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Vietnam has come a long way since the early eighties, and a good example of this progress is the growth of the country’s steel producing and steel manufacturing industries. Vietnam’s steel producers and manufacturers have emerged to become major players in the region and respected members of the international business community, and is still growing strong.
But when most people consider Vietnam as a business destination they tend to think only of Saigon and Hanoi with the rest of the country going relatively unnoticed. However, the country’s third largest city, Da Nang has been experiencing some phenomenal growth over the past 10 years, and as with all regions that experience such rapid development, industry soon follows.
On his visit to the Central Region of Vietnam International Metalworking News for Asia (IMNA) had a good look at the local steel manufacturing industry, and at the same time caught up with Mr Ho Thai Hoa, Managing Director of VNECO.SSM, a local steel manufacturer making big structures, to get some local knowledge and find out more about their company’s products and services.
IMNA: Could you tell me about the company’s history and the products and services you offer?
Mr Ho: Well SSM (VNECO.SSM – Steel Structure Manufacturer Joint Stock Company) had their start in 2001, but at that time we were trading as Da Nang Steel Manufacture Factory. In early 2006 we adopted our present trading name SSM, and as the name implies, we manufacture, sell and construct steel structures; predominantly to the electrical supply and telecommunication industries, but we also have a growing area that focuses on the manufacturing of pre-engineered steel buildings.
IMNA: You mentioned a lot of your products and services supply the electrical transmission and telecommunication sectors. Are these industry sectors still experiencing good growth in Vietnam?
Mr Ho: Yes, that’s true, our company’s main products supply electricity transmission and telecommunications towers for major infrastructure and commercial projects, but the present demand is not what I would describe as being high when compared to previous years, and as with a lot of businesses throughout the world it’s becoming increasingly difficult to assess future industry growth, but in general I would say we’re doing well in difficult times, and as always, we maintain a positive outlook for the future.
IMNA: Do you manufacture standard off-the-shelf products or are you products made to the customer’s specifications?
Mr Ho: The Company’s products are manufactured according to standards of the electrical and telecommunications industries, which sets out clear guidelines regarding manufacturing. However, as I’m sure you can appreciate the type of large infrastructure projects we supply; that is electrical and telecommunication towers, there’s never an off the shelf product solution. Additionally, our other product groups such as pre-engineered building are all made to the customer’s specification. You need to remember as well that manufacturing our products is one thing we do, but we’re also responsible for their construction, which I’m sure you can appreciate requires a great deal of specialised skills.
IMNA: How do SSM products stand out from your competitors? How would you describHow do S&M products stand out from your competitors? How would you describe your market strategy regarding your products and services?
Mr Ho: As I mentioned before, our products are manufactured to customer specifications for specific infrastructure projcts, and as with all large scale projects they need to come in on time and budget. SSM's strategy to maintain and grow our market share has always been to provide our customers with a high quality product at a competitive price, we're also very conscious of our product delivery times and after sales service as a way maintaining customer retention. SSM feels so strongly about our approach to product, price and customer service quality that it forms the foundation of the company's mssion statement.