Thailand: A key player in Southeast Asia’s Auto Manufacturing Industry

The automotive manufacturing sector in Thailand has emerged as a significant force in the Southeast Asian region, drawing in numerous global automotive manufacturers and solidifying its position as one of the largest automotive production hubs in the area. According to industry sources, the anticipated total vehicle production is set to reach 2.4 million units, surpassing the 2.1 million units recorded in 2023. Projections indicate a rise in domestic vehicle sales to 1.1 million units from the 0.9 million units reported in 2023, while vehicle exports are expected to climb to 1.3 million units, up from the 1.2 million units in 2023. Consequently, the production of electric vehicles is forecasted to increase to 0.3 million units, compared to 0.1 million units in 2023.

Ringier Events Southeast Asia held the first 2024 ASEAN Advanced Automotive Manufacturing Summit - EV Solutions & Automation Production in Chonburi, Thailand on June 13-14 at Hotel Nikko Amata City. This international event focused on Thailand’s fast-growing automotive manufacturing sector, which has emerged as a significant force in the Southeast Asian region.

The Summit brought together foreign and Thailand-based manufacturing professionals and expert speakers in the fields of automobile, auto parts and components manufacturing in a 2-day of information-packed discussions and business networking. The presentations and discussions covered relevant information on the latest electronics, assembly and automation solutions that will have a huge impact in the production of automobiles and motorcycles including their parts and components. It also brought into focus the latest trends in e-mobility – in particular the production of electric vehicles.

The event was supported by business partners that included Coordy Laser Equipment II, Jimmore International Corp., CP Chemie Resources and Ever Polymer Co., Ltd, Shanghai Zeli Precision Industry Co., Ltd, Han's Laser Technology Industry Group Co., Ltd, Radici Plastics (Suzhou) Co. Ltd, Restart Technology Corporation, Fair Oaks Precision Machinery (F) Co., Ltd, Jiaxing Domo Engineering Plastics Company and Eurocrane China Company.

Insightful takeaways from expert speakers

The Summit provided a platform for the global market through the invaluable and engaging presentations of the speakers. Delegates were also given the opportunity to inquire and share opinions through the question and answer sessions. On the first day of the conference, information-packed presentations provided significant inputs to increase the knowledge of delegates on the issues surrounding the fields of automobile, auto parts and components manufacturing.

Mr. Enrico Sielaff, a Board Member of the German-Thai Chamber of Commerce and the CEO of Gerenga Group, opened the discussion on opportunities and challenges with cobot implementations. He presented the wide range of manufacturing solutions that Gerenga offers to fit the needs of the clients including production automation, research and development, packaging, transport and storage, production management and training solutions. He noted how Gerenga team has helped several companies in Thailand from all different industries with tailored manufacturing solutions over the last ten years.

Mr. Oliver Wang is presently the Sales Manager of Han's Laser Technology Industry Group Company, a public company established in 1996 and has become the flagship of Chinese national laser industry and the world's famous laser equipment manufacturer. Mr. Wang talked about the application of laser technology in the automotive industry such as cutting and welding to produce body structures, chassis components, and engine parts. Lasers, he said, are also widely used in marking and engraving techniques to label, mark, and decorate automotive components, as well as to engrave vehicle surfaces for branding purposes, while other industries take advantage of lasers for surface treatment to improve the surface characteristics of automotive parts, such as paint removal and surface cleaning.

The Associate Director of Colliers, Mr. Joey Roi Bondoc, focused on the future trends and opportunities in the ASEAN automotive industry. Bondoc has taken part in a number of consultancy projects with multilateral agencies and provided research support and policy recommendations to key government officials and top executives of MNCs in the Philippines. In his speech, he tackled the latest GDP forecast and historical growth of ASEAN countries in the field of the automotive industry. His presentation showed Thailand’s 2.6% GDP growth in 2024 next to Malaysia with only 1.2%. Vietnam and the Philippines, he said, have the highest GDP earning 6.0%.

Mr. Kan Huang is the Strategic Marketing and Business Development Manager of Radici Plastics (Suzhou) Co. Ltd. He has 15 years working experience in global major chemical companies and is specialized in application and business development for engineering plastics in various markets. His speech on e-mobility new challenges highlighted how the trend of electrification brings concerns on fire safety, electronics’ reliability, light weighting, thermal management components, sustainable solution and initiative of low-carbon lifestyle. Radici Plastics, as an automotive engineering plastics supplier, is responding to those new needs in a continuously evolving global context.

Mr. Arnupab Tadpitakkul, Vice Chairman of Automotive Industry Club (AIC), Federation of Thai Industries (FTI) and the Government Affairs Director of Ford Motor Company Thailand, noted the production performance of automobiles where 67% is exported and 33% is the domestic sales. He highlighted the key drivers and market opportunities in Thailand's automotive industry, consisting of government policies and incentives, strategic location, strong supply chain, market demand, technological advancements and Industry 4.0 technologies in Thailand.

