Smart Equipment Research and Development Centre in Foryou Industries co., Ltd
Highlights
The Huizhou-based Foryou Industries co., Ltd adopts the principle of "μ level thinking" and strives to produce products that are best of the best, with precision to the μm (micrometer) level. One micrometer equals 0.001 millimeter, which is roughly one-sixtieth of the diameter of a single hair. Foryou Industries' clientele includes some of the industry big names and world top 500 companies, such as Toyota, Volkswagen, General Motors, Ford, Continental AG and ZF Friedrichshafen AG. In 2018, the company saw a record high number of new projects, with the annual sale volume hitting 468 million yuan, which was ten times more than that in 2008.
Liu Bin, the President and General Manager of the Huizhou-based Foryou Industries co., Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Foryou Corporation, said that the company has some of the world's top automakers including Toyota, Volkswagen, and General Motors as its clients. "We are likely the manufacturer of the components used in your car," Liu told the reporter. He went on saying that they have established a branch in Frankfurt, Germany at the end of 2018, to seize market share in Germany and even in Europe actively. "Currently, we have forged strategic cooperation partnerships with top firms like Continental AG, ZF, Hella, Valeo and GKN. Our company has been enjoying good development momentum lately, with an increasing supply capacity." Liu added.
Adhering to the spirit of craftsmanship, technological and managerial innovation, firmly believing in delivering products with first-class quality in a fast speed, Foryou Industries co., Ltd has opened the door to top international customers, thus giving the brand of "Huizhou Smart Manufacturing" a competitive edge in the global high-end market. According to Liu Bin, the company has the strength and confidence to brace for the recent China-U.S. trade frictions.
In 2018 and the first quarter of this year, against the slow growth of the domestic automobile market, Foryou Industries co., Ltd still managed to reach a 20% increase in business volume, showing a promising prospect of the automobile sector.
Exploring the market
Retail volume from the European market is projected to take up half of the company's total sales
Only 10% of Foryou Industries' products are directly sold to the United States. The trade friction will only have affected 15% of the company's sales, with consideration of additional indirect impacts. In a word, the company will suffer from a limited impact from the trade friction, which will slightly bring down the firm's overall growth rate. In addition, the 25% tariff imposed by the United States is largely taken by the American customers and has limited impact on the company's overall revenue.
What were the merits of setting up a German subsidiary? Liu Bin answered with a smile: "I just arrived in Germany last month. I visited European customers with our German technical experts. I met face-to-face with them and received favorable comments from them. Moreover, the chances are high for us to secure more cooperation projects in the future." He cited two significant benefits for setting up a foreign branch. On the one hand, the company can now actively participate in the global high-end market competition. On the other hand, the European subsidiary allows them to communicate with customers directly, in the regards of technical support for new product development, participation in pre-research and development, provision of value-added services such as logistics delivery and localized fast response, thus significantly enhancing their competitive capability in the European market.
Foryou Industries has increased its global competitiveness through cooperation with German clients. "We used to supply products for the Asia-Pacific branches of the German enterprises. But now, we are dealing business with their German headquarters, as they will bluntly point out the imperfections of the domestic products." Liu said. Now the performance of all our products are being praised by customers, and some of our products are more competitive in quality, price, and delivery capability than other suppliers in Europe. As a result, we are able to become the strategic partners of many well-known German companies such as Continental AG, ZF and Hella.
"Under the current situation, we have adjusted the sales ratio of the North American market to less than 15%, and vigorously explored the European market, increasing the proportion of sales in Europe to around 50%. In the future, we hope to export our products to more than ten countries in Europe. We are optimistic about the company's current development trajectory." Liu Bin said with confidence.
Transformation and Upgrading
The NEV precision parts factory will be put into service next month
In the Foryou Industrial Park, a new factory building has been completed. Liu Bin said that was the newly built new energy vehicle precision parts plant. The customer orders have been confirmed and the key equipment is being adjusted. It is expected to be put into production in July this year."
New energy vehicles are the future trend of the automobile industry. Liu Bin has high hopes for the market of the new energy automobile parts and components. "The company's future direction is in new energy. We have established cooperation with well-known foreign companies, in the fields such as precision components of the new energy electric system (battery, machinery, electric control)."
"New energy products have a bright prospect. For example, this product, which is supplied to German customers, has been officially mass-produced in June, and orders are increasing every month." In the exhibition hall, Liu Bin pointed at one of the new energy automobile parts.
Focusing on NEV precision parts has been the fourth time the company has undergone industrial transformations. Upon its inception in 2008, the company initially manufactured laser heads and zinc alloy products. At present, Foryou Industries co., Ltd. produces a slew of intricate automobile parts and precision electronic components. The company's exhibition hall displays a variety of sophisticated parts and components, with some being the company's unique and flagship products.
For instance, the precision parts of a car include the chassis system, steering system and brake control. Foryou Industries is able to manufacture basically any parts related to precision die-casting. Foryou's products are being used on passenger vehicles by brands like Camry, Levin, Volkswagen and BMW. Domestic automakers such as Shaanxi Automobile Group, China National Heavy Duty Truck Group and Foton Motor Group have also applied Foryou's products on their commercial vehicles.
Craftsmanship Spirit
Completing the "Mission Impossible" deemed by European Experts
"As the global supplier of Wabco, Foryou has gone full throttle, playing a pivotal role in assisting Wabco to create more value, while ensuring the highest quality of products and fast delivery. Our customers are delighted with their products. "
That is an excerpt from Wabco's Thank-you letter to Foryou, as the company has helped Wabco solve some development bottleneck problems such as the R&D of micro-valve and its mass production, thus ensuring their global supply.
