Friday, December 12, 2014: Minmax Technology Co Ltd is a specialist in the design and manufacture of DC-DC converters and AC-DC power supplies. With a comprehensive range of products that vary from 1W to 75W, the company has been supporting the ITE and medical sectors for more than two decades. This Taiwan based company is also present across all continents, and offers superior support to customers and sales channels across various economies. In an interview with Richa Chakravarty of Electronics Bazaar, Mingchang Tsai, sales manager, Minmax Technology Co Ltd, spoke about the company’s latest technological advances and its India-centric strategies.
EB: Minmax Technology has been around for more than two decades. In what way do you feel you have contributed to the industry?
We are one of the leading specialists in power supplies. We offer the most comprehensive and broadest product lines, in various packages, sizes and power ratings for customers to choose from. High quality, tight process control and continuous improvement are the keys to our quality philosophy. Along with the superior quality, we offer these products at a competitive price too. All our products adhere to the strict criteria of ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 certifications. And all our products carry a three year warranty.
EB: What are the latest innovative products launched by your company?
We have been at the forefront of technology, introducing leading cutting edge power supplies. Our latest power supplies offer ultra high isolation, provide high power density and above all, fall in the category of economic products. This series caters to the medical and railway applications.
EB: Technologically, how are your products more advanced than the other brands available in the market?
Our biggest advantage is our 24 years of experience and expertise in the sector. We have a very strong pool of R&D experts and professionals who ensure that we deliver cutting-edge technology to our customers. We have been investing in the research and design of our products since a long time. Our new circuit design research and patent allocation have helped us take the lead in the industry.
EB: Tell us more about the R&D efforts undertaken by the company over the past two years?
Apart from our focus on new designs and research, which I just mentioned, we are also looking at thermal management technology research to ensure our products are not only technologically advanced but are also energy efficient. While doing this, our third and most important aim is to ensure the cost optimisation of the products we manufacture.
EB: What are the technical challenges you meet while developing a product and how do you resolve them?
As we introduce new and advanced products in the market, we face two major challenges—one is, finding the best performing material to deliver the best results, while optimising the mechanical structure of the product. In order to offer high efficiency and temperature rating, we need to source materials that provide optimum results. Another challenge that we constantly face is to manufacture products that are ‘mass production friendly’.
EB: Do you plan to expand your product portfolio and application segments? If so, what are the new products that you plan to add to your current range?
While we continue to cater to the application needs of the medical sector, where we are now offering medical safety products with IEC/EN 60601-1 3rd and 2xMOPP approvals, we have also expanded our product offerings to cater to the requirements of high-reliability railway products. These are high power density and higher watt products for power solutions. On the product portfolio end, we have plans to develop high power density DC-DC converters and boost power ratings.
EB: How important is India as a market to you?
India is one of the largest markets in Southeast Asia. Like the success that our company tasted in China, we expect a similar growth from the India region too. We hope to see this market open up as rapidly as the China market.
EB: How long have you been present in India? Do you have a direct presence here or do you operate through a channel network? How do you market your products in India?
Minmax has been present in India for more than a decade now. We operate through a strong and well-distributed channel network. We market and brand ourselves through various technology magazines like Electronics For You and other online sites.
EB: What are the major challenges faced by your company while doing business here and catering to the needs of the Indian market? How different is it to do business in India in comparison to other countries?
India is a vast economy with tremendous demand. This is a very lucrative market for us but the biggest challenge that we face here is that most customers are not satisfied with our prices. Over the years, we have understood that India is a very price-sensitive market. So, it becomes a challenge for us to reduce our cost of operations to offer the best prices to customers here.
EB: What are your marketing and business strategies for the Indian market? And what are your future plans for this market?
Our business strategy is based on the technologically advanced products that we offer. Our strategy for the Indian market is to strengthen the relationship between Minmax and our customers via product training, technical support and visiting customers with our distributors to understand their requirements in order to cater to them in a better way. We plan to continue and expand the India market through our powerful distribution network. We want to strengthen our consumer base through a strong channel network.
