Motorcycle Taiwan and EV Taiwan 2011 Make for 2-in-1 Event

To promote Taiwan's motorcycle, equipment and green vehicle technologies, the Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA) this year combined the 6th Taiwan International Motorcycle Industry Show (Motorcycle Taiwan 2011) with the inaugural Taiwan Int'l Electric Vehicle Show (EV Taiwan 2011).

Held in the Taipei World Trade Center (TWTC) Exhibition Hall 1 April 14-17, the two-in-one event hosted 235 exhibitors across 648 booths, and drew 18,248 visitors (including 1,661 overseas buyers), with the top-10 buyer nations being Japan, China, the U.S., Thailand, Malaysia, Korea, Indonesia, Singapore, Australia, and Germany.

The show organizer TAITRA said the twin format redefines both sectors like no other shows before.

Motorcycle Taiwan 2011
Motorcycle Taiwan is an annual event that exhibits the complete supply chain and customization capabilities of the local, international powered two-wheeler (PTW) industry.

Taiwan has over five decades of experience manufacturing motorcycles, with scooters exported to Europe being top-sellers. Motorcycle Taiwan 2011 featured up-, mid-, and downstream manufacturers showcasing parts, riding accessories and equipment for manufacturing, testing, and maintenance.

The event saw domestic exhibitors as AEON, Nan Hoang Traffic Instruments, NCY, Yih Jing Traffic Industrial, Exustar, Union Material, ACCEL, King Tony, Acewell, DNM, Johnwayne, K Star, and Haihao Technology, as well as foreign suppliers from France, Spain, Japan, China, and Hong Kong.

Besides being OEMs of parts to big-name PTW makers such as Triumph, Ducati, Harley, Piaggio, and many others, a group of suppliers in Taiwan are also globally known for customization capacities, able to build high-end parts for custom vehicles, with such capabilities shown to global buyers at the trade fair to demonstrate also their dedication to R&D and production to meet international performance, safety, and appearance standards.

In addition to identifying market needs and improving product performance, makers of custom and performance parts also aim to include designed obsolescence and enhance services.

Custom-Bike Show
The organizer set up the Customized Bike Show this year to focus on makers' customization capacities.

Under the four themes of "Speed Beast Let Loose", "Easy Riding: Elegant on Wheels", "Wild Thing Styles" and "Sweet City Knights", the event attracted well-known custom-bike and -scooter makers from home and abroad, developers and manufacturers of parts and accessories, as well as custom-bike clubs to the customization competition, whose creations were judged by foreign, domestic experts and even the visitors.

Despite attendance by major PTW manufacturers this year as Aeon Motor Co., Ltd., Her Chee Industrial Co., Ltd., and Adiva Co, Ltd., other major players as Kwang Yang Motor Co., Ltd. (KYMCO), Sanyang Industry Co., Ltd. (SYM), Taiwan Golden Bee (TGB) chose not to participate.

Industry sources say that Motorcycle Taiwan has been staged six times, with Taiwan's leading PTW brands having attended only twice or three times, a trend that will dilute willingness of most key parts suppliers in Taiwan to be exhibitors.

Although the scale of Motorcycle Taiwan has been shrinking, industry insiders say most export-oriented local suppliers are eager to attend major international motorcycle shows as INTERMOT Cologne, EICMA in Milan, Dealer Expo in the U.S. etc.

Inaugural EV Taiwan
Responding to the global demand for eco-protection and green technologies, the inaugural EV Taiwan 2011 captured global attention as one of the few trade events worldwide dedicated to electric vehicles.

With reported capacities in vehicle making and assembly, parts and component production, lithium-ion battery production, and motor and powertrain solution development, Taiwan is well positioned to stage the international e-vehicle show that has the potential to be a key event with global significance.

Taiwan's officially-backed Rising Green Energy Industry Project has helped to rapidly, successfully develop all kinds of EVs, including e-bikes, e-scooters, and various battery electric vehicles (BEV), plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV).

Integrated Supply
The island's EV vehicle industry, consisting of upstream battery and material suppliers to downstream carmakers, has gradually formed an integrated supply chain to play an increasingly important role in the global EV segment. Taiwanese suppliers have tapped into the supply chains of international auto and EV makers, manufacturing key parts as battery packs, motors, and mechanical parts for the Mini E, Tesla, Fisker, Ford Escape hybrid etc., as well as offering customized design and R&D.

In the burgeoning e-car market, several Taiwanese makers are in the fast lane; while local brands—including Yulon's Luxgen and Tobe, and Pihsiang Machinery Manufacturing Co., Ltd.—are paving the way for a new generation of Taiwan-made e-cars.

EV Taiwan 2011 brings together Taiwan's major EV manufacturers, their two-wheeled to four-wheeled models and key parts to systems, with names as Luxgen, Tobe, All Win, Pihsiang, DK City, Kymco, Fukuta, Chroma, Simplo and Amita. Another focus was the big pavilion set up by the domestic Taiwan Automotive Research Consortium (TARC)--the key R&D body for automotive, EV products and technologies with four founding members: the Mechanical and System Research Laboratories (MSL) of Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI), the Automotive Research and Testing Center (ARTC), the Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology (CSIST), and the Metal Industries Research and Development Center (MIRDC), which also housed about 120 private suppliers and manufacturers.

