World-class technologies for Thailand 4.0

Once again, "Manufacturing Expo" proved itself as ASEAN’s leading machinery and technology event for manufacturing and supporting industries as it delivered unique technology demonstration experiences. This mega event created an incredible buzz for 90,769 industrialists in Thailand and Southeast Asian countries who visited the exhibition. 

 

Diverse world-class technologies gathered to unveil solutions to achieve productivity with speed, efficiency and durability for the age of Industry 4.0. Knowledge was abundant as seen from visitors participating in seminar sessions and activities. Since the first day, many exhibitors already have displayed ‘Sold’ signage on their machinery to mark a successful business. These are testaments of successful business negotiations and partnerships that took place in this exhibition. Manufacturing Expo 2018, with concurrent events - Inteplas Thailand 2018, InterMold Thailand 2018, Automotive Manufacturing 2018, Assembly & Automation 2018, Surface & Coatings 2018, NEPCON Thailand 2018 and Automotive Summit – took place from June 20-23 at BITEC, Bangkok, Thailand. 

 

 

This annual mega exhibition presents the latest machinery and technologies targeting ASEAN manufacturers to boost their manufacturing capability, increase value to their products while at the same time reduce production costs. It covers a wide range of manufacturing and supporting industries including plastics, moulds and dies, automotive, automation technology, electronics, surface and coating industries from more than 500 companies representing 2,462 brands from 46 countries.

 

The exhibition featured pavilions from such countries/regions like China, Singapore, Korea, Taiwan among others. One key activity is the Robotics Cluster Pavilion, co-organised by the Office of the Industrial Economics (OIE), Ministry of Industry along with leading organisations. The objective is to drive Thailand 4.0 policy by supporting SMEs to improve their production line through industrial robots and robotic systems through knowledge, government supports, schemes and workshops that are integrated into this special zone. 

 

The world’s most advanced artificial intelligence robot, Sophia, was one of the main highlights at the Manufacturing Expo to inspire robotics industrialists in Thailand. For the first time in the world, an artificial intelligence robot welcomed visitors and works alongside human in an exhibition.  Sophia is Hanson Robotics’ most advanced robot, and has the ability to communicate with human in the unique ways as well as to display over 60 facial expressions through her smart reactions. The patented nanotech skin called “Frubber” is the key to her humanlike expressions. 

 

Another well-attended event was the Automotive Summit 2018 with topic  “Driving towards Automotive Industry 4.0” to support Thailand’s automotive manufacturers in their transformation towards Industry 4.0 through Thailand 4.0 by adapting robots and automation technology to improve their capabilities and competitive-edge on par with global standards. 

 

The next edition of Manufacturing Expo 2018 is on June 19-22, 2019.  

 

 

Highly positive feedback 

 

Many exhibitors showed support for this mega event as they noted that buyers turnout remains huge. 

 

ENGEL's presence is an indication of the company's continued confidence in the ASEAN market. At the exhibition, ENGEL focused on Thailand's booming sectors, such as medical technology, where it showed its latest production system for pipette tips. In order to combine a stable process with high efficiency, the integrated and fully automated production cell at ENGEL's exhibition booth utilised various efficiency factors. ENGEL has been expanding its capabilities in Southeast Asia to support customers in the region. It founded a sales and service hub in Thailand which plays a key role by providing sales and technical support. "Aside from Thailand, ENGEL also has sales and service subsidiaries in Singapore and Vietnam to provide much-needed support to customers in the ASEAN region. Overall, we have 43 sales and technical professionals in Southeast Asia alone," according to ENGEL President for Southeast Asia Romain Reyre.  What makes ENGEL stand out in the Southeast Asian market is its huge inventory of spare parts. "ENGEL is the only one in Southeast Asia with an 8-million Euros inventory located in Thailand. This guarantees same days shipment of parts to Southeast Asian customers as well as other Asian customers because the inventory is housed 30 minutes away from the international airport in Bangkok. This differentiates ENGEL from other suppliers of injection moulding machines in this region," Mr. Reyre stressed. 

 

Focusing on the ASEAN automotive industry, Woojin Plaimm demonstrated five machines at InterPlas Thailand of which two machines are all-electric models while three are hybrid models, according to Aiden Lim, Representative Manager Thailand Branch of Woojin Plaimm. "The Thailand market is getting bigger and this market, along with the rest of the ASEAN region, has a growing client base for Woojin Plaimm's portfolio of injection moulding machines," according to Mr. Lim.  Woojin Plaimm's production facility operates in Korea and this exports the machines to various countries including Thailand. In Thailand alone, the representative office has 12 technical professionals handling sales and providing after-sales technical support, and with demand on the rise, according to Mr. Lim, this number is also expected to expand. 

