Family Reunion - Midea

www.midea.com Advances Newsletter, July, 2013

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Vol. 3, #6, July 2013, No. 30

Family Reunion

Everyone was in town for Midea’s first company-wide global conference


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ADVANCES Newsletter

Contents

Midea Advances Newsletter is published monthly

by the International Strategy Department of

Midea Group. We welcome all comments,

suggestions and contribution of articles, as well as

requests for subscription to our newsletter. You

can reach us by email at: [email protected]

Address:

ADVANCES, International Strategy Department

Midea HQ

No. 6 Midea Road

Beijiao, Shunde, Foshan, Guangdong

P.R.C. 528311

Tel: +86-757-2360 4714

Web: www.midea.com

Managing Editors:

Matthew Smith

Mandy Wang

Regular Correspondents:

Himani Joshi

Amber Liu

Crystal Lun

Blinda Li

Tony Miao

Peck Zhao

Sandra Sun

James Yu

Daniel Zhang

Sue Ou

NEWSLINE

Chinese Manufacturers

Largest Players in AC,

Refrigerators, and Laundry PAGE 4

Midea Boasts its Extensive

Lineup of Home Appliances

at the Electrolar Expo PAGE 3

Toshio Murakami Honored

for his Contribution to

HVAC&R Industry in Brazil PAGE 3

Midea’s New Weapon:

Intelligent Power Module for

Inverters PAGE 5

Washing Machine Quality

Test Center Passed Two Im-

portant Certifications PAGE 4

www.midea.com

Midea’s First International

Business Conference Brings

Everyone Together PAGE 12

PAGE 19

FEATURE

COMMUNITY

SNAPSHOT

Midea Receives Gold

Award at the “Red Cup for

Relief” Event PAGE 18

PEOPLE

The Miraco Miracle PAGE 14

Laundry Division Donated

2,000 Washing Machines to

Help the Disabled PAGE 18

SIPO Commissioner Tian Lipu

Visits Midea’s New Industrial

Design Center PAGE 7

Midea Granted National

Exemption from Export

Inspection PAGE 5

CAC Latin America Strategy

Partner Training Seminar in

Miami PAGE 6

Midea’s National

Procurement Center Bid is

Successful PAGE 8

GMCC Invited to UN

International Climate

Protection Conference PAGE 8

2nd Annual Midea America

Corp National Sales Rep

Conference PAGE 9

Laundry Division Wins Top

Design Awards at 2013

Innovation Design Expo PAGE 10

CAC MDV Elite Camp #5 PAGE 11


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Midea Boasts its Extensive Lineup of Home

Appliances at the Electrolar Expo By James Yu

S ao Paulo‘s annual Electrolar Expo kicked off at the

Hotel Transamerica this past month, where Midea Carrier Brazil

put in a strong appearance with a comprehensive spread of

Midea and Springer home appliances, which follows the recent

launch of their small appliances business in Brazil.

The display

amounted

to no less

than 70

products,

of which

51 be-

longed to

Midea. The

selection

included

products already on shelves now, and others which are still not

official introduced in the market. Categories ranged from resi-

dential air conditioners, two-door refrigerators, wine coolers,

microwaves, dish washers, kettles, water dispensers, rice cook-

ers, and rotary fans.

Midea Carrier‘s display at the Expo easily counted as one

of the biggest, taking up to 300m2, in order to host not only the

Midea and Springer product lineups, but also a specially-

designed kitchen and bedroom for customers to better experi-

ence how Midea‘s range of products can combine to provide a

spectacular quality of life.

NEWSLINE

Toshio Murakami Honored for his Contribu-

tion to HVAC&R Industry in Brazil By James Yu

D uring this past June, Midea Carrier Brazil‘s GM for

Sales & Distribution, Toshio Murakami, was granted an award in

June in recognition for his 27 years of dedicated work to the

HVAC&R industry, by the Abrava Association for HVAC&R in

Brazil. The award was titled ―Industry Personality‖, which fits

Toshio very well.

With a long history in the field since joining the company

in 1985, a lot of experience across different functions in the

company, and then as the GM for Sales & Distribution, it is no

surprise that Toshio Murakami is receiving this honor. Upon

receiving the award, he had this to say: ―I am delighted to con-

tribute to the development of the HVAC-R sector alongside all

of the other profession-

als out there, who strive

daily to improve the

quality of life for all. I

dedicate this award to

all who believe and in-

vest in efficient HVAC

systems."


