Part 2: Vietnam, a potential destination for Drag Chains

In part 2 of our topic "Drag chains - Solutions for future motion applications", Mr. Bilal Ismail - Area Sales Manager for Asia (minus China) will continue to share about 7 factors that impact the demand for drag chains in the Vietnam market.

*How do you assess the demand for drag chains in the Vietnam market?

As in other countries, the advancement of machinery and moving equipment also affects the demand for drag chains in the Vietnamese market. Even though I don't have real-time data on this demand, I can provide you with several factors that affect the demand for drag chains such as Industrial Automation; Automation & robotics; Infrastructure development; Renewable energy sector; Productivity and Efficiency; Product quality and Maintenance & Retrofitting of the manufacturing plant.

Firstly, Vietnam is a developing country in terms of industries, especially towards industrialization and modernization with many machines. In particular, the trend of applying automation and robots to production has also increased significantly. Moreover, the Vietnamese market plays a pivotal role between the West and China. For this reason, this is where when we develop or enhance our infrastructure, we also need to focus on productivity and efficiency. In other countries, as the economy begins to industrialize, over time the occupational skills of the workforce will also be enhanced. Hence, modern machines are also required.

The only way to participate in increasing productivity is to apply automation and use advanced machines and equipment. Therefore, the operability and ease of maintenance of equipment and machines are also paid more attention. In particular, the drag chain is one of the optimal supporting devices for factory automation, with the advantage of not requiring too much maintenance.

Drag chains must meet market needs and are suitable for all industries. In Vietnam, we need to follow the global market, and this is why the development of drag chains and cables must always keep up with the trends to serve the needs of industries and globalization.

*Regarding the fields where we can easily see the application of the drag chains, which fields do you think of?

Drag chains, also known as cable chains or energy chains, are applied in many industries. You can refer to some sectors below.

• Machinery manufacturing: Drag chains are used to manage cables and hoses in many devices such as CNC machines, industrial robots, assembly lines, etc.
• Automation and robotics: Cable chains in this field play a crucial role not only in helping to manage cables and hoses during movement but also in ensuring power, signal, and fluid supply to the robotic arm.
• Material handling and conveyor systems: This is a huge field, whatever material you need to pick up or put into an automatic movement, you need a drag chain to ensure precise and efficient movement.
• Automotive industry: In Vietnam, the VinFast car brand was born and partly shows the progress of the automobile industry. The automotive industry relies on drag chains to manage cables in various applications, including automotive assembly lines, welding robots, paint booths, conveyor systems, and automated storage and retrieval systems (ASRS).

Besides the above popular sectors, we can talk about heavy industries, for instance, the cement and mining industry. These sectors have also evolved a lot and require more automation.

Moreover, we can also easily see the application of drag chains in the construction or mining industry. These are the industries that need a lot of our drag chains for earth drills, and in this case, plastic chains are not a suitable choice.

Finally, in the medical and healthcare sector, you can see today that all the scanners, MRIs, X-rays, everything is automated, so it also requires drag chains.

The versatility and reliability of drag chains make them essential parts of machinery in many industries. The drag chain is like our spine, where all the nerves and everything are inside. If the spine is damaged, you will be paralyzed. Therefore, the use of drag chains is to protect and manage cables because if the cables are damaged, the machinery cannot move and operate.

In conclusion, with the sharing of Mr. Bilal Ismail, the demand for using drag chains in Vietnam is growing in popularity to meet the global automation trend. It is also one of the effective support devices in the production process, to minimize losses in automation applications that require high-frequency movements.

Please read part 3 of our topic “Drag Chains – Solutions for future motion applications” on August 8, 2023.

OTHER POSTS >>> Part 1: The Story of drag chains

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