China firms finding auto market tough to crack (May 01, 2004)

A number of China-based injection molders and parts suppliers exhibiting at the recent Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) World Congress in Detroit said their efforts to enter the North American automotive market have so far not paid dividends.

Quiseng Plastic Chemical Company, a manufacturer of foam insulating mats and rubber parts such as gaskets and o-rings, has been attempting to crack the North American market for several years, without luck.

“We’d like to supply companies with automotive molding,” said Sam Cui, Quiseng account manager. “It’s been very tough so far. We have no customers in the U.S. yet.”

Another company, China Custom Manufacturing, was exhibiting at the SAE for the second year. The company has injection molding machines ranging from 28- to 5,000-tons in clamping force. It offers customers full-service capabilities, including assembly, welding and tooling design and manufacturing. China Custom Manufacturing, which is part of Pacific Manufacturing Group, operates a sales office in Freemont, CA.

“We want to sell directly to OEMs or Tier Ones,” said a spokeswoman at the company’s booth. “It is very hard to break into this market.”

A Canadian-based supplier of injection molded parts said he had been approached by Chinese companies at the show interested in forming joint ventures. He conjectured the Chinese companies might be motivated in part by cut-throat business conditions in China.

“They (the Chinese companies) aren’t interested in doing business in China,” he said, noting that he is not surprised by the difficulty they are having getting business. “The North American automotive market has some of the highest standards and requirements in the world for suppliers,” he said.