The sudden outbreak of Covid-19 has made the world aware of the importance of industrial upgrades and automation as well as the need to deploy and promote smart manufacturing. According to a researchandmarkets.com survey, the market value of global smart manufacturing is estimated to rise from US $214.7 billion in 2020 to US $384.8 billion in 2025, with an average annual compound growth rate of 12.4%. Taiwan’s machine tool industry has long played a big role in global manufacturing and machining centres and NC lathes will be the products central to the coming industrial transformation. In response to the trend and needs of Industry 4.0, Taiwan’s machine tool manufacturers are striving to build “smart, high-end, custom-made” machines, combined with upstream and downstream resources, in order to become an indispensable part of the industry’s global supply chain.
NC machine tools have become the core technology for the production of high-precision products in global manufacturing. Representative industries such as automotive, high-speed rail, energy, aerospace, shipping, and electronics all use NC machine tools to produce precision parts to improve the reliability and functionality of their products. Taiwan’s government has included “intelligent machinery” and the “defence aerospace industry” in its definition of innovative industries, and has successively cooperated with machine tool manufacturers to jointly develop and manufacture special aerospace equipment required for aircrafts’ structural metal parts, composite parts and engine parts among others. Joining the global aviation supply chain will become the driving force behind a new generation of machine tools. The ownership of NC machine tools and the level of their performance have also become important indicators for measuring the overall strength of a country’s manufacturing industry.
Machine tools manufactured in Taiwan have always exceeded global standards. ”iForming”, the smart pressing solution developed by Chin Fong, the largest press maker in Taiwan, helps the stamping industry to build intelligent production lines. Chin Fong’s use of IoT devices for production management is transforming traditional stamping factories into smart factories. Tongtai, one of the biggest machine tool manufacturers in Taiwan, has also long been committed to the development of digital systems, smart machine tool equipment, and industrial automation software and hardware development. All these factors confirm the “intelligence, customization, and high-end quality” that assists and supports customers to produce competitive products.
Taiwan’s smart machinery industry is driving the next industrial revolution as we’re ahead of the curve in recognizing that smart machinery is the best way to increase product added value and connections with customers. In addition, more cross-field cooperation and talent development is also a pressing issue both now and in the future.