World-beating manufacturing systems ZAHORANSKY

marketing and logistics. Its manufacturing is split between Xiamen and Quanzhou, two sites 100 kms apart. At Xiamen, 200 people are employed in the factory, 15 in research and development, and others in finance, admin, QA and logistics. At Quanzhou, the focus is on production only, and 120 people work there.

Made to order

The company supplies speakers and components for Bluetooth headsets, office telephony and portable devices, while its hearing aid components go to hearing aid manufacturers and are used in audiometers, machines to evaluate hearing loss.

Mr Ip estimates that 95 per cent of Woodtai’s products are custom-made. “Our customers give us their requirements, including thickness, diameter and electro-acoustic requirements, during the early development stage of a product and we will provide a prototype for them,” he says. “But sometimes we also initiate and develop our own products, building samples and sharing them with our customers. For example, we have just developed a new 6mm driver used in music headphones with linear frequency response and ultra low distortion – this is now in volume production. And we have developed a 10mm loudspeaker used in a digital camera.”

Woodtai also sometimes works with contract manufacturers on a second sourcing basis. This model is in demand where OEMs already have an existing supplier and are looking for ‘localisation’ – in other words, the contractor wants to establish an alternative supply in China.

“What we don’t have is ‘commodity’ speakers,” says Mr Ip.

No surprise, then that R&D is a really vital part of the mix. Woodtai has two R&D teams – one of acoustic engineers, the other of mechanical and electrical engineers. “Acoustic design is mainly based on experience,” he says. “We do have some simulation software, but experience is most important. Also, we provide advice; our speakers are mainly going to be installed inside the housing of our customers’ products, so we give them some application advice about any issues that will affect sound quality, balancing, etc.”

Increasing productivity

Woodtai has made significant investments in its workshops and factories recently, including purchasing a reliability testing machine and a range of injection moulding, gluing, winding and testing machines. That investment will continue, says Mr Ip, and that’s partly due to ‘simple mathematics’, as he puts it.

Woodtai’s business growth has averaged 12 per cent for 2012, 2013 and 2014 (forecast), but labour and other costs are rising fast in China. “Our strategy is not really to increase the number of people, but to increase productivity and employ more machinery,” he says. “If we can buy machinery that will save us employing two extra people, it pays for itself in one year. Labour costs as a percentage of turnover need to be reduced. We have to achieve growth without passing any cost to the customer and without sacrificing our product margins – otherwise we can’t survive.”

He says it isn’t really a case of automation – it can’t be, because this isn’t a business based on churning out millions of cheap identical parts. “But we are building tighter manufacturing processes and consolidating some manufacturing steps. This process is at a very early stage, but it will continue.”

Meanwhile, a new development for the company is the planned roll-out of its own brand of earphones. Mr Ip is under no illusions here – he knows he’s looking to break

into a tough, crowded market – but he is confident of success based on Woodtai’s established expertise and knowledge. “We are a latecomer, for sure, and we may not have our own well-known brand name. But we have been in the industry for a very long time. Our core technology is sound quality, so we are capable of making very high-end earphones. What we do need is to find the right people to market and brand our product.”

Global markets

Woodtai’s key markets at present are Europe and Japan – but where its products actually end up depends on the geographical markets of its customers, of course. “Our customers’ products go all over the world, with our components within them. Of course, the biggest developing market is China, but we are not really focusing on the domestic market.

“It’s a pity that in China we don’t really have leading brands in electronics or the medical industry. Even the bigger operators in China that we could name are market followers – they are not up to the stage where they are looking for a high-quality offer like ours. So in this case we can’t compete on the price. Having said that, our products do find their way back to China inside our European customers’ products!”

He believes that Woodtai’s future growth will come mainly through organic expansion, and particularly in the areas of speakers used in high-end music earphones and the use of moving coil units inside hearing aids, instead of armature drivers.”

“We should have double digit growth annually,” he says. “I think that is achievable. We have some important new designs in the pipeline, which will be launched this year and in 2015.” n

WORLD-BEATING

MANUFACTURING SYSTEMS

ZAHORANSKY is the global leader in the development and manufacture of sophisticated equipment for the manufacture of toothbrushes, household and industrial brushes, injection moulds and medical devices. Philip Yorke talked to Gerhard Steinebrunner, the company’s managing director about its unique, innovative products and move into new markets.

ZAHORANSKY was founded in Germany in 1902 by Anton Zahoransky and it opened up a new era in brush production when he developed the world’s first reliable tufting tool for a drilling and tufting machine for brushes. Since then the company has remained an independent, family-owned business and has grown to become a global market leader that offers complete business solutions in the field of machine building and automation technology. Currently the company operates four distinct divisions: Mould making, Systems technology, Packaging machines and Brush machines.

Today the ZAHORANSKY Group is present in 10 locations in six countries with global representation and branch offices worldwide.

In 2013 the company employed over 600 people and recorded revenues of more than €70 million. Expanding product portfolio

ZAHORANSKY manufactures a diverse range of machines that are capable of producing a wide variety of products from small interdental brushes, mascara and hair brushes and tooth brushes, to brushes for personal care. In addition the company’s portfolio includes hand brushes, brooms, hard brushes, as well as WC and dish wash brushes for household use. However, the company is expanding its prod-