At Hongfa, we strongly believe in nurturing the future pillars of industry

Hongfa is a leading manufacturer of electromechanical relays, and is ranked No.1 in China and No.1 in Power relays & Latching relays globally. Founded in 1984, Hongfa specialises in developing, manufacturing and promoting relays. With a factory space of around 800,000sqm and a 350,000sqm new plant being set up a years ago, Hongfa has an annual production capacity of 1.5 billion relays of 180 series and 60,000 specifications. It has around 40 wholly or partially-owned subsidiaries, including Hongfa Europe GmbH and Hongfa America Inc. The company has a state level technical centre for post-doctoral research, an academician research station, and a testing and experimenting centre for relays and related products that is recognised by Underwriters Laboratories (UL), VDE and China National Accreditation Service for Conformity (CNAS). It has also been actively involved in formulating multiple national standards. Hongfa relays are currently being exported to over 100 countries. Here is the interview with Mr. RA Gotur, Director, Hongfa Electroacoustic Co.,Ltd. Hongfa Group

Could you also highlight some of the current trends in the Relays space? Also, what are the key technologies that have changed the market landscape in 2018?

The following are the current trends in relay space.

• Power & Consumer Electronics Segment
• Automotive Electronics
• Smart/Intelligent meter
• Telecom/Signal segments
  The key technology in relays in reducing the size of the relays (Minature relays – Small size ) and also in SMT relays ( Surface Mount Technology ).These changes are prominent in 2018.Relays which have low contact resistance and low voltage drop across contacts and this enhances long time reliability and also the life. Also the permanent magnet relays & contactors are becoming popular due to lower power consumptions.

Which are the top 4-5 big vertical spenders for Relays products in 2018? What has been the adoption level in these sectors and which are the areas where the spending has been done?

Typically, the biggest vertical spenders for the relays are Power & automotive companies, railway and signaling, Telecom power supply & signaling device manufacturers and smart meters and lighting products manufacturers.

• Sugar cube relays are highest consumption globally.
• Telecom relays 1 amps 12 volts & 24volts are very fast moving relays
• Starter & Flasher relays for Automotive application relays have high potential market for 2, 3, & 4 wheelers
• Latching relays: This relay is used in smart/Intelligent meter application & there is potential growth for coming years. 

We could see a moderately high adoption levels in the traditional automotive and power segments probably due to high sale rise & also due to the addition of more added features to the automotives. However it is gaining momentum in the other areas as the technologies also maturing.The adoption level in this sector are stringent quality norms fully automized plant which yields zero defect helps
– Reducing operational cost,
– Improve product quality
– Enhance quality work for employees.
– Increase product output rates
– Boost manufacture flexibility
– Reduce labour turnover
– Reduce wastage & increase yield.

As a vendor, what has been your contribution towards this growth? How have you fared in this segment in the last one year?

As you know HONGFA carries a wide spectrum of relay products, so the designer has a great choice to select the most optimum component. We support the customers in their every step of activities like product development, Samples, Protocol, manufacturing and after sales. HONGFA understands the market requirements early and will be ready with the new products as the market demands that, which gives us an edge over our competitors.

We sincerely taking care of customers demand in crisis management for cost effective prices, delivery ontime.
This has resulted in continuous Hongfa relays growth for the past one decade.

What do you do for brand building in India?

Already all most all the customers are well aware of Hongfa product wide range & quality. Besides advertising to create brand awareness, we also build credibility for our brand and wide range of products by sharing our knowledge and time. At Hongfa, we strongly believe in nurturing the future pillars of industry and in sharing our knowledge with the community. Also we actively share our technological knowhow by participating in exhibitions and through Magazines.

How do you support your distributors?

We support & communicate our distributors on a daily basis with regard to marketing, technical enquiry, logistics & sales support. We visit our distributors regularly and provide onsite technical & commercial support during their customer visits. Having a close relationship with our comrades and being in the battle field together, helps us to understand and identify the growth in the market and spot emerging sources of business. Also we ensure our distributors well versed in our existing & new products information in advance.

As for the business concerned Hongfa distributors are doing good job particularly Mr. Mandar – Sales & Mktg Head of  Saboo Components LLP – Mumbai ( Formerly Vikas Electro Sales ) & Mr. Manoj Khande – Manager- Product Marketing of  Millennium Semiconductors – Pune &  is doing excellent business and also provide good service & technical support to Hongfa customers.