Small businesses also have the opportunity to bring Vietnamese products to the international market. The story of ProDeTech's 3Wtape brand colored wrapping tape (PVC film) is a case in point.
A "fated" order
The opportunity to export colored tape came to ProDeTech One-Member Limited Liability Company quite by chance.
That day, South Korean corporation SK Group urgently needed wrapping tape for the Nexilis Copper Foil Plant project in Kotakinabalu – a new industrial park in Malaysia. After searching online, SK's subcontractor in Malaysia found that ProDeTech's 3Wtape brand colored wrapping tape (PVC film) met the project requirements and immediately flew directly to the company's Hanoi office to negotiate.
“When buying goods within the ASEAN bloc, they enjoy many tax advantages and don't need to apply for a visa. At that time, the project completion deadline was very tight, with only about 5 days left for handover. So, a group of 6 people flew to Vietnam, came to our office, and bought 250 kg of colored PVC wrapping tape (blue and red), divided it into backpacks to carry back as hand luggage,” recalled Mr. Nguyen Xuan Tai, Chairman of the Board of Members of ProDeTech, about this “fortunate encounter.”
“After completing phase 1, they continued to purchase phase 2, again using a similar hand-carrying method. And recently, they proactively placed a large order by sea because they found the quality to meet the investor's requirements. A container of about 16 tons of our colored tapes has been exported to Malaysia to serve the project of the South Korean investor,” Mr. Tai enthusiastically continued the story.
ProDeTech's product catalog of adhesive bandages currently offers a wide variety of colors, from blue, red, purple, yellow, black, white, green, cyan, indigo, violet... in short, it includes all "seven colors of the rainbow".
ProDeTech's adhesive tape products currently come in a wide variety of colors.
All products are researched and manufactured at ProDeTech's factory. The factory's predecessor specialized in producing boots and raincoats. After acquiring it, Mr. Tai realized the declining sales of raincoats and boots, so he sought a new direction: producing multi-colored PVC film.
Seize opportunities in line with global trends.
During a collaboration with Australian and American partners, both engineers trained at Hanoi University of Technology, Mr. Tai noticed a global trend towards the need for coatings to separate pipelines in technological systems, especially for technical rooms, machine rooms, industrial production plants, residential buildings, offices, and commercial centers.
Previously, when implementing routing, many places used colored arrows and added some text for annotation to distinguish between pipeline systems. However, during the work process, some employees who were not proficient in foreign languages made mistakes in their operations.
Through numerous lessons learned from operating technical systems, in many advanced countries, government agencies have used color-coded routing tapes, with each system assigned a specific color.
In Australia and the United States, detailed regulations exist regarding the use of color coding for piping systems to facilitate identification, operation, and maintenance, preventing confusion and errors by workers. For example, workers might mistakenly turn on a water valve instead of a pneumatic valve, or switch between the supply and return water systems, causing disruption to the entire system. Typical standards include AS 1345-1995 in Australia and ANSI/ASME A13.1 in the United States, which help operators identify the components within the pipeline.
The chilled water supply and return piping system in the machine room is insulated with colored PVC moisture-separating tape according to ANSI standards.
In South Korea, regulatory agencies have also clearly distinguished different colors corresponding to gas systems, compressed air systems, water supply systems, water return systems, chilled water systems, drainage systems, etc. When conducting business operations abroad, Korean organizations and businesses, as a matter of habit, also set similar requirements.
The trend of using colored tape for routing has now been adopted in Japan, Taiwan (China), and other countries.
Vietnam is also following the global trend. The market for the production and consumption of colored PVC tape is expanding, serving diverse needs of daily life. While the use of colored tape for routing systems, as in developed countries, is not yet widespread, there is significant potential for future growth.
Currently, Mr. Tai's company has begun to build a customer base using colored PVC tape for piping systems as required by large projects such as Samsung (Thai Nguyen, Bac Ninh), Foxconn ( Bac Giang ), LG (Hai Phong), JNTC (Phu Tho), etc., actively contributing to the formation of a consumer trend for using colored PVC tape in the supporting industries sector in Vietnam.
"The secret to attracting customers" for small businesses.
It could be said that SK's subcontractor in Malaysia helped ProDeTech land this "windfall" order. However, ProDeTech's luck didn't just happen by chance.
The order could not be finalized if ProDeTech's products did not meet the quality and design requirements. The tape products have won over Malaysian customers because of their clean and smooth surface meeting ISO 105 A02 standards; tensile strength meeting the American standard ASTM D412, and elongation according to ASTM D545…
Mr. Tai stated that, despite being a small enterprise, ProDeTech has been seriously investing in research and development of technology for many years.
