TAIPEI, TAIWAN — Taiwanese equipment maker Kin Precision Industry Co. Ltd. has opened a 2,000-square-meter, 25-employee factory in Taichung, Taiwan, with an eye to conquering new markets.
Since its founding in 2008 by President Antony Huang, a 30-year industry veteran, Kin Precision has been making its Keen Pro-branded stretch-blow PET bottle production equipment in a 3,000-square-meter, 75-worker factory in Fujian province, China.
Together, the two factories will ship 50 units per year in two product lines, company Huang said in an interview at the Taipei Plas trade show.
One line, faster and more energy efficient, can only churn out narrow bottles. A cheaper, more electricity-hungry line is the choice for making bottles with capacities of 5 liters or more.
Speaking through an interpreter, Huang said that Kin's claim to fame is its thrifty homegrown technology: “We are the only Asian company that designs our own high-pressure valve.” That valve can sustain pressures of 40 kilograms per square meter.
The company claims that, compared to rivals' gear, its machines consume 2.5 kilowatts fewer per 1,000 bottles made.
Huang is the majority stockholder of the closely held company. Last year, 26 percent of its sales went to China, 15 percent to Taiwan and the bulk of the remainder to Southeast Asian countries.
Kin has tentative plans to target new markets with trade-show appearances in Dubai and Europe next year.
Asked about the company's biggest challenge, Huang said, “The PET stretch-blow market is already quite saturated. So we have to design a product that delivers high quality and reliability.”
Smiling wryly, he added, “The latecomer always has to work harder.”
