a viable alternative to traditional wiring harnesses. Backed by over $300 million in funding from BMW iVentures, 3M, and T. Rowe Price, the company’s technology was validated at scale.
Yet as EV adoption surged, CelLink faced an inflection point. A single California facility could no longer sustain the growing order volume from major OEMs, reportedly including Tesla. The breakthrough product was ready for mass production, but CelLink needed a resilient supply chain capable of supporting a multi-plant operation — one that could match the speed and precision demanded by global automotive manufacturers.
A Leadership Hire Sparked CelLink’s Next Phase Of Scale
In September 2024, CelLink brought on Lily Li as Senior Director of Supply Chain, through executive search partner Christian & Timbers.
The company was transitioning from startup agility to industrial scale, with a 300,000 sq. ft. megafactory in Georgetown, Texas, under development since late 2022. Once fully operational, the facility would add capacity for 2.7 million EVs per year and more than 1,200 new jobs, doubling in size as demand increased.
Li’s charge was clear: globalize the supply chain, secure the material and supplier footprint for scale, and implement systems that could synchronize production between CelLink’s pilot operation in California and the large-scale factory in Texas.
Momentum Built As CelLink Turned Plan Into Execution
CelLink’s transformation unfolded over four core periods of concentrated action, each driving measurable progress toward mass-production readiness.
- September 2024: Lily Li joined as Senior Director of Supply Chain and began reorganizing supply chain teams across California and Texas, implementing a unified production planning framework.
- Q4 2024: Dual-site coordination was established, ensuring seamless material flow between the pilot lines in San Carlos, CA and the new Georgetown, TX plant. Recruitment and team expansion started to meet scaling needs.
- Q1 2025: Strategic sourcing initiatives launched, adding global supplier coverage across North America and Asia, implementing dual-sourcing for critical materials, and introducing supplier KPIs.
- Q2 2025: Deployment of an advanced ERP and supply chain planning system began, enhancing end-to-end visibility, forecast accuracy, and proactive risk detection.
- Mid–Late 2025: Multi-line production ramped in Texas; CelLink realized ~15% cost reductions in raw materials and logistics while maintaining zero supply-related stoppages.
Across these phases, CelLink matured from a single-site prototype producer to a dual-facility, high-throughput manufacturer ready to meet multi-million-unit EV demand.
Global Sourcing And Digital Infrastructure Transformed The Supply Chain
Under Li’s leadership, CelLink diversified supplier relationships across North America, East Asia, and Europe, introducing dual-sourcing for all mission-critical materials. She drove volume-based negotiations and capacity alignment with top-tier vendors, building redundancy into every high-risk category.
These measures reduced supplier dependency and stabilized material flow even during the industry-wide electronics shortage in early 2025, when CelLink successfully maintained full production capacity while competitors faced line stoppages.
By aligning both the California and Texas sites under a common ERP and planning system, CelLink gained end-to-end supply chain visibility. Automated inventory tracking and real-time analytics slashed excess stock, improving turnover rates and freeing up working capital while strengthening materials availability across every production line.
Immediate Gains Validated CelLink’s Scalable Manufacturing Model
Between September 2024 and September 2025, CelLink’s operational transformation delivered measurable financial and performance outcomes:
- Production output tripled, achieving stable, high-volume manufacturing across multiple lines in Texas
- ~15% reduction in material and logistics costs through strategic sourcing and process efficiencies
- Zero supply disruptions throughout 2025, even amidst market shortages
- Improved on-time delivery and supplier performance metrics across all major inputs
- Scalable organization spanning 1,200+ employees with unified processes and planning systems
These improvements directly enabled CelLink to meet customer delivery schedules, reduce unit cost, and reinforce its competitive leadership in EV component manufacturing.
Scaling Beyond Expectations Cemented CelLink As An Industry Leader
By late 2025, CelLink’s megafactory was operating at increasing capacity, backed by a $362 million DOE-supported expansion plan. The company emerged as one of the largest EV wiring suppliers in North America, with a resilient, data-driven supply chain underpinning its scale.
The results reflect how one targeted executive hire — a strategic Sr. Director of Supply Chain — unlocked exponential operational growth.
Made possible through Christian & Timbers’ leadership placement, this pivotal hire empowered CelLink to align people, processes, and technology to achieve record scalability. CelLink didn’t just triple output; it transformed its manufacturing foundation to reliably power millions of electric vehicles each year while cutting costs and risk simultaneously.