“For a small business like ours, the boss has to double as a research engineer, and we don't have the resources to establish large research and development departments. However, we always recognize that investing in technology research plays a crucial role in the survival and development of the business. We set a goal for ourselves to have at least three improvements each year, from technology to human resources, business methods, management… to create better products,” Mr. Tai shared.
The production facility in Thuong Tin (Hanoi) has an average output of about 2.5 tons of product per day, averaging 60-70 tons per month, of which 10% is for export.
Beyond simply diversifying the color palette, ProDeTech engineers are also ready to meet many other needs of international customers, such as making products thinner, more durable, and actively modifying their properties…
ProDeTech's exported tape products use up to 80% recycled materials.
Interestingly, ProDeTech's exported tape products use up to 80% recycled materials.
“ProDeTech could use virgin materials, but the price would be difficult to compete with. The tape used for routing systems doesn't necessarily need to use 100% virgin materials like those used in the food and beverage industry. We collect and process the PVC plastic waste that is released into the environment into export-standard tape. This recycling activity contributes to environmental protection and reduces plastic and nylon waste,” the Chairman of ProDeTech emphasized.
Having primarily used Korean products, Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Quyen, Director of Global Th Vina Construction and Trading Company Limited, said: “We have been using ProDeTech products for nearly 5 years now. Previously, insulation tape was only available in black, making it difficult to distinguish pipes during operation. ProDeTech's multi-colored tape helps with moisture protection and allows workers to accurately identify different types of pipes in the factory. ProDeTech's products are of comparable quality to foreign products but at a more reasonable price.”
Quality is the key factor that helps ProDeTech's products surpass many competitors from China, South Korea, and quite a few domestic companies.
Find ways to expand into international markets.
Following Malaysia, many customers in the US and Japan are also showing interest in ProDeTech's colored tape products.
Besides colored wrapping tape, this Vietnamese company also has several other product lines that have generated export revenue to demanding markets, such as: foam rubber gaskets (3Wtape), black adhesive tape (3Wtape), air vents (ProDeTech)... Among these, the air vents are highly trusted by customers in the US, with fairly consistent export volumes.
ProDeTech Chairman Nguyen Xuan Tai (right) introduces colored adhesive tape products to customers at an international exhibition.
According to Chairman Nguyen Xuan Tai, ProDeTech is one of the Vietnamese small and medium-sized enterprises benefiting from the "Made in Vietnam" trend.
"Made in Vietnam" brands originated from attracting foreign direct investment in the technology sector (phones, electronics from Samsung, LG, Foxconn, etc.) to Vietnam. This not only helped Vietnamese brands and products gain more attention from international customers but also brought many other benefits such as job creation and increased tax revenue.
In particular, the arrival of foreign investors has fostered an industrial work ethic and lifestyle within the Vietnamese business community. Many standards have been raised; failure to meet them will reduce a business's chances of survival, or even lead to its demise.
“Vietnamese brands and products ‘Made in Vietnam’ are increasingly trusted in the global market. Thanks to this, young and small businesses in Vietnam have more confidence to invest and work seriously, creating products that meet international needs,” Mr. Tai stated his personal opinion, while also frankly acknowledging that Vietnamese businesses still face many difficulties in international business operations.
“One of the biggest challenges right now is capital flow. Businesses from South Korea, Taiwan (China), Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore… all have strong capital flows and good technology, so they can easily dominate the market. Vietnamese businesses, on the other hand, lack capital, making it difficult to raise funds to buy raw materials and invest in good machinery, which can reduce our competitiveness in terms of product quality,” Mr. Tai lamented.
Returning to ProDeTech, amidst the surrounding difficulties, we can only set a modest goal: In the next 3 years, we aim to increase the export volume of colored tape products from the current 10% of total production to 20%.
The Chairman of ProDeTech hopes for more support from Vietnamese government agencies, associations, and organizations abroad, so that businesses don't have to struggle to navigate foreign markets on their own.
The chairman of ProDeTech shares a common desire with many other Vietnamese business leaders: to receive more support from Vietnamese government agencies, associations, and organizations abroad, so that businesses do not have to struggle to navigate foreign markets on their own.
"Vietnamese trade promotion organizations, especially trade attachés in other countries, need to be more active and closely connected with the Vietnamese business community. If they see opportunities to promote domestic products, they should quickly connect with and support businesses so that they can seize the opportunity to expand revenue and influence for 'Made in Vietnam' products in the international market," Mr. Tai recommended.
Vietnamnet.vn
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