Panels & Furniture March/April 2022

IN PERSON
developing innovated products,
and expanding Taiwan’s market
globally.
“I can envision Taiwan’s
woodworking machinery still
having a place in the world for the
next five years. The new second-,
third- and fourth-generation
successors will continue developing
their companies,” said Chang.
STRATEGIES GOING FORWARD
Chang observed that the Taiwan
woodworking machinery industry
is currently facing a few challenges.
First, the rapid growth of China’s
woodworking machinery scene is
threatening Taiwan, and traditional,
low-end machines made in Taiwan
are being replaced by China’s
machines. Second, Taiwan’s
machineries are mainly in a single
unit and lack smart elements —
the industry has not caught up to
Industry 4.0 standards. And lastly,
the industry is having trouble
recruiting talented people.
and use the government’s resources
in helping member vendors adapt
to future digital needs sooner.”
Beyond domestic strategies,
Chang is also hoping to strengthen
TWMA’s media presence to reach
untapped global audiences with a
365-day, 24-hour virtual showroom
platform: “For people who are
looking for Taiwan woodworking
machinery products or require
Taiwan woodworking machinery
production services, they can find
the products and solutions through
this platform.”
He has also identified key countries
for market expansion, and
concluded: “The first country [we
are hoping to strengthen relations
with] is Vietnam. Since 2021, the
exports of Taiwan woodworking
machinery into Vietnam ranked
fourth, with the figures declining by
10% compared to 2020. China has
become the first place in importing
[our machinery], and Germany is
second. Australia, Japan, India,
Russia and the UK rank fifth to
tenth respectively, all of whom
are growing substantially and are
markets for Taiwan to strengthen
relations with. Of course, the
growing industries of central and
southern America, Europe, and
North Africa are also big markets we
have to take note of.” P
To address these issues, TWMA
will help its member vendors to
improve product competitiveness,
adopt smart machine elements,
cultivate talent by using
government and school resources
and liaise with research institutes.
In fact, TWMA has already begun
digitalising the industry in 2020,
joining forces with Taiwan Smart
Manufacturing to pivot into
automation.
“Digitalisation is an unstoppable
trend in the future,” Chang
elaborated. “The woodworking
machinery industry has to
introduce it since it can replace
veterans and provide remote and
virtual marketing and after-service
solutions.
“What the association needs to do
is to share the knowledge with the
members. We also need to provide
a sharing platform for everyone,
Joe Chang, the new
chairman of TWMA
26 Panels & Furniture Asia | March / April 2022