Automobile, Scooter Makers Take Top Honors in the Taiwan Excellence Gold Awards for First Time

TAIPEI, Taiwan--The Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA) today announced the eight winners of the prestigious Taiwan Excellence Gold Awards at a gala ceremony in Taipei, hosted by the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Republic of China (Taiwan) and attended by Taiwan industry leaders.

“I liked the toys’ low-tech and high art”

For the first time ever, makers of automobiles and motor scooters took the top honors, demonstrating that Taiwan’s design expertise is extending beyond electronics and information techology products, areas in which local companies decades ago won worldwide fame. Car maker Luxgen and motor scooter maker SYM topped the list of Gold Award winners for the Luxgen7 MPV and the SYM 300i EVO products.

The 18th annual awards honored Taiwan products that embody “innovalue�??, value created from innovation. A panel of international judges with expertise in the four key categories of evaluation for the awards — R&D, design, quality and marketing — selected the winners.

“I was really astonished by the motor scooter and the car,�?? said red dot President Peter Zec, one of the judges who evaluated the award winners. “The CEO of Luxgen combined his knowledge of automobiles and electronics.�??

The electronic innovations in the Luxgen7 MPV, which help save energy consumption and make driving simpler, are a first for the global automobile industry, according to the judges.

Germany-based red dot is one of the world’s leading industrial design organizations.

This year, the winners of the Gold Award are more diverse in terms of product categories. The eight Gold Award winners included companies making educational toys, consumer electronics, industrial automation equipment and information technology products. Republic of China (Taiwan) Vice President Vincent Siew presented the Gold Awards to the eight winning companies.

“Taiwan Excellence awards in the past mainly related to electronics companies,�?? said Sejiro Oshimura, another judge who is also a professor at Mejiro University in Japan. “This time, Taiwan has entered a new stage.�??

ASUSTeK Computer Inc., the company that launched the world’s first netbook nearly two years ago, has particular significance as a Gold Award winner again this year for its EeeKeyboard PC, Oshimura said. ASUS has become a big brand in Japan in recent years, he said.

Other Gold Award winners include the SK Series of industrial robots from Hiwin Technologies Corp., the Plato eReader from BenQ Corp., the DIR-685 Xtreme N Storage Router from D-Link Corp., the Neptum EP Submarine from Thunder Tiger Corp, and the Wavy Tactile Path from Kiddie’s Paradise Inc.

The remote-controlled Neptum submarine from Thunder Tiger and the Wavy Tactile Path from Kiddie’s Paradise were products that won special acclaim from the judges.

“I liked the toys’ low-tech and high art,�?? said red dot President Zec. “It is a fantastic way of educating children.�??

More Taiwan companies are starting to build their own global brands as they transform from contract manufacturers for large multinational companies.

“They are finding that they can create world-class products on their own,�?? said Advantage Business Media Editor Tim Studt, another of the Taiwan Excellence Awards judges.

To promote the Taiwan’s industry, the government has made the development of branding the key task for raising the competitiveness of Taiwan’s economy. There are two ultimate goals of the Branding Taiwan program. The first is integrating resources to help establish brands and create a favorable environment for development. The second is to help Taiwan enterprises develop brands and increase their value.

Taiwan companies are among the world’s innovators who are offering products that save energy, reduce pollution and help keep people fit. Taiwan has some of the world’s largest companies making green products such as bicycles, energy saving lights and solar cells to name a few. The Taiwan government is supporting this effort as part of its goal of sustainable development for businesses.

Taiwan Excellence Gold Award Winners:

1. Sanyang Industry Co. (SYM): SYM GTS 300i EVO (300i)

2. Luxgen Motor Co.: Luxgen7 MPV

3. Hiwin Technologies Corp.: Ecological & Economical Single Axis Robot (SK Series)

4. BenQ Corp.: BenQ eReader (Plato)

5. D-Link Corp.: Xtreme N Storage Router (DIR-685)

6. ASUSTek Computer Inc.: EeeKeyboard PC (EK1542)

7. Thunder Tiger Corp.: Neptum EP Submarine SC (5220-K/5220-F)

8. Kiddie’s Paradise Inc.: Wavy Tactile Path (KT0009-00B/00G)

------

ASUSTek Computer Inc.

http://www.asus.com/

Align

http://www.align.com.tw/html/en/e_company.htm

AVerMedia

http://www.avermedia.com/index-map.htm

BenQ Corp.

http://benq.com/

D-Link

http://www.dlink.com

Franz Collection Inc.

http://www.franzcollection.com.tw/

Giant Manufacturing Co.

http://www.giant-bicycles.com/

Hiwin Technologies Corp.

http://www.hiwin.com/

Johnson Health Tech. Co.

http://www.johnsonfitness.com/

Kiddie’s Paradise Inc.

http://www.weplay.com.tw/

King Cho Machinery Industrial Co.

http://kingcho.en.ec21.com/

Luxgen

http://www.luxgen-motor.com

Merida Industry Co.

http://www.merida.tw/

Micro-Star International（MSI）

http://us.msi.com/index.php?func=newsindex

Sanyang (SYM)

http://www.sym.com.tw/eng/

Sheng Tai Brassware Co.

http://www.shengtaibrassware.com.tw/com-2.html

Soco

http://www.soco.com.tw/news.php

SportsArt

http://www.sportsartfitness.com/saf/aboutus/press_room.asp

StrengthMaster

http://strengthmaster.myweb.hinet.net/

Sunonwealth

http://www.sunon.com/index.htm

Tatung Co.

http://www.tatung.com.tw/

ThunderTiger

http://www.tiger.com.tw/hot_products.php

ZyXEL Communications Corp.

http://www.zyxel.com/

Please visit www.taiwantrade.org.tw or www.brandingtaiwan.org for more information.

Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA)

The Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA) was founded in 1970 to promote Taiwan’s foreign trade and competitiveness in world markets. Over the past 38 years, TAITRA has played a key role in the development of the Taiwan economy. TAITRA is jointly sponsored by the government and commercial associations and is viewed by all as the business gateway to Taiwan for the international business community.