Haier Electric, a leading China-based electricalappliance manufacturer, yesterday revealed that it was setting up a cooperation deal among its manufacturing operations in Thailand, Japan and China to come up with cheaper refrigerator units.
The move is to boost Haier's standing in the market, especially in Southeast Asia, where brands from South Korea are quickly snapped up. The cheaper models will be produced at a Haier plant in Kabin Buri, Prachin Buri province.
The new "Global Top Mount" project will produce models that can be retailed at prices 5-10 per cent lower than those of other brands in the market.
Arnat Payonithikarn, executive manager of research and develop¬ment for Haier Electric (Thailand), said the project would cost between Bt180 million and Bt200 million.
"We plan to produce six models, ranging in size from 220-260 litres to 300-360 litres," Arnat said. "We should start doing a test run of our first three models next month."
He added that about 200,000 units of the new models would be commercially produced from December.
"Our first model will be exhibited at the Canton Fair in China's Guangzhou province in October," Arnat said.
Meanwhile, Masahiro Namba, general manager of Haier Electric (Thailand) - the manufacturing arm of the firm - said the Kabin Buri plant was expected to produce about 1.07 million refrigerators this year, up 10 per cent from last year.
Apart from refrigerators, the plant is expected to produce 130,000 washing machines and 100,000 air-conditioners this year. He said about 82 per cent of the output would be exported and the remainder sold locally.
"We plan to achieve Bt7.2 billion in total sales this year, including exports, which will focus on Asean, Japan and the Middle East," Namba said. "Our strategy is to increase our market share in places such as Thailand, the Philippines, Malaysia and the Middle East, as well as increase sales in new mar¬kets such as Vietnam and India."
The company is also eyeing potential markets such as Europe, South America and Africa.
"Between 4,000 and 5,000 units of Haier refrigerators will be exported to Europe next year to test the market," Arnat said.
He added that the company would increase the ratio of Haierbrand refrigerators it produces from 16-17 per cent to about 50 per cent in the next three years. The remaining 50 per cent of the out¬put would cover original equipment manufacturing (OEM) con¬tracts with brands such as Electrolux, General Electric, Sharp and Singer.
Wang Xiao, general manager of Haier Electrical Appliance (Thailand), the company's sales and marketing arm, said it expected local sales to grow by at least 30 per cent this year over last year.
"We are communicating more with the manufacturing side, which is creating products that fit the demand of customers. We expect to increase the number of dealers from 260 to about 400 by year-end," he said.