Passive Components

Mainland China and Taiwan are the world's manufacturing centers for passive components, making 979 billion resistors, capacitors and inductors in 2004. Production is forecast to grow by 16% in 2005.

Which supplier is best equipped to handle your orders? What are the best sourcing options for you in this vibrant supply market? Whose products comply with international standards?

Find the answers in the updated, 2nd edition of this best-selling report. With profiles of 164 companies at your fingertips, you'll get the facts you need to benchmark current suppliers and shortlist new ones.

Plus, you'll benefit from a detailed industry overview, analysis of emerging product trends, specifications for key export products and much more.

What you'll get

In-depth profiles of 50 key passive component manufacturers in mainland China and Taiwan, including details on production capacities, export markets, quality standards and new products. Based on personal factory visits and interviews with senior managers, this information is available nowhere else

Short profile tables of 114 additional producers, highlighting key sourcing data such as manufacturing processes, monthly output figures and R&D initiatives

At-a-glance information on 150 of the most popular export resistors, capacitors and inductors, with top-line specifications and full-color pictures

The results of Global Sources' latest supplier survey, forecasting price, product, production and R&D trends for the next 12 months

This report covers: capacitors, resistors, inductors and chip components

How you'll benefit

Shortlist manufacturers that supply to the world's most renowned brands such as Clarion, Honeywell, LG, Mabuchi, Panasonic, Philips and Thomson

Discover which producers are focusing on the manufacture of passive components specifically for use in automotive electronics, a key supply-market driver

Learn how R&D investments in smaller chip components will impact the quality and price of products you order in the future

Benefit from quick-to-use summary listings covering all featured suppliers with easy-to-compare statistics, as well as verified company details

Executive summary

Mainland China has nearly 1,200 makers of passive components. In 2004, it turned out 440 billion units of passive components, according to the China Electronic Components Association (CECA). Output is forecast to reach 528.4 billion units, a 20 percent increase, in 2005.

Most of the passive component manufacturers in mainland China are based in the Pearl River Delta and the Yangtze River Delta regions, where major industrial zones are located. About 160 companies are either foreign-owned or foreign-invested.

In Taiwan, passive component makers turned out 539 billion units of capacitors and resistors in 2004. Output is projected to reach 606 billion units, an increase of more than 12 percent, in 2005.

Apart from production in Taiwan, about 50 of the 500-strong Taiwan-owned companies have manufacturing facilities in mainland China. Several companies also maintain production in other regions.

The passive component industries in mainland China and Taiwan are driven by demand from the consumer electronics, IT, communications and automotive electronics sectors.

Among other findings of this report are:

On production in Mainland China
In 2004, resistor production was estimated at 210 billion units. Output is estimated to increase to 252 billion in 2005

In 2004, capacitor output was estimated at 222 billion units. This is forecast to increase to 266 billion in 2005.

The inductor segment produced about 8 billion units in 2004. It is estimated that production will reach 10.4 billion in 2005.

For 2005, output of chip resistors and chip capacitors, mainly MLCCs, are estimated at 200 billion and 160 billion units respectively.

On production by Taiwan-owned companies
About 60 percent of passive components produced by Taiwan-owned companies are made in mainland China factories. However, Taiwan remains a key production base

Resistor production in Taiwan reached 305 billion units in 2004. It is forecast to reach 330 billion in 2005.

In 2004, Taiwan produced 233 billion capacitors. This is projected to increase to 276 billion in 2005.

While inductors are produced in Taiwan, production only comprises a small segment of the passive component industry

On exports from mainland China and Taiwan
Exports accounted for about 60 percent of the passive components produced in mainland China and Taiwan in 2004. Mainland China exported about 166.4 billion units while Taiwan shipped 415 billion.

Mainland China's exports are forecast to reach 199 billion units in 2005.

Taiwan is expected to ship 416 billion units

More than 900 mainland China makers have export capability. About 200 in Taiwan have export capability.

Major export destinations are North America, Western Europe, the Middle East and Southeast Asia.

Industry overview

Introduction
Mainland China and Taiwan are the world's production centers for passive components. Mainland China has nearly 1,200 makers, Taiwan has about 500. Together, they produce about 980 billion units of passive components, primarily in the form of capacitors, resistors and inductors.

