The core materials of blockbuster products are in short supply, and the delivery date of purchase orders is delayed... Due to the impact of the COVID-19, the production and market of Dow Optics Co., Ltd. are facing many uncertainties. But in the eyes of Hu Zhibiao, the chairman of the company, the epidemic has also brought opportunities to the enterprise, and it has triggered a new wave of technological innovation for Daoming Optics Company.

The company has established a project team for highly transparent and weather resistant PMMA films. Based on the integration of existing equipment and processes, the company has optimized industrial design and development processes, reasonably selected technical routes, and focused on technological breakthroughs. The company has successfully developed highly transparent and weather resistant PMMA films and completed the key step of comprehensive localization of micro prism reflective materials, breaking through the monopolies of Japan and Germany in this field.

Accelerating resumption of production and seeking breakthroughs against the trend

Domestic and foreign peers have placed orders for the industrialization of core materials

In the R&D center laboratory of Daoming Optics Company, the research project team led by R&D Director Wang Hong utilized ultra precision optical microscopes to further develop micro prism reflective materials. Significant breakthroughs have been made in the research and industrialization of emerging materials such as quantum dot films, PC/PMMA composite films (plates), and polyimide (CPI) films.

"After the outbreak of the epidemic, shipping channels in countries such as Japan and Germany were temporarily closed, leading to a shortage of highly transparent and weather resistant PMMA films, the core material of micro prism reflective products. The reason is that PMMA films are currently only available from a few international companies such as Mitsubishi, Zhongyuan, and Yingchuang in Germany. This means that production by Daoming Optics is greatly restricted," said Chairman Hu Zhibiao.

As one of the leading enterprises in the domestic reflective material industry, Daoming Optics Company's flagship product, the micro prism reflective product, has developed rapidly. While filling the domestic gap, this product has steadily increased its market share, becoming the largest local production and sales enterprise second only to an international company.

Faced with the dilemma of core material supply shutdown, Daoming Optics Company faced the challenge and established a research and development project team with six core technical personnel, integrating experts and discipline leaders from foreign colleges and universities, to accelerate the research pace of high transparency and high weather resistance PMMA films. After the project team worked day and night to tackle key issues, the company successfully developed highly transparent and weather resistant PMMA films, and quickly achieved industrialization, breaking the monopoly of foreign oligarchs.

As of now, Daoming Optics Company's high transparency and high weather resistance PMMA film production line has replaced imports by more than 2 million square meters, and the production cost of micro prism reflective film has been reduced by nearly 50%. In addition to highly transparent and weather resistant PMMA films, the company has also made breakthroughs in the scientific research field of colored and weather resistant PMMA films, and is expected to achieve industrialization in the second half of the year. At that time, Daoming Optics Company will fully break through in the core material field.

The successful development of highly transparent and weather resistant PMMA films by Daoming Optics Company has attracted the attention of domestic and foreign peers, especially some enterprises affected by the epidemic. In March, Korean peers placed an order with the company to purchase highly transparent and weather resistant PMMA film materials, and domestic micro prism reflective product manufacturers such as Hefei and Suzhou have also made small batch purchases. "After a period of product adaptability testing, the sales volume of highly transparent and weather resistant PMMA films will rapidly increase from the third quarter, further seizing the market share of Japanese and German enterprises," said Chairman Hu Zhibiao.

Filling the Market Gap with Two Legs for Domestic and Foreign Trade

"Due to the impact of the epidemic, some projects have insufficient operating rates, leading to a relative contraction of the entire market. However, this situation affects the entire industry. The key to turning danger into opportunity is to be fully prepared," said Chairman Hu Zhibiao.

It is reported that an international company is the main competitor of Daoming Optics, which occupies 70% of the domestic market share and has a brand advantage in the international market. But since the beginning of this year, an international company also needs to withstand the test of market changes.

According to research conducted by Daoming Optics Company on an international company, short-term production capacity shortage has always been the company's weakness, especially when 30% of production capacity is withdrawn to support mask production. The short-term production capacity shortage of an international company will be further amplified. For Daoming Optics, once the market recovers vitality, strong production capacity is an important means for the company to seize the market.

At present, Daoming Optics Company has embarked on a strategy of simultaneously advancing in both domestic and international markets. In the domestic market, the company relies on its own channels for direct sales while developing core distributors for sales, covering the entire country; By participating in public bidding and providing customized products to customers, we aim to provide high-quality, timely, and professional services to customers across the country, and effectively meet the needs of customers in various regions.

In terms of foreign markets, the company selects one to three core distributors in various countries and key regions for sales, and establishes sales subsidiaries in countries such as Brazil, India, South Korea, and Pakistan to achieve localized services, meet customer customization needs, improve sales performance, and further expand overseas markets.