 

Headlining FARO’s showcase at Manufacturing Expo this year is the FARO® QuantumS FaroArm®, a portable CMM that offers best-in-class performance and durability, enhanced ergonomics, and extreme portability. “25% more accurate than any FaroArm® to date, the QuantumS is our toughest FaroArm® ever and adheres to the most exacting global quality standards (ISO 10360-12:2016) and International Electrical Commission (IEC 60068 -2) standards for shock, vibration, and temperature stress relief. Equipped with the FAROBlu™ Laser Line Probe HD, the QuantumS enables users to capture more, richer detail faster than any other comparable product on the market, “ according to Mr. Quah Beng Chieh, Head of Marketing (Asia Pacific) at FARO Technologies. FARO has been actively promoting its solutions across the Asia market, educating users on how its technologies can be beneficial to their business. “We first entered Thailand in 2006 and the company has seen significant growth and expansion year on year, through working closely with our customers from various industries, including automotive, machine tools, metalworking, and die & mould,” Mr. Quah added.  

 

At InterPlas Thailand, StackTeck presented its range of plastic injection mould solutions for packaging applications. From product and mould design to complete systems integration, StackTeck develops injection moulds and systems, which provide effective and efficient production solutions in the industry.  According to StackTeck Director for Business Development and Marketing Jordan Robertson: "StackTeck's main production facility is located in Brampton, Ontario, Canada. StackTeck Systems Ltd. is a global manufacturer of multi-cavity, high-volume production moulds for thinwall packaging, closures, personal care and medical products. We have an authorised sales representative based in Bangkok, Thailand and our presence at InterPlas Thailand would enable us to meet existing and new customers."  

 

Taiwan-based PLASCO has built its position as one of the leading monofilament extrusion lines manufacturers in the global market. Over three decades of operations provided PLASCO with the necessary expertise to manufacture a comprehensive range of monofilament extrusion lines, as well as offer technical solutions in the field of PP, HDPE, PA, and PET monofilament production.  PLASCO promoted its range of standard monofilament lines for application in packaging, agriculture, and fishery, including its customised lines tailored for specific requirements in industrial and medical application. PLASCO General Manager Tony Wang explained that in this Thailand exhibition, PLASCO sees tremendous market potential for its monofilament line and strapping band line. “PLASCO offers highly efficient monofilament lines that meet the specific requirements of customers in the ASEAN region. As ASEAN is a fast-growing market for all sectors, in particular, we find great potential for our innovative monofilament lines,” Mr. Wang stressed. 

 

The past few years saw PLASCO’s customers in Southeast Asia rising and this the company attributed to the dynamic industrial sector in Thailand and the rest of the Southeast Asian region. As Mr. Wang explained: “We don’t have a branch office in any of the Southeast Asian countries but we have trading agencies which handle sales and after-sales requests. But since the market in this region is quite stable, we feel it’s necessary for us to come here and visit our customers directly, as well as join trade events to develop new business contacts.”  

 

Iran-based Persian Gulf Polymer Co. (PGPC) introduced to the ASEAN market its virgin and recycled polymers. Established in 2016, the company is a professionally managed business company active in the field of oil, gas, chemical and petrochemical products. The company’s main focus on its first exposure as InterPlas Thailand 2018 exhibitor is the promotion of its virgin and recycled polymers, which can be applied in the production of various plastic products, according to Adel Adabdoost, Sales and Marketing Expert. Mr. Adabdoost further said that the company has been exporting to various countries around the world and plans to expand its presence in the ASEAN market, in particular, Thailand.  

 

3D Metal Printing, Electronic Discharge Machining (EDM), and Injection Moulding technologies from Sodick were highlighted at InterPlas Thailand. In particular, 3D metal printing is the process by which powdered metals are selectively superheated or "sintered" until they melt and resolidify into a solid, three dimensional shape. A variety of methods for 3D metal printing exist, but the two most commonly seen types are deposition and direct metal laser sintering (DMLS).  According to Pachara Prommachan of the Sales Department of Sodick (Thailand) Co., Ltd., the company's products were featured in two booths at the exhibition, thus giving them ample opportunities to promote their products in Thailand. "Sodick is a Japanese company, but we have a factory in Thailand. To date, Sodick operates factories in Asia located in China, Japan and Thailand to serve customers around the world," Mr. Prommachan explained. 

 

Since 1976, Sodick has manufactured over 55,000 EDM machines and over 30,000 linear motor driven EDMs. The machines are used for the production of dies, moulds and other various applications which cannot be produced by standard machining methods.      

 

The Golcha Group has proven resources of over 35 millions tonnes of talc, which is considered one of the purest and most lamellar deposit in the world. As a talc mining/processing and marketing group based in India, the Golcha Group has the capacity of about 350,000 tonnes of talc every year from its mines in India, according to Dr. C.P. Gupta, Vice President (R&D) of Udaipur Mineral Development Syndicate Pvt. Ltd., which is part of the Golcha Group.  As a result of this huge capacity, the company can supply talc worldwide for various applications - cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, plastics, polymer, ceramic production. To date, Golcha has three plants in India and one in Thailand. In Thailand, it started production in 2009 but all raw materials come from the company's mine in India.  

 

As Dr. Gupta explained, the talc from Golcha is free from any biminirals, asbestos and crystalline silica. With its production facility in Thailand, the company decided to participate at InterPlas Thailand to further expand its business in the country, and the rest of ASEAN.