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Interview with John Fix: Manager & Director, Sales and Marketing
DAN: Catch me up, how have things been going at Taiyo since we talked last?
JOHN: A lot has changed since we last talked. We now have a new President, Mr. Kashima and COO, Mr. Fukata. The new leadership is more focused on growing our business in Europe and expanding our markets in the Americas. With this we have realigned our sales and marketing team to better serve our core customers and investigate growing markets that meet our core competencies.
DAN: What is Taiyo America doing to grow into these new markets?
JOHN: Three years ago we hired a marketing specialist, Josh Goldberg, to investigate new markets and now he will be working with Don Monn our new Business Development Sales Manager to do so. In addition, we recently added a new Chemist to our staff at Taiyo America and plan to add another in the next few months. We will definitely have some exciting new products to offer over the next couple of years.
DAN: How has your role changed during that time?
JOHN: My role has shifted slightly towards the marketing side of the traditional sales and marketing function. We are also working more diligently to accomplish our new goals. To do this we have put a lot of effort into gathering marketing data for Europe, as well as new markets in America. We have devised a really good plan and now it is time to execute. We have always had very talented people, so I expect we will be very successful.
DAN: How do you see the market in the US?
JOHN: Based on the feedback from our sales and technical service staff, as well as reviewing sales data, the US market for solder mask has stabilized. The quick-turn / high mix make up in the US market has been stable. The military work seems to shift from one region to another. We have been hearing encouraging news from our customers. For higher end products such as LDI, high temperature applications, via filling and inkjet we are seeing growth. Fortunately, the Taiyo groups have done an exceptional job in product development to achieve the needs of the market. This year we will be releasing our 4th generation LDI solder mask that we anticipate will do very well in the current and future markets.
DAN: In Europe?
JOHN: The European market has definitely been a challenge and the UK and Italy have been hit hard over the past couple of years. On the other hand, German speaking countries seem to be stable except for the closure of Multek, and the automotive and industrial segments in Europe continue to drive the industry's demand. At Taiyo America we have put great emphasis on growing our automotive segment in Europe and have developed some outstanding products that are being introduced right now.
DAN: What do see as the biggest challenge for the PCB industry right now?
JOHN: Electronic components continue to be a big part of our lives. Every day there are new devices that enrich our lives. The PCB industry will continue to grow and for all of us to survive and enjoy that growth, we need to innovate. We have seen the market shift to China, but those in the US that have been able to innovate quickly and stay ahead of the technology curve, have & will continue, to succeed.
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Taiyo Sponsors Hole at Midwest Circuits' Golf Tournament |
Pictured from left to right: Don Monn, Business Development & EU Sls Mgr Taiyo America, Nick Nagan, Sr. Engineer TTM, Steve Billiet, Dir. of Product Engineering TTM & Kurt Seestrom, Blackhawk Marketing |
On the Edge...of LED/OLED
A major technology that is being developed for both lighting and displays is LED (Light Emitting Diode). An LED is a solid-state semiconductor device that emits light when an electrical current is run through it. Typically, materials such as Gallium, Arsenic, Indium, Aluminum, and Selenium are used to form the semi conductive combinations that give off different colors of light. When used in lighting, an LED can offer a significant energy reduction, longer lifetime, and better shock resistance over conventional lighting technologies (ex- incandescent and fluorescent). The initial cost, however, is higher than current lighting technologies.
The other type of device, OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode), uses organic semiconducting polymers or small molecules to emit light when an electrical current is run through it. The materials typically have a large number of double bonds creating a large number of pi-electron orbitals that enable electricity to be conducted. When used in lighting or displays, OLED devices can offer even better energy reduction when compared to LED, they are thinner and lighter than other display technologies, have better response times (this leads to faster refresh rates in displays boosting definition), and can offer a true black color when compared to back lit display technologies. The disadvantages right now are cost (which can be brought down significantly as production ramps up) and lifetime (which can also be improved as the organic semiconductors are made more stable).