Initially, Taiwan makers set up shop in mainland China to do their testing and packaging processes. However, in 2003, Taiwan-based makers started to set up production lines in mainland China, particularly in Guangdong.

Capacitors
Mainland China is the world's largest manufacturing base for capacitors, accounting for about 50 percent of capacitors produced. About 42 percent of mainland China's passive component makers manufacture capacitors.

The overall output of capacitors in mainland China reached 185 billion units in 2003, according to the China Electronic Components Association (CECA), increasing by 14.41 percent year-on-year. Output was estimated to have reached 222 billion units in 2004. In 2005 and 2006, the capacitor industry in mainland China expects to gain a steady 20 percent growth.

Production of capacitors accounts for more than 60 percent of Taiwan's passive component industry. About 7.6 percent of the world's capacitor supply comes from Taiwan makers. Taiwan's global market share in the MLCC segment is about 30 percent and in the aluminum electrolytic capacitor segment, 6 to 8 percent.

Taiwan raked in US$923 million in sales turnover for capacitors in 2004. Sales revenues are forecast to reach US$1.02 billion and US$1.13 billion in 2005 and 2006 respectively, according to the Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI). Unit production is forecast to reach 276 billion by 2005 and 330 billion in 2006.

Notebook PCs are the strongest demand driver, with each unit configured to use over 800 MLCCs.

Resistors
At present there are 300 to 400 resistor manufacturers in mainland China. In 2003, resistor makers produced about 164 billion units of resistors. In 2004, output hovered between 210 billion units and 215 billion units, which represents roughly 30 percent of the world's production. Meanwhile, Taiwan resistor makers ship 13 to 15 percent of global requirements. The global market share of Taiwan-based companies for chip resistors is higher, at about 37 percent.

Samples of supplier profile

ABC Taiwan Electronics Corp.
ABC Taiwan Electronics Corp., a publicly listed company, began mass production of electronic components in 1979. Inductors and transformers used to be its main product lines, but focus has since shifted to chip inductors in response to the surge in demand for handheld devices.

At present, the company's product range consists basically of wound chips, MLCCs, power inductors and inductor beads. It also develops and manufactures axial- and radial-type inductors, radial chokes, power chokes, wide-band chokes, filter coils and bead coils among others. Most of these components find applications in cable modems and ASDL, as well as in computer peripherals and a wide variety of consumer electronic appliances.

ABC Taiwan went into exports in 1981. The company exports 80 percent of its total output. Europe absorbs the largest share at 35 percent, while markets in Southeast Asia absorb 24 percent. Domestic buyers take in 20 percent of total output. In 2003, the company realized overall sales of US$12.8 million. ODM accounts for 30 percent of overall sales.

Manufacturing capability
ABC Taiwan's newly established 2,600-square-meter factory in Shanghai began mass production in August of 2004.

This is in addition to the company's 1,650-square-meter factory in Taiwan and two others in Guangzhou spanning 8,400 square meters and 24,000 square meters respectively. Business offices, on the other hand, are maintained in Taoyuan, Taiwan.

The factory in Taiwan produces 6 million chip inductors monthly or 35 percent of the company's total chip inductor output. The factories in Guangzhou churn out the remaining production of 10 million chip inductors monthly.

Production of through-hole inductors has been outsourced to two mainland-based subcontractors. These account for 10 to 15 percent of overall sales.

Quality standards
ABC Taiwan has secured a number of certificates to ensure that the quality of its products, facilities and management systems are up to par with industry standards. Among these are the ISO 9001, ISO 14000, TS 16949 and QS 9000 certificates.

ABC Taiwan's components are used on BMW cars, Siemens handsets, Alcatel converters, Ericsson wireless base stations, Sagem ASDL and Motorola cable modems.

This focus on quality extends as well to customer services and aftersales services.

To better cater to its overseas markets, branch offices have been set up in France and in San Jose, California in the United States. A similar office has also been set up in Shanghai to oversee all sales and marketing efforts in mainland China. This is in addition to its offices in Beijing and Guangzhou, which focus mainly on markets in the central and southern parts of the mainland.

Currently, ABC Taiwan exports from ports in Hong Kong and Keelung. Preparations are being undertaken to allow it to ship from Shanghai.

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