CLPA Global Activity Report

NakamuraTell us about the role of the SDIA. XieThe Shenzhen Flat Panel Display Industry Association, which was established in 2005, currently has about 750 FPD-related manufacturers in its membership. Members include not only manufacturers from the Huanan region, which includes Shenzhen, but also from other regions of China and from overseas, allowing us to act as a unified contact point for the industry. The Shenzhen area is noted for the large number of small- and medium-sized FPD manufacturers there. In order to increase industry vigor, it is also our role to support them. For example, we help small- and medium-sized manufacturers build supply chains, and introduce to them the technologies that increase their productivity and quality so as to allow them to compete with major companies.
In fact, one of our essential technologies for the increase of productivity and quality is automation. Naturally, we are familiar with CC-Link and CC-Link IE as well. They are widely used by major manufacturers like Foxconn, I believe. OtaniBecause of their high performance, CC-Link and CC-Link IE tend to be considered industrial networks for large-scale manufacturers, but that is by no means their only role. The increase of productivity and quality is an issue common to the manufacturing industry as a whole, regardless of company scale. There are, in fact, quite a number of small- and medium-sized manufacturers who have introduced CC-Link and CC-Link IE. Many examples of its significant effect are available. XieSmall- and medium-sized manufacturers in Shenzhen have not been oblivious to productivity and quality until now. The reality is that, while wanting to increase their productivity and quality, they did not know how to go about it. The industry is in need of technology that will increase productivity and quality. OtaniThe Ethernet-based CC-Link IE has been widely adopted across the Asian region, including the BOE Technology Group, China's largest FPD manufacturer. We have many partners in China to whom we provide solutions using CC-Link IE as well. Setting up liquid crystal display production lines using CC-Link and CC-Link IE should be quick and easy. Because it can be constructed with general-use devices, quick response to line expansion is also possible. This kind of easy handling should be popular among small- and medium-sized manufacturers, I feel. XieWherever they are, small- and medium-sized manufacturers hope to mature into major companies. However, no matter how quickly they develop, if their methods are the same as those used when they were smaller, they will eventually hit a wall. They need to increase competitiveness while changing their manufacturing system rapidly in accordance with their development. NakamuraCC-Link and CC-Link IE maintain the No. 1 share among industrial open networks, not only in Japan but in the whole of Asia. We feel that this is due to positive assessment of their easy construction. In particular, the existence of CC-Link IE is notable at FPD production sites. The fact is, CC-Link IE was originally developed with FPD manufacturers' production sites in mind. As the glass substrates used for FPD production become larger, the amount of data handled on site is increasing astronomically. In accordance with this, broadband networks that can handle these large-capacity data transfers are now required. CC-Link IE was developed with responding to these demands in mind. This is why it has been widely adopted in the FPD industry.