'manufacturer-led' originates from the combination of 'manufacturer' and 'led', where 'manufacturer' refers to a person or company that makes goods for sale, and 'led' is the past participle of 'lead', meaning to guide or direct.

'manufacturer' comes from the Latin word 'manu factus', meaning 'made by hand', and 'led' is derived from the Old English 'lædan', meaning 'to guide'.

Initially, 'manufacturer-led' referred to processes directly controlled by manufacturers, and this meaning has largely remained the same in modern usage.