Mr. Lim Soon Keat is the Technical Manager of CP Chemie Resources, who is also a Member of Board of Engineering Malaysia and has more than 10 years in the plastic injection industry. He introduced the general characteristics, processability and applications of thermoplastic elastomer material (TPE) and explained where and how to use TPEs. He also highlighted its benefit in the automotive industry. CP Chemie Resources was established in 2010, a sister company of Ever Polymer. It supplies TPE and specializes in formulating TPE to suit different kinds of applications and is committed to provide high performance TPE, with customized engineered properties.

Application of Laser Blanking Line in Automotive Plate Processing was discussed by Mr. Jianye Wang, the Director of Coordy II Laser Equipment. He explored the concept, technical features, and significance of laser blanking in the automotive plate supply chain through practical application of multiple laser blanking lines. Coordy II is committed to providing cost-effective laser blanking lines, stamping blanking lines, longitudinal and transverse cutting, and swing shearing production lines to the sheet metal supply chain. With independently developed CNC systems, Coordy II's production lines feature excellent functionality and performance, receiving praise from numerous users.

A color expert, Mr. Yee Hang Teh, the Sales Manager of Datacolor, emphasized the effectiveness of color management throughout the automotive product lifecycle - from design to manufacturing to customer delivery. This presentation covered the best practices for color specification, measurement, and quality control in the automotive industry. Key topics include communicating color between themes, calibrating color devices, analyzing color trends, and maintaining color fidelity from prototype to production. Delegates also learned new strategies to enhance color management through optimized color practices.

Battery Gluing Applications and Paint Shops of the Future was the topic covered by Mr. Pongsiri Leeladphai from Dürr Thailand. He has over 10 years of experience in the robotics field and eight years of experience with Durr under application technology. He delved on the enhancement of paint and battery cell gluing for EV where production scalability is possible with modular process design. Mr. Leeladphai also discussed the application technology that fully automates processes with minimum material loss and the green technology for carbon neutralization for a better environment.

Dr. Roland Petrasch ended the first day session with a topic on the digital trends and challenges with a focus on manufacturing for the automotive industry. He talked about digital road maps to solve the complexity that the rise of the AI era has brought. Petrasch is the CEO and Founder of AMDISX Media and IT Services. He is a distinguished academic and industry professional in the field of Computer Science with more than 35 years of IT project experience. His interests span software quality, model-based development, and systems integration. His recent work focuses on digital transformation, AI, and smart manufacturing in the automotive industry.

The second day of the Summit continued to provide participants with relevant presentations on how to achieve an integrated supply chain in the automotive industry. Mr. Nikolay Kurnosov, the General Manager of Bosch Rexroth, talked about the circular economy for EV-batteries. He also focused on the adoption of EV batteries that come with substantial challenges from the batteries’ limited life cycle. In his speech, he elaborated how a regular battery replacement becomes imperative to uphold the performance of vehicles that are powered by them. With his team, he facilitates development of industrial automation in Thailand and introduces plenty of solutions for local as well as international customers in the region. Kursonov also shared their solutions and developments on the recycling automation systems at Bosch Rexroth.

Mr. James Le Minh Quan, Director of FPT IS, took over the topic on cutting-edge optimizations for automotive and assembly manufacturing. Mr. Quan has accumulated nearly 20 years of experience in developing technological products, establishing himself as an expert in areas such as Big Data, IoT, Traceability, and large-scale data processing systems, catering to diverse user bases. His presentation aims to unlock peak performance in automotive and assembly manufacturing by harnessing the power of MES, AI, and IoT for cutting-edge optimizations and boost efficiency to drive innovation and stay ahead in the competitive manufacturing landscape.

The last speaker was Mr. Toshiharu Sato, the Plant Manager at Sumida Corporation. He talked about the importance of AI in the automotive and EV charging sectors and gave an overview of the current EV market and charging infrastructure. He also delivered key challenges and limitations in the existing EV charging ecosystem. As a motivational speaker and consultant in the automotive industry, he also tackled how AI predicts charging demand using data such as in historical usage and weather patterns as well as the benefits in improved planning and reduced waiting time.

Factory visit: Daisen Plating Thailand Co., Ltd

The final activity of the ASEAN Advanced Automotive Manufacturing Summit was the factory visit at Daisen Plating Thailand Co., Ltd where participants were able to tour its facilities in Chonburi. The company produces plating products for automotive parts and has been engaged in plating since.

At the Daisen Plating factory, the delegates listened to the short orientation of Mr. Shin Nagae, Managing Director of Daisen Plating highlighting its processes, product range, and how these have been applied to produce high quality auto parts. Questions posed by the participants were entertained and answered by Mr. Nagae whose experience and expertise in autoparts production has enabled the delegates to discover new doors for improvement.

For more information on upcoming Ringier Events conferences in Southeast Asia, visit: www.ringierevents.com