Having seen a 500 percent annual growth in China over the last year, FLIR Security is betting high on the rapid-growing Asian market, and plans to expand in the region with a major focus on high-value projects. Speaking to a&s recently, Marc Chan, Business Development Manager for Security in Asia Pacific Region ela
Having seen a 500 percent annual growth in China over the last year, FLIR Security is betting high on the rapid-growing Asian market, and plans to expand in the region with a major focus on high-value projects.
Speaking to a&s recently, Marc Chan, Business Development Manager for Security in Asia Pacific Region elaborated on the company's performance in the continent and its outlook for the future amid growing competition.
“We have the highest growth in China,” Chan said. “We're talking about a 500 percent year- on-year. It's a fast-growing market for us, but it's highly competitive as well.”
A major part of FLIR's revenue growth in China has been from critical infrastructure protection. Critical infrastructure such as airports and railway has seen an unprecedented increase in China, as the country's government takes strong measures to boost its developing economy. Other Asian emerging economies are also expected to follow suit.
FLIR, on its part, aims to leverage its strength in thermal cameras to penetrate the market.
“We are looking at deploying more of the thermal cameras in verticals across North and Southeast Asia,” Chan said. “From airports and railway to even fish farms, wherever large areas need to be protected and regular daylight cameras cannot do the job, is where we come in.”
“The market is getting a lot of attention in terms of thermal security products, and we are seeing more entrants from Chinese and other European manufacturers,” Chan said. “So we are trying to raise the awareness of end users and systems integrators (SI) in general.”
Chan added that the company will continue to focus on its main strength, which is perimeter security, but will be looking to work with SIs and other solution providers to incorporate their products into a solution-based offering. Outside perimeter security, FLIR's cameras are currently being used in a range of verticals, including the retail sector, for purposes such as people counting.
At present the company works with several partners in the region, and intends to continue looking for more to work with. But Chan said that they refrain from looking for big brand names alone and gives more importance to companies that are strong in their channels and local market penetration. In what seems to be a shift from the company's market strategy in the West, in Asia FLIR is looking to work with partners who have a strong footprint in their respective countries.