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Chinese Manufacturers Largest Players in

AC, Refrigerators, and Laundry By Blinda Li

T he Japanese business newspaper, Nikon Keizai

Shimbun, recently released its 2012 ―Global Principal Commod-

ities and Service Share Research‖, in which Chinese companies

are recognized collectively as holding dominant global market

share in 6 categories out of 50 surveyed (one more than last

year), consisting of white goods like refrigerators, washing ma-

chines and household air conditioners, in addition to solar pan-

els, shipbuilding and cigarette manufacturing.

From a national and regional perspective, the American

enterprise was found to be the dominant market share holder in

19 categories, closely followed by Japan, at 12. South Korea

claimed 3rd place with the lead in 8 categories (two more than

then previous year). China‘s performance places it in 4th.

By comparing earlier market share reports, it is quite clear

that Chinese enterprises have been making great strides in recent

years, across certain industries. White goods and PC businesses

are enjoying solid, continuous growth, while crude steel and

wind-driven generator enterprises have been slowing due to

Chinese economic deceleration, among other factors.

Chinese enterprises take advantage of opportunities, such

as when the Chinese government is offering trade-in subsidies

for used household appliances in return for buying new units

with satisfactory energy-saving performance, thus expanding

their sales. Midea‘s Laundry Division has been pushing to devel-

op in the mature overseas markets of Europe, North America

and Japan, while maintaining its positioning in its domestic mar-

ket of China. With 140,000 units of automatic washers exported

to Japan in 2012, the Laundry Division has been working hard

to follow Midea‘s global strategy of greater promotion of the

Midea brand name abroad.

NEWSLINE

Washing Machine Quality Test Center

Passed Two Important Certifications By Blinda Li

Q uality and reliability mean a great deal to any major

manufacturer, but especially so to Midea, which

is always pushing to redefine the meaning of

―Made in China‖ to the rest of the world. One

example of Midea‘s commitment to making

world-class appliances comes in the form of its

low-alloy steel testing process.

To improve its inspection techniques and

ensure the accuracy and reliability of test data,

the Laundry Division‘s Quality Management

Department recently submitted to two profi-

ciency tests, (NIL PT-0380 & NIL PT-0380)

which gauge the chemical composition of the

low-alloy steel chemical composition. The tests

are organized by the China National Accredita-

tion Center (CNAS) and implemented by the China NIL Re-

search Center for Proficiency Testing. Both tests resulted in full

passes.

The proficiency testing conducts quantitative

analysis of nine elements, namely carbon, sili-

con, manganese, phosphorus, sulfur, chromi-

um, nickel, copper, and molybdenum, within

the washing machine‘s low-alloy steel. The

measured values of sulfur, copper and molyb-

denum measured equal to specifications, and

while all others measured better than regulated

standards.

These results indicate that Laundry Division‘s

Chemical Lab has cultivated a team with superb

technical capabilities and competent manage-

ment practices.


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Midea’s New Weapon: Intelligent Power

Module for Inverters By Crystal Lun

T hree years ago, Midea established a special R&D task

force of just a few members, charged with figuring out how to

create a chip that would allow the components in its appliances

to work more efficiently. After much time and effort, this team

finally produced its own,

custom-made, Intelligent

Power Module (IPM)

chip.

Midea has attached

much importance to this

project, demonstrated by

the acquisition of excellent talent: experienced semiconductor

design experts, doctoral experts in metallics, plastics, and macro-

molecular materials, as well as engineers and technicians special-

ized in electrical and mechanical design.

In 2010, the first self-developed IPM chip was created and

successfully implemented in air conditioners. With confidence at

a high level, greater investment was made, allowing a new dust-

free workshop to be constructed at the Midea Research Insti-

tute, covering 2,000m2.

By June 2012, the IPM was put into mass production,

making Midea the first Chinese company to develop its own

IPM chips,

thereby

enhancing

its develop-

ment of

inverter-

based air

condition-

ing. Only a

few months

later, prod-

ucts with an advanced version of the original IPM were

launched, with sales volume of 150,000 units forecast for 2013.

The rapid pace of development seen with Midea‘s IPM

chip illustrates the company‘s enduring desire to transform its

products from being ―Made by Midea‖ to ―Designed by

Midea‖.

NEWSLINE

Midea Granted National Exemption from

Export Inspection By Crystal Lun

O n July 19th, the Guangdong Inspection and Guar-

antee Bureau finished its yearly review and audit of Midea‘s air

conditioning business, in their consid-

eration for granting the privilege of

the National Export Inspection Ex-

emption. The consensus of the ap-

praisal team was that Midea‘s quality

management system has consistently

stepped forward and complied with

all standards specified, and therefore,

they announced that Midea had

passed the review.

