SIPLACE Grand Opening
2012
Interview: Dan Baldwin, President of Engent
„We see vast improvements“
Dan, as the president of a small EMS company do you really see manufacturers and
customers „insourcing“ back into the Amcas?
Dan Baldwin:
„Not so much business that is typical for Engent. But I have a lot of colleagues in the industry
and midsized EMS companies I listen to. So it is not a huge wave but it is a reasonable
increase in demand and interest in bringing some of the products manufacturers have
outsourced a few years ago back into the US.”
Is this because of the US being more competitive or because of people being
disappointed with the offshoring?
Dan Baldwin:
“Well, it is always difficult to read a customer’s mind, but the things you hear about are that
the total cost of running certain types of product offshore, particularly those of lower volume
or higher quality demands were underestimated. You have to consider cost for transportation
or how much you have to pay to get your engineers to offshore sites or the issue of
downtime. You have many of these EMS providers that promised very rapid turns, very high
service, but as their business grow their service does not necessarily grow at the same rate.
So you see that the advantage you might have per piece might get lost with the total cost of
offshore operation. Hence, some manufacturers become more interested in getting a more
local service, close to their supply chain, with less trouble in communication and better
access to new generation technology. Not for every product, but for certain products
insourcing in fact becomes interesting.”
Dan, Engent is a small EMS provider. How interesting is the SIPLACE SX platform for a
company like yours?
Dan Baldwin:
“The SIPLACE SX is a very exciting platform. You know, with its ability to provide for rapid
programming, its ability to provide for expansion. Investing into a gantry instead of investing
into a complete new machine is an attractive option for companies of our size. The software
and the programming of new components is vastly better than we had to deal with over the
years. Feeder technology has improved dramatically. They are not only configured for a
volume type of setup but also for high mix / low volume types of production. That attention to
detail and the attention to the feedback from customers from many regions drove this
platform to significant improvements.
For more information about ASMPT, please visit www.asmpacific.com
1-2
Please direct any reader inquiries to:
ASM Assembly Systems GmbH& Co. KG
Susanne Oswald
E-mail: susanne.oswald@asmpt.com
Mark Ogden
E-Mail: ogden.mark@asmpt.com
2-2