Foryou Industries co., Ltd also successfully developed Wabco's core product, the C-APU (Highly Integrated Commercial Vehicle Chassis Control System Air Handling Unit), which was previously regarded as an impossible mission by some European experts.
"Many enterprises that came before us have failed to develop such a product, with some European experts claiming the task was impossible to complete. However, we have adopted the most advanced precision die-casting technology in the industry, and we have successfully developed the product, which has been well-accepted by customers." Liu Bin said proudly.
Foryou's commitment to craftsmanship spirit has allowed the company to pursue technological innovation, break the monopoly of foreign technology and compete with the industry's leading firms. Foryou's technology of making precision mold has been created by the company's long-time devotion to craftsmanship.
"In the era of intelligent manufacturing, craftsmanship is ever more precious." Liu Bin said, " You can't buy the best equipment with money and call it a day. You can't expect people to make the best of the best product without being accurate, detail-oriented and dedicated."
In cooperation with Shanghai Jiaotong University, the company has developed the first zinc alloy in China, using the principle of the siphon and automatic conveyor line. The company has invested heavily to introduce the world's most advanced industrial CT and other sophisticated manufacturing and testing equipment to help lower the internal defect rate in high precision die-casting. The company has also self-developed its production robots, with eight currently in trial runs, and another 100 units to be put into use this year.
"To enter the global high-end market, we must increase capital input. We will continue to intensify investment in high-precision equipment to ensure future development." Liu Bin said. In recent years, Foryou Industries has incorporated craftsmanship spirit and technological innovation, kept up with the latest trends of smart manufacturing and industrial 4.0 and invested 7%~10% of the company's revenue into research and development for many years.
Apart from technological innovation, Foryou Industries has boldly carried out management innovation. In 2014, Foryou Industries began to adopt the Amoeba business model. Through innovative business model and accounting methods, the company was able delegate power to its employees and inspired employee morale, setting Foryou Industries on the course to success.
Dialogue with Entrepreneurs
Boosting the real economy by sticking to the manufacturing sector
Reporter: What is Foryou's consideration for setting up a German subsidiary?
Liu Bin: We want to develop the German and European markets. However, we can't do that without localized service. For new product development, we need to get involved in the early R&D stage.
Frankfurt and China have a time difference of about 6 hours. We can make full use of the time difference. For some time-sensitive projects, domestic and German colleagues can carry out R&D and design work seamlessly, significantly improving the company R&D and delivery capacity.
Reporter: What do you think of the business environment in Huizhou?
Liu Bin: Huizhou has a good business environment, which is suitable for the long-term development of enterprises. The city aims to develop the real economy through the manufacturing sector. Relevant departments have attached importance to talent development and support enterprise innovation while providing many attentive services to enterprises.
I came to Huizhou in 1993, since then I have been staying in the city with Foryou Corporation. Since its establishment, Foryou Corporation has always abided by the philosophy of "serving the country with industrial development and seeking breakthroughs in modern technology." The company has stayed true to its root as a manufacturer and has been vigorously pushing forward the real economy.
Compared with first-tier cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen, Huizhou needs to step up efforts to attract high-end talents. In recent years, Foryou has also intensified its recruitment of overseas Chinese returnees. The company has also recruited a group of technical experts from Japan and Germany.
Reporter: This year, Huizhou has released a basket of measures, including the Huizhou New Ten Measures and the Ten Measures to Further Private Economy. Is Foryou Industries able to enjoy the benefits of these policies?
Liu Bin: The sustainable and rapid development of Foryou Industries has benefited from the strong support of Huizhou governments at all levels. We have enjoyed the government's favorable policies on supporting the real and private economy such as tax reduction.
Foryou Industries co., Ltd. invests enormous sums of money annually for technological upgrading to better integrate into smart manufacturing and industrial 4.0. It is difficult for an enterprise to fulfill such an ambitious goal on itself. Thanks to the support of relevant government departments such as the Huizhou Development and Reform Commission, Huizhou Industry and Information Technology Bureau and the Huizhou Technology Bureau, our company is able to overcome obstacles and keep up with the pace of global competition.
Reporter: The automobile electronics industry is a brand of Huizhou. As an industry insider, how do you think the automobile electronics industry can further develop?
Liu Bin: The latest technological applications such as driverless vehicles, digitalization, safety and energy-saving largely depend on the development of automobile electronics. Therefore, automotive electronics is the trend and direction for the industrial transformation and upgrading in the future, and the industry still has much-untapped potentials.
In the field of automotive electronics, Huizhou is at the forefront of the country. However, there are still gaps between domestic and foreign manufacturers in terms of core technologies and key components, such as millimeter wave radar and laser radar. Huizhou-based auto electronics companies should continue to increase R&D and investment in core technologies and actively participate in global competition. I believe Huizhou's auto electronics industry will have a bright future.
Reporter's Notes
Polishing the "Huizhou Smart Manufacturing" brand with craftsmanship spirit
The high-precision auto parts produced by Foryou Industries have pushed the brand of "Huizhou Smart Manufacturing" to a whole new level, showcasing the city's drive and confidence to join in the competition of the global high-end market.
The ever-lasting pursuit of craftsmanship has given Huizhou the belief in the international market. Because many Huizhou entrepreneurs are striving for excellence, pursuing the ultimate goal, and sticking to the manufacturing industry, and doing their best to promote the brand of "Huizhou Smart Manufacturing".
At present, Huizhou is making efforts to build a "2+1" trillion-yuan-scale industrial cluster. Now it's even more essential to adhere to the craftsmanship spirit and promote "Huizhou Smart Manufacturing". Huizhou is aiming to become a new growth point on the east coast of the Pearl River, an important city of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area in seeking high-quality development and a national first-class city.
Reported by: Xie Baoshu, Yu Xueqin
