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Quality, made in China

Hi-Tech Security Solutions was ­invited to tour the Shenzhen HYT Science & ­Technology Co. (HYT) at the end of 2008. What we found was a company

focused on high quality, low cost and ­customer service, with a dedicated group of southern African partners.

Qingzhou Chen, the current CEO, founded the Shenzhen HYT Science & Technology Co. (HYT) in 1993 in Shenzhen, China. HYT focuses on two-way radios, wireless trunking systems and services. Today, HYT is one of the top five global manufacturers of professional wireless communication equipment.

HYT CEO, Qingzhou Chen

HYT’s headquarters in Shenzhen boasts the largest manufacturing base and R&D centre for professional two-way radios and wireless trunking systems in China. It operates three laboratories and two R&D centres (the high frequency laboratory, general standard laboratory, environmental testing laboratory; a wireless engineering R&D centre and a digital trunking system R&D centre). It employs over 700 R&D engineers, 35% of which holding master degrees or above.

HYT embarked on its international expansion, setting up a worldwide sales and service network in 2001 with the launch of its first subsidiary in London. Since then it has set up branches in America, Indonesia, India, Hong Kong, with indirect representation in other areas. The company believes indigenous management can be more effective and therefore strives to ensure local people play an important role in their regions.

HYT has also joined as a member into APCO Association, TETRA MoU Association and other organisations and has been appointed as a supplier in United Nations.

The international drive has allowed the company to sell into over 80 regions around the world. In China, HYT’s two-way radios command the lion’s share of the market and its trunking systems have gained over 60% of the market. The 2008 financial year saw HYT maintaining a 30% growth rate globally, while showing a promising 10% growth rate in South Africa despite dollar/rand exchange rate fluctuations.

In South Africa, HYT follows a channel strategy to sell into the region, with Spectrum Communications its exclusive distributor. The purpose of the trip to China was not only a chance for local suppliers to learn about the company and its product drive for 2009, but also to witness the presentation of distribution awards to the HYT partners, as noted in the last issue.

Apart from Spectrum Communications, the following companies were recognised for their contribution to the growth of the HYT brand in the region:

* Aliboats from Botswana.

* Teltech from Namibia.

* Signet from Johannesburg.

* Satlec from Johannesburg.

* Akira Communications from Durban.

* Emcom Cape from Cape Town.

During the award presentation, HYT CEO, Qingzhou Chen noted South Africa was one of the most successful overseas markets for HYT, given the rapid uptake of its products under Spectrum’s distributorship. Following the presentation, Chen gave Hi-Tech Security Solutions an exclusive interview in which he discussed the history of the company, why it achieved so much in such a short time and what to expect this year.

Starting small

Chen started in the two-way radio business as an agent for an American company. From there he branched out to form his own company with the belief that he could deliver what customers need more efficiently. And this is his secret for success, 'focus on customer demand'.

“We focus on developing products according to our customers’ requirements,” states Chen. He additionally says that HYT is only focused on the communications market, allowing it to avoid distractions and concentrate its expertise on what it does best. 12% of HYT’s revenue is pumped back into R&D to ensure it keeps the competition at bay. It also offers 24x7 customer support on a global basis in multiple languages, irrespective of the size of the market it serves.

Chen also believes the company’s recruitment of dynamic young people assist in keeping the company vibrant and responsive to customers’ needs. The average age of HYT’s employees is 25 years, with the company recruiting the best candidates from the best universities in China.

As far as Africa is concerned, Chen believes there is far more HYT can achieve on the continent as the potential for growth is enormous. He believes China’s good relationships in Africa and the ability of HYT to produce quality products that meet the needs of its customers bode well for the company in the long run. In South Africa specifically, having done well in the commercial sector with Spectrum, the company is eyeing the national security and public safety sectors to grow its business further.

It is also important to note that when Chen mentions meeting customer needs, he not only means mass producing products to meet the needs of a broad grouping of clients, but the company has a reputation for adapting products to meet specific needs. “We do what is needed to meet our customers’ needs,” he says. “In fact, you can say our core competency is listening to customers and responding to their needs.”

Part of HYT’s moving to meet customer needs is the new products it will be launching in 2009. While retaining and expanding its two-way radio technology, Chen says HYT will be expanding its communications technologies to include GSM/CDMA and even Wi-Fi in specific models. There are numerous opportunities in the communications field where additional technologies can add value to clients in different industries and Chen aims to meet those needs ahead of HYT’s competitors. Users should not be surprised to see the company offering a PDA device as well.

South African focus

Even though HYT is driven to expand further into Africa as well as into new areas within the southern African market, Chen says Spectrum Communications will remain its distributor in the region. “We are committed to our existing partners and will continue to develop the market with Spectrum.”

Established in 1973, Spectrum Communications distributes products in South Africa’s telecommunications, telecontrol and security industries. It has branches in the four main metropolitan centres from where it provides engineering expertise, products and customer support.

Distributing radio, telemetry and security equipment continent-wide to clients such as municipalities, water boards, mining companies as well as the shipping industry, Spectrum can lay claim to offering a comprehensive selection of specialised telecommunications products.