Since being granted the National Export Inspection Ex-

emption by the General Administration of Quality Supervision,

Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ) in June 2012, Midea has

continued to improve its quality

management system through the

promotion of high quality manufac-

turing, advancement of quality con-

trol standards, further application of

automation, and the upgrading of IT

support tools, which leads to the

sustainable enhancement of product

quality and management.


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CAC Latin America Strategy Partner Training

Seminar in Miami By Tony Miao

L ast month, over the course of two days, Midea CAC

gathered together customers from 18 different companies from

across North and Latin America, for the ―2013 Midea CAC

Product Training Camp‖.

Training courses during the Camp mainly focused on new

products launched between 2012 and 2013. The flagship prod-

uct from CAC is the All-DC Inverter System, one of the most

cutting-edge products available in the VRF industry. The other

key product discussed at the Camp was the 4th-generation web

controller, also known as the IMM (Intelligent Manager of

Midea).

Steven Bo, Sales Director for Latin America, started the

Camp with an enthusiastic welcome speech for all the guests.

CAC Marketing Managers, Tony Miao and Amber Liu, carried

out detailed product training for CAC‘s product lineup, includ-

ing details on VRF technology, the newest chillers, and the lat-

est version of the IMM. Ivan Wong, Technical Executive from

the Technical Department, shared his experiences with VRFs

and chillers, such as system installation, wiring, commissioning,

and troubleshooting.

The air conditioning market in Latin America was about

7.2 million units in 2012, an increase of 20% over 2011. For

2013, it is estimated to be approximately 8.3 million units. Port-

able air conditioners, including VRFs, are estimated to have a

market of approximately 450,000 units. The VRF market was

approximately 20,000 units in 2012, a 25% increase over the

previous year. VRF capabilities have now increased significantly:

1. VRFs with DC inverters and digital scrolls, providing the

lower power consumption, especially when the system ex-

periences only partial load.

2. Fully effective at providing individual zone climate control,

with accurate room temperature control as specific as

±0.5˚C.

3. VRF systems have simpler designs, with installation and

after-sale service much easier than traditional chiller sys-

tems.

4. System reliability is greater by way of advanced backup

technology and cycle duty operation.

5. Now BMS compatible.

In 2012, Midea launched its all-DC inverter technology

onto the market. With 6 modes and flexible modularity, capacity

ranges from 8Hp to 72Hp, with COP reaching up to 4.39 and

IPLV (Integrated Part Load Value) up to 5.8, the highest in the

world.

NEWSLINE


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SIPO Commissioner Tian Lipu Visits Midea’s

New Industrial Design Center By Blinda Li

T his past May, on the eve of the 10th Wuxi Interna-

tional Industrial Design Expo, Tian Lipu, Commissioner of Chi-

na‘s State Intellectual Property Office (―SIPO‖), accompanied

by others from Wuxi‘s municipal government, accepted an invi-

tation to tour the new industrial design center belonging to

Midea‘s Laundry Division.

This new industrial design center, situated on the third

floor of the Design Park building, occupies an area of 1,000m2

and contains an array of capabilities, including workspaces, read-

ing areas, a CMF (Color Material Finish) area, UX (user experi-

ence) area, production exhibition area, and a leading TDR

(technical design report) area.

Over the

years,

Wuxi‘s

munici-

pal gov-

ernment

has of-

fered

support

and

funds to

Midea for the development of industrial design activities. In

2012, the Laundry Division was accredited as the ―Jiangsu In-

dustrial Design Demonstration Enterprise‖, one of ―Wuxi‘s Top

10 Enterprise R&D Centers‖, its Industrial Design Research

Institute was accredited as ―Wuxi‘s Major Scientific Research

Institution‖, and it received financial support from the govern-

ment totaling 5 million RMB. In order to encourage companies

to increase their investment into research and development, the

government has constructed a national industrial design park.

Thanks to its support, Midea‘s Laundry Division is now a tenant

of the highly modern Design Park building. It is widely held that

by taking advantage of these favorable conditions, Laundry Di-

vision will be able to improve the quality of its industrial design

tremendously.

NEWSLINE


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GMCC Invited to UN International Climate

Protection Conference By Crystal Lun

T he United Nations held its annual conference on

Advancing Ozone & Climate Protection Technologies in Bang-

kok, Thailand on the last days of June, in order to further the

discussion on how

to develop the

blueprint for the

future global envi-

ronment. On be-

half of Chinese

enterprises,

GMCC was invited

to attend the con-

ference, where it

presented its new

R290 and R32

compressors,

which are already

highly regarded in

the industry. The-

se new products from GMCC demonstrated for the conference

attendees the outstanding creativity of and strong social respon-

sibility embraced by Midea.

