Taiwan’s smart machinery solutions to reduce human intervention, boost safe manufacturing

The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted manufacturing industry across the world. With machinery being the cornerstone of economic development and progress, countries have realized the need for industry upgradation.

Taiwan’s Smart Machinery Industry enjoys a sterling reputation globally because of its ability to deliver outstanding products at competitive prices. With stress on quality, price and service, the industry is known for its significant precision technology and massive ICT integration.

On Tuesday, June 2, Taiwan Excellence held the ‘Taiwan Excellence Smart Machinery’ Online Press Conference with the aim to familiarize global buyers with Taiwanese Smart Machinery. Taiwan Excellence is an international campaign to promote Taiwan’s superior products. The e-conference saw eight of Taiwan’s most reputed smart machinery companies showcase their advanced smart manufacturing solutions in a bid to assist global manufacturers in managing industry upgrade and automation. The brands included iconic names like Chin Fong, FFG (Feeler), Grintimate, HIWIN, Manford, Solomon, She Hong (Hartford) and Tongtai.

The conference showcased the companies’ products and solutions including precision components, digitally-controlled machine tools, automation equipment and smart controlling systems. A new concept ‘Taiwan Excellence Smart Machinery Virtual Pavilion‘ was also launched at the conference, which displayed 60 innovative Smart Machinery products from 50 Taiwan Excellence brands. To add to the experience, buyers could also check out superb smart machinery products anytime and anywhere. At a time when most physical exhibitions are being postponed, digitalizing the Taiwan Excellence Pavilion and usage of VR technique means buyers can virtually check products without graphic restrictions.

For countries like India, the e-conference aimed to bolster the image of Taiwan’s Smart Machinery industry as a major global supplier of machine tools, equipment and key components. India is an attractive option for Taiwanese companies who have the potential to play a catalyzing role. Also, in the current situation, as industries grapple with loss of migrant labor and in some cases, spread of the Covid-19 through human to human contact, the need for solutions to counter the absence of human supervision is very high. Taiwan’s Automated Smart Machinery with zero human intervention will play a vital role in both scenarios.

According to a study published by ‘Markets and Markets’, the smart manufacturing market is expected to increase from US$214.7 billion in 2020 to US$384.8 billion in 2025, growing at a CAGR (Compound Average Growth Rate) of 12.4 percent. However, to aid this growth in these tumultuous times, the formidable expertise of Taiwanese Smart Machinery companies can go a long way by augmenting indigenous capacity and plugging gaps in manufacturing solutions globally. Besides, countries will now increasingly have to turn to smart automation to manage supply chains and production functions as the need for social distancing will make human intervention and supervision difficult.

The world caught a glimpse of the Taiwanese industry’s rapid response capabilities and flexible management when it completed the herculean task of establishing 92 mask production lines in 40 days, and boosted mask production from 1.88 million pieces a day to 17 million pieces a day. Along with demonstrating proficiency, this feat also established Taiwan as one of the best options for reviving the world’s manufacturing industry.

Chin Fong, one of the world’s top four press makers, shared how it applies smart concepts to its press machines for better performance and service life.

Grintimate demonstrated how it applies a unique hydrostatic technique in grinding solutions in order to simplify the production of automotive drive shafts.

FFG, one of the world’s top three machine tool group, and the largest machine tool maker in Taiwan, showcased its solutions for automatic production in the automotive industry for improving the efficiency and flexibility of the production line.

HIWIN, the world’s No.2 in market share in the field of linear transmission, introduced its precision components which are able to deliver higher performance for automation equipment, with high accuracy and durability.

Manford displayed a new energy-saving machining solution that will effectively reduce the use of electricity by 80 percent, lubrication oil by 90 percent, and still maintain (extremely) high performance.

Solomon demonstrated how its 3D vision technology can help automation equipment to make complex and precise pick-and-place tasks.

She-Hong, the largest machining center manufacturer in Taiwan, introduced the “Hartrol Premium” smart controller. Its friendly interface and easy operation allow operators to monitor and manage production more efficiently.

Tongtai presented an outstanding solution for smart manufacturing and share some examples to show how they help customers construct flexible production lines.

Speaking about the conference, Walter Yeh, CEO & President, TAITRA, said, “The COVID-19 pandemic has shown the importance of industry upgradation, automation, and accelerated import-related solutions. We have demonstrated how Taiwan’s award-winning companies can assist by providing innovative solutions to meet manufacturing demands in the post-pandemic era. These companies will become reliable partners in the global industry upgrade. Taiwan Excellence will continue to present the best of Taiwanese technologies to the world even during these difficult times.”

Mr. Guann-Jyh Lee, Deputy Director General, Bureau of Foreign Trade, MOEA said, “Once the COVID-19 pandemic situation slowly starts stabilizing, industries around the world will gradually resume their economic activities. They will need to deploy smart manufacturing solutions to avert similar losses in the future. Taiwan can be the best choice for this industrial upgradation and to help revitalize the manufacturing communities in the post-pandemic period.“