According to Spectrum’s MD, Ernest Vermeulen, the company’s strength lies “in our ability to engineer turnkey radio communications and telemetry systems to match specific client specifications. Such contracts entail reliably bringing together equipment, technology and expert knowledge from different disciplines.”

Spectrum was responsible for bringing HYT into the country and for its record-breaking growth. One of the primary reasons for the growth of the company and the HYT brand, according to Vermeulen, is its focus on customer and after-sales service.

Products in SA in 2009

TC-500

HYT TC-500

Aimed at increasing efficiency and enhancing customer service, the HYT TC-500 series of business two-way radios helps operations run smoother with instant, quality communications. That means a more efficient crew with projects done right the first time. The palm size, lightweight TC-500 portable radio delivers two-way performance at a competitive price. It sports the following features:

* 16 channels.

* Compact size and lightweight: Compact design makes the TC-500 series radio easy to hold and carry.

* CTCSS/CDCSS: Set up workgroups/users with CDCSS/CTCSS to prevent unwanted conversations on the same frequency.

* Battery save: The radio will enable battery save feature in standby mode. Pressing any key or receiving a signal will restore the radio to normal operation.

* Low battery alert: Audible tone and visual display tell you when the battery is running down.

* Time-out timer (TOT): The feature allows for more efficient use of channels by limiting the amount of time of each transmission.

* Priority channel scan: Priority scan permits the scanning and monitoring of identified channels.

* Busy channel lockout: A channel already in use is not available to other users.

* PC programmable: Customers are able to customise the features of each radio for each user.

* Cloning capable: Easily copy the features of one radio to another.

* Selectable squelch level: Helps minimise interference from undesired weak signals and helps weak signals be heard.

* Squelch tail elimination: The function will minimise the annoying audio outputs that occur at the receiver on completion of a transmission.

TM-600

HYT TM-600

The high-performance, yet simple-to-use TM-600 and TM-610 professional mobile radios offer the immediate and reliable communications needed to keep mobile teams working efficiently. HYT’s voice compander audio enhancement and a powerful 13 W external speaker ensure clear sound, even in noisy environments. Its compact design makes these radios ideal when mounting space is a constraint. Main features include:

* Compact design: These compact mobile radios are ideal for mounting when space is constraint.

* Wide-band coverage: These radios provide wide band capability for users requiring a large range of frequencies: VHF is 136-174 MHz, and UHF is 400-470 MHz, 450-500 MHz, 470-520 MHz, 350-400MHz and 440-470MHz.

* Powerful audio: HYT’s voice compander audio enhancement and a powerful 13 W external speaker will provide clear sound, even in noisy environments.

* Built-in scrambler: Maintaining private and secure communications is increasingly important, with potentially sensitive information flowing back and forth. The scrambler feature provides enhanced security for private communications.

* HDC2400 and HDC1200 signalling: The HDC2400 signalling is exclusive to HYT, and contributes to the system to achieve features including ANI (automatic number identification), individual call, group call, broadcast, kill, short message and data transmission. The HDC1200 signalling is compatible with MDC1200, and allows functions including PTT ID encode, emergency encode, radio check decode, kill and revive, individual call, group call and broadcast.

* Built-in modem: The built-in 1200/2400 bps MSK modulator offers data transmission capability.

* Kill and revive: The kill function permits an authorised radio to remotely disable another lost radio. This function can ensure you higher security and is perfect for the radio rental business. A killed radio will return to operational use when the revive code is received.

* Lone worker: The lone worker feature provides added security and safety for individuals who work remotely from their team. When this function is enabled, the radio will emit an alert tone after the preset time elapses, the user must then press any key, otherwise the emergency procedure will be activated.

TC-610

HYT TC-610

Harsh, noisy and dusty working conditions in mega-project and construction sites may lower efficiency and productivity by smudging the radio or shadowing the talk. HYT TC-610 professional two-way portable radio is customised for users in these industries as its dust and water protection helps to seal out dust and water, and thus prolong radio life. It features:

* Water protection class IP66: The TC-610 will deliver reliable communication and high productivity in harsh working conditions, allowing users to wash mud and dust off the radio.

* Double injection moulding: The TC-610 employs double injection moulding, which is a technique with high difficulty coefficient and high risk. Owing to this, the radio is comfortable to handle and it has high drop-proof performance.

* Powerful audio and wide communication range: A powerful speaker with a diameter of 45 mm (36 mm for speakers of common radios) ensures clear sound, even in noisy environments. High transmit power (5 W for UHF frequency band) accommodates wide communication coverage.

* LED battery gauge: Non-display radios generally have no battery power indicator. The TC-610 allows you to simply press one button to illuminate the tri-colour LED battery gauge, which indicates battery strength levels for more effective power management.

* The patent structural design: The battery latch structure of TC-610 radios is a patent owned by HYT. It delivers secure connection between the battery and the radio, as well as simple operation.

For more information: www.hyt.com.cn/en or Spectrum Communications, +27 (0)21 551 5800, www.spectrumcom.co.za

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