The new R290 refrigerant is considered by the industry to

have the most potential. As the first company to launch an R290

compressor, GMCC was chosen by the United Nations to sup-

ply the compressor for its Montreal Protocol demonstration

project. This year, the new R290 compressor is finally reaching

the point of mass production.

GMCC‘s new R32

compressor is also

receiving much

attention, with its

unique design for

fluorine-free and

low-carbon opera-

tion. The launch of

the R32 compres-

sor was another

industry first for

GMCC, and it has

already been in

mass production

since 2012.

Aside from being a

major supplier of its own China market, GMCC has also made

great strides into the global market, with its new refrigerant

compressors being sold around the world, from India and Aus-

tralia, to all over Europe.

NEWSLINE

Midea’s National Procurement Center Bid is

Successful By Crystal Lun

A ccording to the recently released notice regarding the

―2013-2014 National Central Procurement Project for Air Con-

ditioner‖, Midea‘s proposal for supplying residential air condi-

tioning in the central procurement project has been successful.

The Central Government Procurement Project, under the

jurisdiction of the Government Offices Administration of the

State Council, covers over 10,000 governmental bodies, and is

one of the highest level procurement projects organized by the

Chinese government. It is also considered to be a strong indica-

tor for provincial procurement decisions.


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2nd Annual Midea America Corp National

Sales Rep Conference By Jack Zheng

M idea America Corp. (MAC) held its 2nd Annual

National Sales Representative Conference two weeks ago, with

more than 30 representatives coming from across the United

States to meet together in New Jersey, at Midea‘s head office in

the country.

In addition to MAC President Isaac Xiao and his local

team, the conference was also attended by sales and engineering

teams from China, and members of the Kitchen Appliance Divi-

sion, who brought new product samples to be previewed by

conference attendees.

Isaac opened the

conference with a wel-

coming speech, in which

he gave his thanks to all

for making the trip to

New Jersey, and their

efforts in building the

Midea business in the

United States. He fol-

lowed by giving every-

one an outline on the new steps the company would be taking

within the next year, and then gave the spotlight to MAC de-

partment heads. Each head took the time to explain thoroughly

how their departments relate to the representatives and their

work.

The conference was also useful for providing an im-

portant explanation re-

garding new federal regu-

lations that will relate to

home appliance energy

consumption, and how

Midea and its partners

can remain in full com-

pliance with these new

regulations.

Representatives present

were said to be impressed

by the strong growth of

Midea in the United

States, but also by its

commitment to building

a real presence in North

America, characterized

by the improved Oracle

system and bigger ware-

house facility nearby the shipping port there. The overall feeling

from those in attendance is that the conference was very worth-

while, as a great opportunity for learning and team building.

NEWSLINE


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Laundry Division Wins Top Design Awards at

2013 Innovation Design Expo By Blinda Li

A t the end of May, the 10th Wuxi International Indus-

trial Design Expo concluded with Midea‘s Laundry Division

winning 4 awards in its category at the Design Competition: The

MD80-1407LIB(S) front-loader won the Best Innovation

Award, and the top design awards went to Little Swan‘s Chun

Zhen TD70-1411LPD(S) front-loader (first prize), Midea‘s

MB70-1411LDPC(S) front-loader, and Little Swan‘s TB70-

5188IDCL (SR) automatic dispensing machine (tied for third

prize).

Little Swan Chun Zhen 2.0-Version Front-loading Ma-

chine Won the 1st Prize in the Product Category at the 2nd

―Taihu Award‖ China Industrial Design Competition

With the theme of ―Innovative design for a better future‖,

the 10th iteration of the Expo received excellent design submis-

sions from over 20 countries and regions including the United

States, Japan, and Germany, from nearly 500 domestic and for-

eign design companies. Awards included the ―China Innovative

Design Award‖, ―Taihu Award‖ and the college and university

level ―NOC Award‖.

The exhibition featured a plethora of spectacularly imagi-

native designs, from new sports car concept designs to 3D

printer demonstrations. Nearby, in the exhibition hall dedicated

to household appliances, Midea‘s Laundry Division exhibited 30

of its best washing machines, featuring 4 of the division‘s most

impressive current technologies: iAdd automatic dispensing

technology, internet-accessible washers, heat pump dryers, and

one-touch washers.

NEWSLINE


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CAC MDV Elite Camp #5

By Peck Zhao

C AC recently wrapped up its latest MDV Elite Camp,

the fifth of this year‘s series. As many readers already know, the

Elite Camp is CAC‘s platform for sales engineers and managers

from Midea‘s many distributors to share experience and infor-

mation in one place, together. This 3-day session included 11

participants from five different countries across the Middle East

and Africa. As a bonus, some of the staff from Midea‘s Egyptian

JV, Miraco, made the trip as well.

