The security market looks lucrative, but it’s tough to crack. Small and medium-sized security players around the world are facing heated competition as large multinationals are getting even bigger through M&As and low-end Chinese manufacturers are fast catching up by quickly narrowing the technology gap. Though the opportunities exist and possibilities are limitless, gaining a foothold in this market is very difficult, especially for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs). This is why CNB Technology, a Korean CCTV camera manufacturer, is drawing our attention.
As an SME, the company’s export exceeded US$30 million mark in 2006 and the achievement was recognized by the Korean government with an award. In 2007, CNB Technology grew even faster with over US$77 million in sales, a 40% increase over the previous year. CNB Technology is one of the few companies that enjoy strong, continued growth in the video surveillance industry.
Jeanny Lim, Editor-in-Chief of SecurityWorld INT’L, sat down with Bong-Hoon Yu, new CEO & President of CNB Technology, to find out whats behind the companys remarkable growth and talk about its journey toward becoming the worlds No. 1 security camera player.
By Jeanny Lim
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“Our growth in 2007 was
phenomenal and
we’re working toward
becoming one of the top 5
security camera players in 2008.”
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Bong-Hoon Yu, CEO & President, CNB Technology |
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Jeanny Lim CNB Technology is one of the fastest growing CCTV camera manufacturers and its brand is rapidly gaining popularity in the international security industry. Could you please introduce the background to the establishment of CNB Technology?
Bong-Hoon Yu We had seen a great potential in the CCTV camera business before we decided to start a company in the security field. CCTV cameras need to work 24/7 to provide continuous surveillance. And that requires continuous upgrade or replacing of cameras, which means the demand would never fall. We saw the opportunity there.
And the financial crisis in Korea in the late 90s actually worked to our advantage. At that time a lot of skilled engineers got laid off and we were able to recruit some of the finest developers we had been in contact with. So we set up our headquarters in Southern Seoul and moved right off toward developing zoom cameras.
Today, CNB Technology has grown to be one of the leading CCTV camera suppliers in the world and has set a goal of becoming one of the top five CCTV camera producers in 2008 and the world’s top in 2010.
JL What do you think is the driving force behind the dramatic growth you have achieved in recent years?
BHY From the very begining, our weapon of choice in the battle for success was high technology zoom camera. It is not an easy job for a small company to develop such a high-tech camera because most SMEs do not have the time nor the resources to devote to developing such a sophisticated technology and solving related technical problems. However, we did it and we did it nicely. We made broad technology investments, and when our first zoom camera was successfully developed and launched, we even more accelerated our investments into research and development of the zoom camera technology. That way we have been able to deliver continued technological breakthroughs and advance the state of zoom camera technology providing some top-of-the-line products.
On the marketing front, unlike many other SMEs, we have been engaging in brand marketing from the very begining. We believed that’s the way to go and I think we were right. As our brand grows, demand for our products grows too.
Our sales strategies and approaches have been very aggressive. They have been particularly successful in China. Our success in the China market has been the cornerstone for increasing our brand equity and sales in the intrnational market. We now have more than 150 key customers in 60 countries of the world with whom we generate astounding sales.
In 2006, our export exceeded US$30 million and we were recognized with an award by the Korean government for the great achievement. In 2007, we grew even faster with over US$77 million in sales, a 40% increase over the previous year.
We believe we are one of the few companies who enjoy strong, continued growth in the CCTV industry. 2007 was a year that marked a milestone on our journey toward becoming the number one security camera player in the world.
JL Please introduce some of your major products.
BHY Our major products are traditional CCTV cameras including zoom cameras, speed dome cameras, high resolution box cameras and dome cameras. Sales generated by these products are the key bottom line contributor.
To keep pace with the trend toward networked digital security, we will focus our efforts on launching high quality network cameras this year. When it comes to dual codec network camera, we will have 3-megapixel box cameras and VGA-level dome cameras on the product line and then we will expand the line by adding zoom cameras, speed dome cameras and video servers.
We believe our network cameras will have cutting-edge competitiveness with our well-known expertise and know-hows in camera technology combined with the very flexible digital and software technology.
JL Where do you think your strength comes from? Pleae tell us some of the competitive edges that differentiate CNB Technology from competitors?
BHY Our biggest strength comes from our world-class zoom camera technology. And we have our manufacturing base in Shenzhen, China, which allows us to be far more cost-competitive in the world arena. The success of the Shenzhen manufacturing base has given us a significant boost to our manufacturing competitiveness. In 2005, we established a U.S. subsidiary. The U.S. subsidiary has been employing localized marketing and sales strategies and is expected to help us gain a strong foothold in the U.S. security market. The two overseas subsidiaries have been and will be playing a big role in expanding our market and building a stronger presence in the international security industry.
Jeanny Lim is Editor-in-Chief of SecurityWorld INT’L. Send your comments to swied@infothe.com.
For more information, please send your e-mails to swm@infothe.com.
ⓒ2007 www.SecurityWorldMag.com. All rights reserved.
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