Industry Press

Taiwan’s manufacturers should attempt to forge a link in the global supply chain of automobile products by developing the global positioning system (GPS) navigation business, urged analyst Hung Shih-jieh of the Industrial Economics & Knowledge Center (IEK). The island is already the world’s biggest supplier of portable navigation device (PND) products.

Huang presented his ideas in a recent article about the global development of automotive navigation systems, and suggested that local makers of navigation devices work harder to tap the original equipment manufacturing (OEM) market, especially in mainland China, in order to improve profit margins and avoid price-slashing competition.

Huang feels that Taiwanese suppliers should develop partnerships with international automakers, or with auto producers in China, which has become the world’s second-largest auto market. One possibility is for them to establish links with automakers in China (including foreign ones operating there) first, and then use those links to connect with the global supply chains of international car companies.

Hung divides the global automotive navigation system market into two major categories: OEM on-board units (OBUs), which are built into new cars, and PNDs, which include single-function PNDs, personal digital assistants (PDAs) with built-in navigation functions, and smartphones with navigation functions.

Prior to 2004, Huang noted, most of the automotive navigation system market consisted of OEM OBUs with specifications and functions worked out jointly by automakers and their first-tier parts suppliers. Most of these OBUs were expensive and included as standard equipment on luxury cars, or were offered as options on medium- and low-priced cars.

A drastic change came about in 2005, when the PND entered the market with a much more affordable price tag and a sales boom ensued. In 2006 sales of OEM OBUs grew 16.2% from the previous year to 7.5 million units, while sales of PNDs skyrocketed 102.1% to 19 million units.

Global Automotive Navigation Market Forecast (2006-2010)

Both figures are expected to continue growing. OEM OBU sales are expected to expand at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11.8% during the 2006-2010 period, reaching about 12.5 million units in 2010; at the same time, PDNs are expected to grow at a CAGR of 39.2%, reaching 73 million units in 2010.

Hung gives two reasons for the much faster growth rate of PDNs. First, he explains, OBU prices are too high for sales to grow rapidly, although some aftermarket OBUs might win popularity as a result of less expensive prices and better integrity than PDNs. Second, OBUs are optional equipment on most new cars, except for those sold in Japan. This too keeps growth down.

In Taiwan, GPS navigation devices have developed rapidly in recent years and are now much more than talking maps. Auto electronics, consumer electronics, home appliance, information and communications technology (ICT), and telecoms company have worked together to give them a much more diverse range of functions including those of MP3 player, digital photo album movie player, and real-time road-condition receiver. They provide information on navigation, recreation, and entertainment, all in a single unit.

Hung lamented the fact that only a handful of companies in Taiwan have successfully tapped into the global supply chains of major automakers. Compared with OEM OBUs, however, PNDs are developing rapidly on the island. PDN products manufactured on the island are sold under many world-class brands, including Garmin, Mio, TomTom, Navman, and Medion.

Major players in the global OEM OBU market include Aisin AW, Panasonic, Pioneer, Denso, Xannavi, Alpine, and Clarion of Japan; Siemens VDO and Bosch of Europe; and Delphi and Visteon of the Untied States. Thanks to its position of leadership in technology development and its huge auto industry, Japan accounts for about 64% of the OEM navigation OBU market worldwide.

According to Hung, the supply chains of Japanese automakers are often closed and difficult for newcomers to penetrate. Japanese OBU suppliers have the advantage here because of their constant innovation, superior quality, and strong system-integration ability. In addition, most of the Japanese manufacturers (Pioneer, Alpine, Panasonic, etc.) are long-term suppliers of car-stereo systems, and as such are already part of automotive supply chains.

Source:CENS

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Taking a photo of yourself in front of the Eiffel Tower is no longer proof enough of your travels. Nikon’s GP-1 GPS unit lets you “geotag” your photos by attaching to the hot shoe of your Nikon camera (models D3, D300, D700, D2Xs, D200 and D90 D-SLR) or to the strap, with an adaptor.

The dongle, measuring 2 by 1.8 by 1 inch, records latitude, longitude, altitude and time. You can upload photos using Nikon’s ViewNX software and “my Picturetown” photo storage and sharing Web site, or use third-party sites like Flickr and Google Earth.

The GP-1 acquires a satellite signal in about 45 seconds (after being turned on) or 5 seconds (if already powered). The system’s three-color status indicator flashes red when no recorded GPS satellite data is available. If the indicator blinks green, it has detected three satellites; a solid green signal means it has detected four or more.

The GP-1 will be available this month for the recession-unfriendly price of $240. You may have to make do with that untagged photo of the Eiffel Tower for a while.