The core discussion focused on CAC sales points, especial-

ly regarding recently launched VRF products that boast greater

advantages in installation flexibility by way of their modular de-

sign, and enhanced control options through the powerful Intelli-

gent Manager (IMM) control system.

Dan Brown, Sales Manager, delivered a welcome speech,

sharing the highlights from CAC‘s 14-year history in the global

air conditioning industry, and explained how the market is now

trending from split systems to VRF.

CAC Marketing Manager Peck Zhao followed with a thor-

ough description of CAC‘s marketing strategy and support poli-

cies, also giving everyone an overview of the VRF market.

Zhao also presented CAC‘s full range of commercial

products, including the Digital Scroll and 3-Pipe Heat Recovery

VRFs. The new Digital Scroll D4 Plus VRF, designed for tropi-

cal environments, was the subject of much discussion.

The first MDV Elite Camp commenced little more than a

year ago, and since that time, over 110 guests from our distribu-

tors have visited the headquarters to observe firsthand Midea‘s

R&D and manufacturing capabilities, and implementation of

products in various reference projects.

NEWSLINE


12

Midea’s First International Business

Conference Brings Everyone Together

By Matthew Smith

F or two days, from July 22nd to the 23rd, Midea held

its largest conference ever, aptly named the ―Midea Internation-

al Business Conference‖, with almost 300 attendees from

every office of Midea‘s around the world, representing 21

different countries. It was the most extensive and diverse

gathering of Midea employees in one place that the company

has ever organized.

On the first morn-

ing, guests were

welcomed with a

speech by Dr. Andy

Gu, Midea‘s Vice

President of Inter-

national Strategy.

He commented on

the theme of this

conference: ―One

Midea, One System,

One Standard‖ The

sentiment with this

motto is that Midea is

currently a company of

many different depart-

ments, divisions, and

subsidiaries, operated

by people from many

different

countries

and cultures, speaking different languages. In order

for Midea to truly realize the benefits of its global

components, it must become unified in a way where

everyone works together as a whole – one system,

one standard.

One by one, the Directors of each functional

department then took the stage, and thoroughly

explained their respective departments and how they

fit into the company, so that attendees might better

understand the structure of the company. In the

afternoon, the General Managers of each business

unit did the same, so that by the end of the first day, everyone

had a more complete understanding of the entire company. Be-

tween these presentations, a representative of Euromonitor also

gave an insightful presentation, detailing emerging trends in the

home appliance industry across the world.

The 23rd started off with very different schedule for at-

tendees. The first half of the morning offered attendees a series

of panel discussions relating to different matters of business,

such as finance, marketing, international trade, and business

FEATURE

Dr. Andy Gu, delivering the opening speech.

From left to right: Felipe Costa, Roberto Casarejos, Henrique Mascarenhas, Eduardo Wolff, and Claudio Ramoni.


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Midea’s First International Business

Conference Brings Everyone Together

By Matthew Smith

integration, to name only a handful. These panel discussions

were made up of key figures from different corners of the com-

pany with deep experience in their respective topics, and the

panelists were allowed to choose the specific sub-topics to base

their discussion on. The panelists each gave brief presentations

explaining their perspective on the matter at hand, after which

invigorating debate began between the panelists, and even some

of the audience members. More often than not, panelists and

audience members were hard-pressed to wrap up the debates

without taking extra time beyond the schedule. The second half

of the morning was much the same, with panel discussions fo-

cused instead on different regional markets, and the upcoming

challenges that Midea will face in each one. Perhaps unsurpris-

ingly, the topic of how to develop both OEM and Midea-brand

models of business was a very popular sub-topic chosen within

many of the panels, and this provoked some of the most spirit-

ed discussion at the conference. The final afternoon found each

of the panel Chairpersons presenting the results from each panel

to the entire conference. If there was an overall sentiment to the

panel summaries, it was that Midea is a very young company,

and like a young child, it is learning quickly, changing quickly,

but still very much in a transitional phase, where such develop-

ment cannot be rushed too much, and must be allowed to hap-

pen naturally.

By the end of the conference, attendees were still min-

gling, like the night before, catching up with colleagues from

other offices, some of whom hadn‘t seen each other since the

previous year‘s smaller conference. The ambiance was jovial,

with people comparing and contrasting their successes and mar-

ket-specific difficulties, discussing, joking, and sharing ideas

from all of the different countries represented there. The scene

really illustrated the benefit of such a gathering, and the major

challenge which global companies like Midea face - to remind

everyone that, regardless of the office or the country we happen

to work in, we are on the same team, with the same interests,

working towards the same goal; we are ―One Midea‖.

