Foreign Buyers Upbeat About 2013 Taipei AMPA, AutoTronics Taipei
Layout of venue said to enhance easy product sourcing
2013/10/02 | By Quincy LiangKnown for offering a wide range of exhibits by local and foreign suppliers, the 29th Taipei International Auto Parts & Accessories Show (Taipei AMPA 2013) and 8th Taipei International Automobile Electronics Show (AutoTronics Taipei 2013), held April 10-13 at the Nangang Exhibition Hall and TWTC Exhibition Hall 1, is earning compliments from foreign visitors and buyers, who give during interviews the venue and suppliers thumbs up.
Claus Schierz, owner of the Maschienfabrik Herbert Meyer GmbH, has been to the TAIPEI AMPA and AutoTronics Taipei for more than 15 straight years. For him, the shows are the most important platform for business. Schierz sells German-made machinery products to mainly global auto-parts makers, including many reputable companies in Taiwan, also sourcing auto-parts from these same customers to resell in Europe, having achieved relatively smooth operations.
Schierz praises the Taipei shows as very helpful to his business, simply due to convenience because almost all major Taiwanese firms are under one roof to enable easy visit of customers and sourcing of new auto-parts and -accessory suppliers.
Given the opportunity, he adds that Scierz plans to set up a joint venture with a Taiwanese partner to produce key materials for making auto-parts.
For Jarno Waners, purchase manager of Netherlands-based Autosport Tepper BV, the TAIPEI AMPA and AutoTronics Taipei is the single window to access quality suppliers of auto parts and accessories. Waners has been to the shows for 4 consecutive years and also been purchasing from Taiwanese suppliers for more than 25 years.
Autosport Tepper is a major importer of auto parts and accessories, offering almost everything from wheel bolts to aerodynamic body parts. Waners says the TAIPEI AMPA is a must-see event for it is really a “one-stop-shopping” venue. He also says that the qualitative, innovative gap between Taiwanese and Chinese suppliers has been narrowing in recent years, also suggesting local players to try to stay ahead in competitiveness.
The TAIPEI AMPA is new to Stephen Summersby, owner of TermPro of Australia, though he has heard of positive things about the event for years. As a first-time visitor to the show, Summersby is quite impressed with the exhibition scale and product comprehensiveness. The Australian buyer comes to Taiwan to find qualified suppliers of automotive heat-exchange products as radiators, A/C evaporators and condensers etc. to be shipped to his company's distributors across Australia. With engineering background, he is confident to find Taiwanese suppliers with both strong manufacturing and cost-control, mainly based on his impression that most Taiwanese companies are very capable of rapid response, tooling development, and prompt delivery.
Peter Ramsey, director of Diesel Drive Pty Ltd. in Australia, is also a first-time visitor to Taipei AMPA and is quite surprised at the incredible product diversity. His company deals in components for Japanese trucks and has a partnership with Taiwan's NBC Brake Drum due to excellent product quality.
“We had suppliers both in Taiwan and China, but products from Taiwan seem to be much better, and Taiwanese makers respond quickly to inquiries about product maintenance to solve any problems. Also they stay with industrial trends to release new models,” says Ramsey.
Abd Elkader Ahmed, manager of EL HAMD IMP ESTAB in Egypt, has attended the show every year since 2000, dealing in auto body & engine parts and has close relationships with Taiwanese manufacturers. “Every year I come to AMPA as I can see not only the latest products and find appropriate suppliers, but can also visit our suppliers to expand partnership”, he said.
“I can only say that Taiwanese makers are perfect, also working so hard to improve product quality and upgrade functions even before being asked,” says Ahmed.
Tim Delzoppo, product specialist of Rocket Sportstrucks in Australia, is intrigued with the sophistication of Taipei AMPA, saying that this event offers more products despite being smaller in size than some other shows, and that AMPA is appropriately sized with good product diversity.
Delzoppo stresses that “quality” is the major strengthen for Taiwanese auto-part manufacturers, and that the wide range available suits his company's main small-quantity business.