Fair Friend Ties Up With Japanese Firm to Build Grinder Plant in Central Taiwan

Taipei, Aug. 10, 2011 (CENS)--Fair Friend Group, Taiwan's leading manufacturer of machining center, has resolved to cooperate with a top-grade Japanese manufacturer of grinding machines to set up a joint-venture plant in the Taichung Precision Machinery Park, central Taiwan.

With the cross-Taiwan Strait economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) hitting the road, some Japanese machine-tool firms are seeking to cooperate with relevant domestic manufacturers. Fair Friend will cooperate with the Japanese partner to set up a plant to roll out high-tier grinding machines at the second-phase development zone of the Taichung Precision Machinery Park, with initial investments totaling NT$1 billion.

Fair Friend noted each of the grinding machines produced by the Japanese manufacturer is priced at over NT$10 million, with clients spreading to semiconductor, wafer chip grinding and aerospace sectors. The cooperation with the top-grade Japanese firm is expected to upgrade Taiwan's manufacturing technologies in the grinding-machine field.

According to a survey conducted by the Taiwan Association of Machinery Industry (TAMI), some large-sized foreign manufacturers of machinery and relevant components, including Doosan of South Korea, Forest-Line of France, Fanuc of Japan and some Chinese machine-tool makers, have expressed strong interest in investing in Taiwan.

TAMI estimated follow-up investments in Taiwan by foreign firms will reach more than NT$10 billion.

Fair Friend chairman Jimmy Chu said the implementation of the ECFA has helped domestic machine-tool firms save costs by 10% because of reduction in customs duties. In addition, some Japanese firms are mulling using Fair Friend's production bases, distribution channels and service networks to help them tap the lucrative China market.