FEATURE

The heads of Midea‘s functional departments, during the first morning‘s presentations.

From left to right: Cai Qiwu (Technology and Quality), Huang Xiaoming (Human Resources), Andy Gu (International Strategy), Li Feide (Strategy & Planning; speaking off frame), Zeng Qiao (Auditing), Gu Yunsong (IT), Su Qingjun (Legal Affairs), Xiao Mingguang (Finance), Dong Xiaohua (China Marketing).


14

The Miraco Miracle

By Mandy Wang & Matthew Smith

Amr Said

Sales Director, Miraco

[email protected]

With all of the extremely packed schedules at this

time of the year, we were lucky to catch a very key figure

from Miraco, Midea’s joint venture with Carrier in Egypt.

Running any kind of a business in Egypt has been

challenging with the constantly changing political and

economic environment in the country. Nevertheless,

Miraco has done quite well for itself over the past year. We

sit down with Amr Said to see what he has to say on this,

and other topics.

ADV: Thanks for sitting down for this chat, Amr. Maybe

you can start with telling me how long you have been with

Miraco for?

Amr: Since May 2008.

ADV: And you‘ve been the Sales Director there since

joining?

Amr: First I joined as Carrier Africa Export Director,

then I took over the rest of the business units in 2010.

ADV: What was your feeling way back when you first

learned of the JV with Midea?

Amr: Of course in the beginning, it was a bit uncertain.

All through my career, I have been with multinational

companies. I eventually joined Carrier-Miraco, and then just

two years after, I find that we‘re being sold to a company which

I do not know! So it was uncertain then. But then it was really a

good period, going through this experience, knowing a new

culture, new people, in a big company will will become a giant

in the future. In the beginning, we didn‘t know about the

agreement between Carrier or Midea, but in the due diligence

period, with the new Midea people here, we enjoyed, and are

still enjoying our integration with Midea.

ADV: I remember at the International Business

Conference, during the presentation you gave, you mentioned

the new television commercial you have running in Egypt, and

how there are two different versions of it, in Arabic and

English.

Amr: Yes, we brainstormed quite thoroughly with

agencies, we changed the idea 4 or 5 times, until we reached this

theme, and I believe it was a successful one. The other thing is

with the slogans; Carrier is ―Turns to the Experts‖ and Midea is

―Beyond your expectations‖. In Egypt, we are building on the

experience of Carrier, it is number one in the Egyptian market,

so we also use in all the commercials and press ads, ―Nothing

exceeds experience, nothing exceeds Carrier‖. It is our theme in

everything. So we want to do the same for Midea, and we came

up with, ―It is produced to last‖. The secondary slogans sound

particularly good in Arabic, and they only complement the

official slogans,

they don‘t

replace them.

ADV: I

noticed that

both versions

use rhyming

between ‗Idea‘

and ‗Midea‘

which is a clever

way to help

people

remember how

to pronounce

the name, and it

sounds natural.

Amr: Yes,

we found this

was important,

as everyone, even the people here in the headquarters, cannot

seem to agree on a common pronunciation, which is what I was

saying during my presentation before.

ADV: You‘re right, and it‘s a very difficult to overcome

this kind of problem, with a name which looks fine, but that is

not so intuitive for people to pronounce. Nobody will guess the

correct way unless they‘re specifically told. I‘ve counted 4

different variations that I‘ve heard before.

Amr: Yes, 3 or even 4 variations are just too many. It is

understandable if there is a different way to say it in other

languages, but there must be only one way in each language.

ADV: This is why your commercial works so well. You

know, when this subject comes up, I always think of the Korean

PEOPLE


15

The Miraco Miracle (cont.)


car company, Hyundai [HUN-day].

Amr: ―I rely on Hyundai [HUN-die]!‖ The guys from

Brazil, they were saying that Hyundai spent a lot of money to

promote this. They also did in Egypt, but there, it is Hyundai

[HE-un-die].

ADV: I remember growing up in Canada, and people

went from calling it [HE-un-die] to [HUN-die] and now people

are just starting to call it [HUN-day], because of a commercial

they presented, with the specific purpose of telling everyone,

―It‘s Hyundai… like Sunday.‖ I think the idea of rhyming it

with something easy is good, because that will keep it stuck in

people‘s minds. But yours is even better, because you‘re not just

rhyming it with something arbitrary, as Hyundai did in North

America.

Amr: Yes, it took a lot of consideration, but we believe it

works very well.