Taiyo currently offers products for both LED and OLED devices. We have a new division that is devoted to formulating materials for touch displays that has recently developed a photoimageable conductive silver paste (EPH-300 series). There is also the RCA-3000 product that offers an optically clear coating for the front side of display and lighting devices. The RCA-2000 and S222-F are flexible edge adhesives for lighting and displays. The FOC-800 and BLDS-100 Black can be used as decorative UV curable framing inks for the edge of displays, or as a dielectric material for lighting devices. The PSR-9000 LEW1 (for US markets) and LEW3 (for European markets) are color stable white solder mask materials developed for LED applications.
If you have any questions regarding Displays or Lighting using LED or OLED technologies, please feel free to contact me at [email protected] or at 775.885.9959, x. 132.
Sincerely,
Josh Goldberg
Marketing Specialist |
PRESS RELEASE: Taiyo America
For immediate release
Date: 08/01/2013
Taiyo America realigns with eyes on the future
John Fix, Manager & Director of Sales and Marketing states that "Taiyo America decided to realign to meet current and future needs in North & South America, as well as Europe."
Taiyo America announces that Bob MacRae will now be the Sales Manager for the Eastern Region of the United States, as well as Eastern Canada and South America. Steve Campisi will also be supporting the same territories as Technical Service representative. John Fix stated "Bob MacRae and Steve Campisi make a great team to support our PCB business in North and South America."
Don Monn's new responsibilities are Business Development for North America and Europe, as well as managing PCB sales in Europe. John goes on to say that "Europe is in great hands with Don Monn as he has worked very well in the past growing our business in North and South America through sales distribution and sales reps." Also, Don Monn will be leading our new Business Development sales efforts with Marketing Specialist Josh Goldberg. Fix said "we are realigning to meet the technological needs that our customers expect from Taiyo. As market leaders we have a responsibility to push technology forward and with our new set up we expect great things. "
With his new position in mind, Don Monn commented that "Taiyo America has some exciting new products to introduce and I look forward to working with Josh Goldberg to get these new products and technologies to the market place."
Brian Wojtkiewicz and Pete Binzel will continue with their great sales and service support to the Western Region of North America and Mexico. |
InterSolar North America 2013
The Taiyo America booth at the InterSolar North America event in San Francisco, CA July 9-11 was well represented by John Fix (Mgr & Dir Sls and Mktg), Brian Wojtkiewicz (Western Reg Sls Mgr), Bob MacRae (Eastern Reg Sls Mgr), Josh Goldberg (Mktg Specialist), and Akio Sekimoto (OEM & Tech, Mgr & Dir). It was a great opportunity for our team to gauge the health of the solar industry and to meet with new customers. With attendance well over 26,000 people, it appears that the solar industry is still quite healthy. The conference represented the entire solar chain from materials suppliers to assembly to installers.
Taiyo America's booth featured our dielectric and conductive products for Si and flexible solar cells. Additionally, products for use in solar panel construction were highlighted. The interest was positive enough that we plan to invest in an improved booth design for the InterSolar North America show in 2014.
The LED Show
The LED Show in Las Vegas, NV was held at the Rio Hotel on August 13-15 with Josh Goldberg, Mktg Specialist and Don Monn, Dir of New Products attending from Taiyo America. There were over 2,600 attendees for this year's event with over 100 exhibitors. There were a number of distributors of LED light bulbs, light strips, and lighting fixtures for indoor and outdoor domestic and industrial uses. Additionally, there were also a number of manufacturers of LED light products from Taiwan, South Korea, and China. |
AT...
Booth # F06
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Taiyo America, Inc. is a subsidiary of TAIYO HOLDINGS CO., LTD., the world's leading manufacturer of specialty inks and solder masks for printed circuit boards. Based on Taiyo's own proprietary technology, Taiyo's PSR-4000 liquid photoimageable solder mask products have been patented throughout the world. Taiyo now offers conductive inks for manufacturing printed electronics, solar cells and other applications.
2675 Antler Drive Carson City, NV 89701-1451
Ph: 775-885-9959 Fax: 775-885-9972
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