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Shiang Ye Industrial Co., Ltd. which was established in 1978, specializes in the design and manufacturing of chairs. The company's products are very popular, yet the brand is known by relatively few people. Many people have used Shiang Ye products without ever realizing they were made by Shiang Ye. This lack of brand name recognition has not stopped Shiang Ye from continuing to do what it does best, which is develop even better chairs with contemporary designs that suit the modern market. The company has maintained a steady production volume of over one million chairs every year, and its products can be found in 90-plus countries around the globe, as far away as Mozambique and Mauritius.
Having its own manufacturing facilities enabled Shiang Ye to accumulate extensive experience and knowledge of working with plastic and iron over the years. The company has always aspired to improve product quality and stability, and now over 90% of their chairs' components are made in-house. In 2010, Shiang Ye introduced the company's original brand, SITPLS, a product line which reflects the company's philosophy of modern living.
Since 2008, Shiang Ye has taken part in various international design competitions, winning several awards with its NOVITE folding chair, SLIM folding chair, and MUSE chair. These honors have served as wonderful advertisements, showing the world that chairs made in Taiwan are high quality, solid, and ergonomic.
Ms. Huang Han-yi, Shiang Ye's creative director, says the company's first hit product, the "Colander Bottom" folding chair, has been on the market for about 20 years. Perhaps this is why Shiang Ye has chosen to focus on exploring the possibilities offered by folding chairs. According to Ms. Huang, a good folding chair is both durable and easy to store, and these attributes are the result of a complicated structural design. However, because the product itself is so simple, most consumers do not realize the innovation behind it. Shiang Ye's NOVITE folding chair is one such example: The product is very versatile and durable; it can be used indoors and outdoors; the design is pleasing to the eye; and it is comfortable. Best of all, it is made with just five components. It has taken 30 years of experience in chair design to achieve that.
The NOVITE folding chair makes an eye-catching first impression. The chair is manufactured using only one material - polypropylene plastic - with no screws, and so is easy to recycle. The structural strength has been proven with a free-fall test while bearing an object weighting 135 kg (about 298 lbs), which is a requirement for furniture sold commercially in Europe and North America. The NOVITE won the Red Dot Design Award, helping the SITPLS brand garner a great deal of international attention.
In 2011, Shiang Ye's SLIM folding chair won Gold in Germany's iF Product Design Awards. The SLIM is only 2.5 cm (about 1 inch) thick when folded, and won the hearts of the judges with its graceful simplicity.
Another award winner is the MUSE series, which took Bronze in the 2013 IDEA Award in the United States. The MUSE is designed to look like a rocking chair which is standing still. The legs are made of wood-print plastic, giving it the warmth of wood furniture. The legs are adjustable up to 1 cm (about 0.4 of an inch), allowing comfortable seating even outdoors where the ground may not be even.
Because it has so many outstanding products, the company is constantly faced with the problem of competitors trying to copy its innovations and designs. Yet Ms. Huang says: "We'll always be one step ahead!" She is confident the company will stay an industry leader, and continue to reinvent a brand that is gaining recognition in Taiwan and throughout the world.
Shiang Ye Industrial Co., Ltd.
www.shiangye.com |
