Based on the philosophy of "sustainable operation," Tair Wei Enterprise Co. constantly invests in state-of-the-art production equipment for its manufacturing of more environment-friendly metal-tube and wood furniture.

With over two decades of experience in the field, the company (which boasts ISO9001 certification) has developed more than 500 furniture items, including kitchen and bathroom racks, dining sets, vanity sets, occasional tables, screens, and entertainment centers.

Metal-tube furniture now accounts for 75% of Tair Wei's total production value, with the remainder being wood furniture. It is able to design and manufacture K/D furniture with unique styles, but it also takes orders for original equipment and design manufacturing (OEM/ODM) production.

The company has an in-house research and development department to come up with innovative products. "Thanks to the dedication of our talented R&D specialists," comments Lin Chiu-sung, the firm's general manager, "we can introduce brand-new products more frequently than our rival manufacturers."

To accommodate the production of such items the company has been adding state-of-the-art equipment, including pipe-bending and welding machines. It installed three welding machines and two automated pipe-bending machines from Japan last year, and will add two more such machines by the end of 2003.

"I recognize the importance of using automated production equipment to standardize our products," Lin says. "That's why we've constantly imported state-of-the-art production equipment from industrialized countries over the past few years."

More Speed, Higher Quality.

The general manager says that this automated machinery helps speed up the development and production of innovative furniture items, and to raise product quality as well.

"We pay a lot of attention to the quality of our products," Lin comments, "and we use precise inspection and testing instruments. All of our products have to pass strict inspections before they are shipped. Besides our investment in advanced production equipment, we've also spent a lot of money developing sophisticated molds over the past two decades.

"Thanks to the support of Taiwan's strong mold industry, we can rapidly complete the fabrication of sophisticated molds to fill rush orders from foreign customers. Taiwan is an ideal place for the production of high-quality molds, and that's one of the many reasons why we've kept our production roots on the island."

This is in contrast to rival companies, which have moved their production facilities to mainland China or other industrially developing countries in the region over the past decade in search of lower labor costs. "The companies that have relocated overseas to keep costs down concentrate mostly on mass-produced items, rather than focusing on the heightening of product quality," Lin explains. "But ever since our establishment we've always concentrated on enhancing product quality through continuous investment in advanced production equipment. This allows us to stay in Taiwan. At the same time, a lot of foreign customers who have procured furniture in mainland China for years are now acknowledging that Taiwan is the best place to source high-end furniture."

Lin notes that Taiwan has the talented experts needed to help manufacturers develop innovative products with unique designs. "Only the support of such experts," he says, "enables manufacturers to transform their ideas into practical products. As the international furniture market is getting more competitive, all we furniture makers in Taiwan can do is develop sophisticated and practical products that attract the attention of foreign buyers. Descending into price competition is the last thing we want to do, and I firmly believe that the production of high-end products is the only way we can go if we want to survive in the highly competitive international market."

Pool of R&D Experts

Thanks to efforts by the government and private sectors over the past 30 years or so, Taiwan now has a huge pool of talented R&D specialists with a rich store of experience. This pool of experts, Lin stresses, enables his company-and others-to "concentrate on diversifying the range of our products."

Its R&D specialists develop a whole group of new products for Tair Wei every year. Among the recently developed items to be promoted in 2004 are a TV/VCR stand with built-in CD rack, a computer desk, and an ergonomic computer table.

"We've developed a slick catalogue showcasing our new products," the general manager says. "Since we started mailing the catalog to overseas buyers recently, we've received a warm response from potential customers the world over. Because of our new items, I'm sure that our sales revenues will increase next year."

Many of his new items, Lin emphasizes, are produced under environment-friendly principles. "Many European customers prefer green products that do not harm the environment," Lin comments. "To meet this trend, we have to increase our output of products that appeal to European customers. For instance, we have adopted a kind of environment-friendly foam-which we can easily procure from domestic suppliers here-for our products."

Besides making its products green, Tair Wei claims that it can deliver orders faster than rival companies. "We try our best to satisfy the requirements of our customers," comments the general manager. "Besides producing environment-friendly products, we also concentrate on speedy delivery so that our customers can introduce our new products in their home markets quickly."