In December 2022, the COVID-19 pandemic continued to pose challenges for businesses across the globe. However, despite the risks, our company, a leading provider of total SMT Solution in China, made the decision to visit our partners in Russia and seek out new partnerships in the region. Our goal was to explore the potential of the Russian market and surrounding countries, establish stronger ties with local partners, and identify opportunities for future growth and collaboration.
Russia is an important market, and as one of the significant strategies for our I.C.T company in 2022, we decided to strengthen our presence in the Russian market. With the continuous development of I.C.T in the Russian market, we will officially launch a localized warehouse in 2023, further enhancing our service quality and response speed.
The purpose of this visit was to understand the local and surrounding markets and request long-term development partners. Our company is committed to providing reliable and comprehensive PCBA solutions. We believe that our technical and service capabilities can bring more value to the local market.
We not only hope to increase our connections with local partners and promote our professional technical services but also hope to let more people know about I.C.T's leading position in the international market through this visit. Therefore, during the visit, we actively cooperated with local media and industry organizations to strengthen our brand promotion and market expansion.
The main objects of our visit focused on well-known electronic manufacturing enterprises, OEM factories, and some important industry associations. Through in-depth communication with them, we gained a better understanding of local market demands and development trends, and discovered some potential development opportunities.
Nov. 16th, The first person we visited on this trip was a Russian cooperative partner, and we met with them twice.
The company is a turnkey solution provider for electronic products and specializes in production management software solutions, smart equipment, intelligent services and equipment management, and zero-defect solutions for smart factory solutions, which align with our current development direction.
Their CEO and regional manager were very enthusiastic and hospitable, and they took us to their meeting room. The company paid attention to the details of the meeting arrangement and made thoughtful arrangements for us, preparing the meeting room with the necessary stationery, drinks, and snacks, and even giving us small gifts. Additionally, they provided presentation materials in advance, which was helpful for our subsequent discussions.
During the visit, we had multiple rounds of discussions and introduced our company, products, and services. We also discussed current market trends, customer needs, and how we could work together to create a win-win situation.
Prior to our visit to Russia, we had already started working with them, and our cooperation was a good start. This meeting further strengthened our partnership and provided an opportunity to discuss more details about how we can work together to achieve our goals.
Overall, we appreciate the hospitality of the CEO, regional manager, and the entire team. We look forward to our next collaboration to create a win-win situation.
Nov. 17th, After finishing the visit with our previous customer in the morning, we went directly to the office building of another partner. We first visited their exhibition hall, where they introduced us to some SMT Machine. Then, we went to the third floor office to present our new selection welding equipment and explained its upgrades, believing it to be a top product in the Chinese market. Our partner expressed a lot of interest and requested quotes for all models.
In addition, our partner also expressed interest in equipment such as Reflow Oven, Pick and Place Machine, SMT Stencil Printer, and Wave Soldering machine, PCB Cleaning Machine, BGA Repair Station. We introduced and provided corresponding machine videos for each of these devices.
Nov. 24th, We landed in Saint Petersburg and visited many cooperative partner here, as well as our competitive partner, a highly marketable company.
After landing in Saint Petersburg, he arranged a Mercedes-Benz business car to pick us up from the airport. As we had a lot of luggage, this arrangement was very thoughtful. At the end of the meeting, they gave us vodka and local specialty gifts, making us feel the unique charm of Saint Petersburg and the warm hospitality of the Russian people. Thanks to their warm reception, our visit was very pleasant.
The customer was very interested in vacuum reflow soldering oven, and informed us that it was popular in the Russian market and had little competition. In addition, they also inquired about I.C.T's competitive products, including PCB Handling Equipment, PCB Reflow Ovne, Wave Solder Machine, and Full-auto SMT Printer. They were also interested in these devices, and expressed interest in our products. We should continue to strengthen our cooperation with them, expand our market share and competitiveness in the Russian market.
At the same time, we shared our cooperation experience with JUKI in India. JUKI in India has strong sales capabilities and an open-minded attitude. Our support is also very strong, and they are very loyal to I.C.T, cooperating well with us.
The customer also shared great news with us that they have a new warehouse, and we can place some machines there as demos and inventory. This is a great opportunity to showcase our products and services. In 2023, we will officially launch a localized warehouse, which will better promote and sell our products.
We met three times in total. The first time was at their formal meeting, the second time was to see the warehouse, and the third time they specially invited us to dinner. It was a very enjoyable evening.
Nov. 25th, The customer attaches great importance to this meeting and flew from Tartarstan to St. Petersburg for detailed discussions with us. The main purpose is to establish two production lines, one for student education and the other for mass production.
We first asked the customer for the BOM, confirmed the product information, and provided the SMT Solution. At the same time, we also introduced another customer of ours in another city in Russia who has invested in an I.C.T turnkey SMT production line and a DIP production line for training and outputting excellent engineers at a university.
We focused on discussing the scale, requirements, costs, expected output, delivery time, and Technical Support of the production lines, and provided professional advice and support to ensure the establishment of a long-term cooperation relationship with the customer.
Nov. 28th,Our first meeting with them was at a small exhibition in Moscow called "Electronics of Russia." During that meeting, we informed them that we saw the potential of the Russian market and had met many agents, customers, and some partners. The second meeting was at their company in St. Petersburg.
After the exchange at the exhibition, they expressed interest in further understanding I.C.T. We introduced our company and showcased some product videos to the client through a PPT presentation. Additionally, we informed them that we have advertised in many channels, including the Russian market.
The customer was very interested in our products and requested a quotation on the spot. We discussed product delivery time, quality, and technical support during the communication.
Dec. 7th, After finishing our visits to surrounding countries of Russia, we arrived in Kazakhstan.
Here, we visited a long-term partner who purchased a fully automatic SMT Production Line and DIP Production Line from our company in 2022. The main purpose of this visit was to negotiate future cooperation and technical support.
When we visited in December, the client's factory was not fully built yet. However, by February 2023, when our engineers went to their factory to provide technical support, it had become a complete SMT Factory. Our engineers professionally trained their engineers to ensure that the client could fully utilize their new SMT Assembly Line and DIP Production Line. Additionally, our engineers also built an SMT line and DIP production line for another client in Kazakhstan.
Full-auto JUKI SMT Production Line and DIP Line in Kazakhstan
Full-auto JUKI SMT Production Line and DIP Line in Kazakhstan
In February 2023, we built SMT factories for two clients in Kazakhstan, providing one-stop SMT solutions and services. A total of four production lines were built, including two JUKI SMT Production Line and two DIP production lines. Throughout the project, we placed great emphasis on communication and cooperation with our clients, ensuring that they were aware of the progress of the entire project and providing relevant advice and feedback. In terms of technical support, we have an experienced technical team that can promptly solve any problems encountered by clients, ensuring smooth production for them. Ultimately, we successfully gained recognition from both clients, which was the best affirmation of our professional skills and service level.
Overall, this trip was very fruitful. We visited 16 end customers and 30 agents, gaining valuable insights into the Russian and surrounding markets. We also identified potential long-term partners, which will help us expand our business and develop new markets while establishing strong relationships with local partners, providing reliable and comprehensive solutions, and sharing our professional knowledge and technical abilities. We look forward to continuing our partnerships and exploring new opportunities in the future.