ADV: Moving onto another topic – they were saying at

the conference, congratulating you really, on your performance

in Egypt recently, relative to that in other markets. All other

things being equal, it‘s impressive, but more so because Miraco

has faced some real adversity there, with the revolution in 2011,

and now, again! Can you tell me how you‘ve faced these

difficulties?

Amr: Before the 2011 revolution, as far back as I can

even remember, it was very safe in Egypt, no problem at all.

ADV: This is actually what we heard from from Lau Cai

as well, the Finance Manager from MID who was in your office

for 2 years – he said the same thing – totally safe.

Amr: Yes, totally safe. You could go out at any time of

day or night, men and women, both. No crime. No problem. It

was really… paradise. After the revolution of course… for the

first time in our lives, we couldn‘t really go out in the streets, for

the first 10, really 20 days, we stayed in our houses, because the

police… well, there were no police out there. It was all very

surreal to us. We saw robbery at some shops and factories… so

many problems… even the prisoners from the jails

were set free… so for us it was really horrific. But we

managed. We got numbers. They were not entirely

satisfactory at first, but in a time of revolution, they

were great. In 2012, the political situation was still not

good. The Muslim Brotherhood was not doing a

good job, on a political level. The Egyptian Pound

started to depreciate, security was not there, coming

and going between home and office did not feel safe.

At this time, we really focused on how to continue

doing business, despite what was going on around us.

I have to say here, I really appreciate the working

environment of this company. All of the management

was really working as a team, so every decision we

made, we saw the implications for the entire

company, not only for one area or another area. We

were, and are still now, working as a real team. How

an act on sales will impact finance or operations, and

vice-versa, instead of only focusing on the interests of our own

departments. Things became very successful, and even the first

half of 2013 was perfect for us. But then at the end of June, we

entered another period of great uncertainty, and even today,

there is a big demonstration happening there, with no certain

outcomes, because even now, the army is calling for

demonstrations. It is a little sad. People from outside, they only

see and understand what the media wants to say, not what the

reality is.

ADV: We heard many businesses and factories there

were forced to close, both in 2011 and now.

Amr: Many did close down. Huge numbers, I cannot

recall exactly, but great numbers. A lot of people were sent

home, so it was not good. But I believe. I believe. Once this is

solved, and it will be solved soon, we will see another miracle.

PEOPLE

―Hey Amr, check out my idea for a new Miraco TV commercial— starring me! ...what do you mean, ‗needs someone better looking‘?‖


16



Not just as Miraco, but as Egyptians. Nobody can believe that

people through the internet, or through Facebook, the first

revolution there were millions in the street. This time, it was not

through Facebook – it was 3 people. They started an idea,

refusing what was going on in the country, and they went into

the streets, people joined them, signing their petition, that they

don‘t want this regime.

ADV: Just like that, no internet, just face to face.

Amr: Yes,

and surprisingly, it

was more effective

than the first

revolution, and

more than 30

million went to the

street.

ADV: I saw

the photos and it

was pretty

remarkable. Of

course, photos

probably pale in

comparison to

actually being there in person.

Amr: I was there, and the feeling was just impossible to

describe. I don‘t know what will happen in the next few weeks,

or even the rest of the year, it depends on the political and

economic situation, but I believe that we, as Miraco, we will

find a way to persevere. Surely, teamwork is the key.

ADV: Certainly, your track record shows that you and

the others at Miraco have handled it well before, and so I think

everyone here has a lot of confidence in Miraco, and they want

to help you.

Amr: I hope so, and as I told you, everyone is

contributing. Everyone at Miraco, Midea and Carrier. With all

of this, we still hope we can close the year better than last year.

ADV: Switching tracks again – with Midea‘s first

International Business Conference finally wrapped up, what are

your thoughts on it?

Amr: Really great, although perhaps a few areas that

could be improved. For the conference, in fact it is two pieces –

the Group-wide section, and the MID section. For the MID

part, we can make it different each time. Maybe more team-

building next time. Sitting around and listening to everyone‘s

experiences, this one time is OK, next time we can have it in

another location, maybe out of the office, in the field. Before,

with my previous company, I attended a few courses abroad,

and they were really, very effective. Here are some examples:

Once, we had a conference in Venice, Italy. After giving us one

day of instruction and notes, they split us into groups and said,

―We are in Venice, there is a film festival happening now, so

here is a camera

and some other

tools, go make a

short film in your

groups in the next

6-7 hours, as a

team‖. Everyone

from different

countries, all

contributing – it

was fun. It was

really fun. At first

we didn‘t know

what to do, but

then we quickly

started taking roles, cooperating, and we made our film. By the

end of the day, we met up at the festival, where they had a jury

there to judge all of the short films we made, and we took the

prize for the best film! It is something we will all remember

forever.