The TARC showcased their latest R&D results, including assembled e-cars, e-bicycles, e-scooters, lithium-ion batteries for e-vehicles, lithium batteries, fuel cells, battery modules, battery chargers, charging stations, motors and parts/accessories, motor controllers, DC motors for cars, drive and motor systems, and battery test equipment.

Multifunctional
TAITRA also arranged various practical and entertaining events, including industry forums, seminars, custom-bike competition, test rides, procurement meetings, and new product presentations.

Custom-Bike Competition
Motorcycle buffs have always expressed themselves through the bikes they buy, ride and customize, with bike designers and customizers also eager to develop products to cater to such lifestyles that demand bikes to be more than mere transportation.

The Customized Bike Competition drew many customization shops and bike/scooter fans, whose creations were judged online and by professional judges, who picked 70 winners that were displayed to wow many fans.

The success of the motorcycle event is partly attributable to the wide popularity of PTWs in Taiwan, home to a global production base of mid-to-high-end scooters and a major market for such PTWs, the majority of about 600,000-80,000 vehicles being scooters, all of which buoy a sizable parts, performance-tuning sector.

The Customized Bike Competition also gave a stage to the local scooter-tuning industry and customizing buffs who showed off their creations.

TAIFE Forum

To build links to the international EV industry, the TARC held the two-day 2011 Taiwan Automotive International Forum & Exhibition (TAIFE) in cooperation with TAITRA.

The issues discussed included the current developments shaping electric vehicles in France and the U.S., intelligent vehicle electronics, advanced safety systems, EV parts and components etc., with speakers from France's DGCIS, American BlueSky Productions, Ford China, Singapore's Infineon, and local major players as Delta Electronics and TECO.

Participants agreed that the development of intelligent EVs is inevitable and that Taiwan's manufacturers are expected to share a critical role in the global EV supply chain due to Taiwan's superior R&D capability in ICT, software and key EV parts.

The seminars covered almost every facet of electric vehicles, including EV prospects, Taiwan's EV supply chain advantages, developments in EV technology, smart vehicle electronics and advanced safety systems and the current state of EV parts. Attendees were also updated on the current, prospective developments of electric vehicles in France, the U.S. and China.

The seminar on New Trends in the Electric Vehicle Industry saw participants listen to executives from Hua-chuang Automobile Information Technical Center Co. Ltd. (HAITEC, the firm that designed and produced the first e-car LUXGEN in Taiwan) and Amita Technologies Inc. (a major lithium-ion battery supplier in Taiwan), and Fukuta Elec. & Mach. Co., Ltd. (motor supplier to EV manufacturers as Tesla), who shared views on current R&D and production conditions in Taiwan and the prospects of Taiwan's EV industry.

The EV Advanced Propulsion Driving System (EV-APDS) Seminar saw experts from industry, government and academia discuss the technologies in Taiwan's EV industry.

Domestic and foreign speakers agreed that in response to the global appeals for eco-protection and green trends, electric vehicles are highly valued in the international car industry which in turn has spurred R&D and production; while Taiwan has potential to be a key player backed by advantages in its supply chain.

2011 Motorcycle Taiwan International Forum

Helping manufacturers identify the latest international trends amid rising fuel prices, TAITRA held the "2011 Motorcycle Taiwan International Forum" with the theme "In Focus: Analyzing New Business Opportunities in the Global Scooter Industry."

Fujio Yoshimura, president of Yoshimura Co. (a renowned customized vehicle brand in Japan), Chen Wen-long, president of Nova Design Co., Ltd. (the largest industrial and vehicle design company in Taiwan), and W. F. Hwang, section chief of Taiwan Transportation Vehicle Manufacturers Association (TTVMA) analyzed the latest trends in the global motorcycle industry with an international perspective, which enabled attendees to identify global market trends, better see export advantages held by Taiwan's motorcycle industry, and more lucrative opportunities.

Motorcycle & EV Test Rides
Aeon, KYMCO, E-TON, KENTFA, DIJIYA, EFA, Masterhold, Green Diamond Power, and Asia Pacific Fuel Cell offered 36 new vehicles—including e-cars, e-motorcycles, e-bikes (two-wheeled and three-wheeled models), and four-wheeled scooters— to enable fans and visitors to experience first-hand the new features, performance and comfort of such green vehicles.

New Product Presentation

Taiwan motorcycle manufacturers, backed by globally-recognized products, displayed their latest products this year, including the hottest e-motorcycles, e-bikes, luggage boxes, motorcycle harnesses and safety jackets.

To maximize business opportunities, TAITRA contacted its overseas offices to encourage motorcycle and electric vehicle buyers to visit the two-in-one event, having invited 87 large foreign businesses from Germany, Luxemburg, the Netherlands, China, and Indonesia.