Staying ahead of the trends through change

Delta has been devoted to the industrial automation field for over 20 years. In addition to products and solutions, our smart machines and management platforms have also helped enterprises create smart production lines and achieve their production upgrade goals. Smart manufacturing has become an international trend, while virtual and physical integration has become the governing principle for future smart factories. This issue of ‘Brand People’ will feature an exclusive interview with Andy Liu, General Manager of the Industrial Automation Business Group (IABG), to share the group’s strategies and outlook, as well as his personal experience and growth at Delta for the past ten years.

Building smart manufacturing on top of integration

After a reorganization in 2017, the IABG welcomed the Automation Business Unit (AMBU) and a new team member—the automation software developer ‘Unicom’—to the family. Andy states that the original IABG was focused on the components market. The addition of the AMBU integrates the technology and the business of automation equipment and components. With the new team member, Unicom, Delta has created the Smart Manufacturing Solutions Business Division (SMSBD), which has elevated the company’s equipment management, IIoT, MES, and data visualization capabilities. Starting from the ideas of OT and IT, the virtual and physical integration combines to achieve an ‘automated’ and ‘smart’ production line.

In response to market demand, IABG has formulated strategies for its products, systems, and solutions. Andy has also analyzed business development: “There are three main aspects of the current IABG business: channel management, OEM model, and solution marketing.” The existing channels are divided by products. Different products require different channels and corresponding marketing skills, which is why it’s very important to manage and develop channels based on categories. The characteristics of the OEM model include single products and a concentrated customer base. We must understand the industry and customer groups, and adopt key accounts to approach customers and gain business opportunities. The solution is a combination of products and systems, and should be planned based on the demands understood through the contact between the team and the customers. The establishment of an ecosystem is also vital as the integration of products by Delta and other brands is sometimes required. Andy added, “We must find patterns in the solution planning and derive standard products from the introduction of solutions, which we can then contribute to channel partners for marketing.”

Gaining insight from changes to stay in touch with the trends

The IABG has formulated strategies for different markets. Andy shared his opinion on sustainable business competitiveness in the future “Every change is an opportunity. How to provide appropriate products in the process of maximizing value for customers has always been our goal.” These changes include aspects of technology, policy, and demands. For technology, he used electric vehicles (EV) as an example. There is a role for IABG to play in motors used in transportation or artificial intelligence (AI) for production line automated guided vehicles (AGV). For policy, the ‘Made in China 2025’ action agenda revealed a policy blueprint to transform China from a manufacturer of quantity to one of quality, which means that Delta will reinforce business manpower efforts in this area. For demand, we have found products from OEM marketing in Taiwan that can be applied to different markets such as India and Thailand. Andy said, “These changes are often linked. Sometimes policy influences demand, sometimes technology leads the way. To quickly gain insight into the trends is important to our team.”

Raising brand awareness in academia

“Automation for a Changing World’ is our brand commitment,” said Andy, sharing his experience in brand management at IABG. In addition to discovering business opportunities, striving for innovative product development, fulfilling brand commitment to customers, and providing quality solutions with partnerships, we have long been devoted to cultivating students on college campuses. Various campaigns in Taiwan, China, India and Southeast Asia, such as the ‘Delta Advanced Automation Contest’, have left strong impressions of the Delta brand in the minds of domestic and foreign students. “This is our long-term commitment,” said Andy. The IABG is planning advanced automation contests in various regions to engage students on national and municipal levels, and to build the global influence of the Delta brand from multiple dimensions.

Earlier this year, the IABG announced a partnership with Taiwan’s National Central University to establish a ‘Machine Vision Research Center’. The IABG has also built industry-academia partnerships with National Tsing Hua University and National Cheng Kung University. Andy indicated, “The main difference of this partnership from the previous ones is that aside from technology development, we are more focused on talent cultivation.” Previous industry-academia partnerships were assessed with project results. This time, the IABG directly deploys designated engineers on campus to develop technology along with the faculty and students. This close technology partnership will help Delta discover more innovative talents, and provide students with a fast track to employment at Delta after graduation. On the other hand, the university will become more familiar with industry demands, and bridge the gap between students and the industry. This development of a technology talent supply chain is a win-win for the company and the school.

NCU’s Delta Machine Vision Research Center was launched at the end of December 2017; General Manager of the Industrial Automation Business Group (IABG) Andy Liu (fourth from left), and the President of 
National Central University Dr. Jou Jing-yang (fourth from right) attended the unveiling ceremony

Looking onward, strengthening our competitiveness

Andy shared with us his more than 15 years of experience in industrial automation (IA) since joining Delta. “When I first came to Delta, IA was going through reorganization and business development. Thanks to everyone's continuous efforts and the leadership of former GM Simon Chang (currently Delta President and COO), we have transformed from a small team to the current business group.” From initial product development to systems solutions later on, we gradually built our competitiveness and responded to external environment shifts and internal organization and culture transitions. The IABG has established itself on the market with diverse technology integration and various marketing models. He added, “What I treasure most is to be able to learn and grow with the team in the process of developing the business.”

Andy (left 5) with IA DPR team.

“IA is a field that is worth in-depth exploration. The longer you are in this field, the more you learn.Accumulated experience is what brings the highest value and benefits. For an industry, IA requires long-term investments and resources.” Andy concluded the interview with these words of encouragement to his team: “For a personal career, it is a business that can last a lifetime.”