ADV: That‘s a unique sort of a team-building exercise,

very creative and inspiring!

Amr: Another time, we went to Turino, Italy, where it

was very, very cold. For the first two days, we gathered to

discuss the plan for the next year, and then, before going there,

they asked all of us about our clothing measurements, and when

we got to our rooms, we each found complete cold-weather

outfits perfectly sized for us, because it was freezing outside,

snow everywhere. We were based in a compound up on this

mountain there, in nice cabins with one other colleague, from

another country and culture, and we had to work together,

because for the next 4 days, we had tasks. For instance, on one

day, we had to set up a zipline between a tree above us and one

below, that we could ride down on. Now, there was also a team

from an external HR company. They were watching everyone,

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how they contribute, how they cooperate, how they listen, if

you‘re open-minded about others, etc. and after 4 days of

different tasks, it‘s all evaluated at the end. The emphasis was

on team, at every retreat.

ADV: Those are both great examples of alternative

events that could be worth a lot to a company like Midea which

wants to bring its global workforce closer together.

Amr: Yes, these were organized externally by a British

company, for the people who are identified as high-potential by

their managers, and if you pass the assessment at these retreats,

you are promoted. Every 2-3 years, to be promoted, you must

go for another one. You are given a case with your colleagues,

talking with 4 of your colleagues, and they assess your reactions,

your ideas, your statistical thinking, everything. At the end, you

are given a report, which indicates your weak and strong points.

The weak points need to be worked on, to be enhanced, and

then you go back for another assessment. If you pass, you can

be promoted. If you don‘t, you remain staff forever. Two

chances after each promotion. It‘s a really memorable process.

ADV: That‘s fascinating – it sounds like a very holistic

approach to identifying future leaders for a global business. This

could be a development we see at Midea in the coming years.

PEOPLE


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Midea Receives Gold Award at the “Red

Cup for Relief” Event By Blinda Li

O n the last morning of June, the Guangdong Provin-

cial Party Committee and provincial government inaugurated the

―2013 Red Cup for Relief‖ event in Guangzhou. At the ceremo-

ny, Midea donated 15 million RMB and received the ―Gold

Award of the Red Cup‖ for poverty relief. Midea is known as a

major contributor at this event each year.

The event‘s theme of, ―Help the poor and devote our

love‖, was proposed by Guangdong Province for the purpose of

initiating far-reaching social programs. Over the years, ―Red Cup

for Relief‖ activities have received an enthusiastic response from

across the community. A large number of enterprises and indi-

viduals have emerged each year, displaying dedicated spirit while

accepting significant social responsibilities, such as those involv-

ing poverty relief.

During the activity, the leading contributors to poverty

relief (196 companies and individuals) were granted awards for

poverty relief, and 34 of those, including Midea, received the

Gold Award.

The contributions made to any community are a reflection

on how an enterprise perceives its own responsibilities to socie-

ty. This is why Midea has always been committed to public wel-

fare programs as a way of actively giving back to and pursuing

the most important needs of those who are ultimately responsi-

ble for the success of the company - the people.

COMMUNITY

Laundry Division Donated 2,000 Washing

Machines to Help the Disabled By Blinda Li

O n May 19, the National Day for the Disabled, Jiang-

su Province held its ―Happy Life Campaign for the Disabled" in

Nanjing. Midea‘s Laundry Division, eager to contribute to those

in need, donated 2,000 Little Swan washing machines, valued at

1.1 million

yuan. At the

donation

ceremony,

Jiangsu

province

Vice Gover-

nor Xu Jin-

rong pre-

sented an

official com-

mendation certificate for the donation to Laundry Division, and

Director-General Xu Qingxiang of the Jiangsu Disabled Welfare

Foundation also presented a plaque in recognition of the corpo-

rate contribution.

According to statistics, those in China who suffer from

disability currently total 85 million, which is the highest in the

world. Disability sufferers are as important as any other in our

community, thus Midea strives to do its best to take care of

them. Such

care should

not be lim-

ited to mere

expression

of pity; ra-

ther, it is

crucial to

help those

with disabili-

ties to pursue educational goals and employment, and enjoy

proper health care and transportation. The point of Midea‘s

donation is to facilitate not just living, but having a life. Midea

appreciates more than anyone that society has helped to build

its success, and so Midea enjoys every opportunity it gets to give

back to society.


19

Congratulations, Toshio! Congratulations, Toshio! Congratulations, Toshio!

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Family Reunion - Midea

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