From furniture manufacturer to WDMAX machinery dealer - interview with Ciprian Iacob, Woodmatic manager

WDMAX machines, a brand of China-based Korean manufacturer KDT Machinery, have recently entered the Romanian woodworking market. The Guangzhou-headquartered company manufactures computerized machinery for furniture production. The company's two research and development centers, located in South Korea and Italy, ensure and support the performance of the manufactured equipment. The product range includes automatic capping machines, computerized sawing machines, automatic multi-drilling machines, CNCs. WDMAX is the group's brand developed for emerging markets, a brand that aims to conquer the market by capitalizing on a very good quality/price ratio. Presence in Russia, Ukraine, Turkey, Mexico, Mexico, Hungary, Australia and more than 40 other countries shows that many furniture manufacturers have been convinced by the company's motto - premium quality equipment at an affordable cost.

In Romania, WDMAX is brought by Woodmatic, a new brand with no history in woodworking machinery. The brand is new in the furniture industry, but not the person who represents the company. It is Ciprian Iacob, a well-known name in the production of chipboard furniture, Sanitop being a long-established brand on the bathroom furniture market. I have known Ciprian Iacob since the time when my work was closely linked to finishing products. I knew even then that he admired the Chinese market, having collaborated countless times in that part of the world. When I asked him why he likes China so much he told me that he is fascinated by the Chinese people who are "extremely well organized, industrious and very meticulous. Sort of brown, slant-eyed Germans„.

Finding out that he had entered the machinery market brought a lot of questions to my mind that I would have liked him to answer. So I contacted him and many of them were answered.

China is today a globally recognized technology market leader

Ciprian Iacob has a cult for technology from China. He sees WDMAX and KDT as leaders in the field of furniture factory equipment manufacturers, pioneers in making high technology accessible to as many manufacturers as possible. Seeing how passionately he talks about the technology coming from China, but given the perception of some about "made in China", I couldn't help but ask the question: isn't he afraid that the market will perceive the machines as "made in China"?

"WDMAX and KDT are not Chinese, WDMAX-KDT is a corporation that acts and behaves like a corporation, i.e. they are listed on the stock exchange, have development and research centers in South Korea and Italy, have over 56 patented inventions and over 31 versions of software developed and copywrite protected. Personally, I think that this kind of labeling could only come from uninformed, uninformed people. We are towards the end of 2020, and almost everything we use in terms of technology is related to China. China today is a globally recognized market leader in technology. It is true that there are also uneducated people who still refuse to accept the truth that there are high-tech companies in China, such as KDT. These opinions can only come from uneducated or malicious people. Absolutely all major European technology-producing companies, whatever their field, have strong business links with China. China is for such companies an important supplier of sub-assemblies, semi-finished or finished products. I believe that this is now our role in the market, to correctly inform our potential customers of the advantages they will benefit from if they choose to become WoodMatic customers.

WoodMatic is a committed company, which wants to build together with WDMAX a solid, transparent partnership, based on sincerity and fairness towards the Romanian manufacturers, the future beneficiaries of the technology we commercialize. The ultimate goal is to be able to jointly offer Romanian manufacturers access to high technology through an extremely affordable pricing policy. We are fair in saying origin of the machines we sell and we pride ourselves on the fact that KDT Machinery, whose brand is also WDMAX, is one of the strongest and best known and fastest growing woodworking machinery manufacturers specializing in the design, manufacture and supply of advanced technological solutions for the furniture manufacturing industry.

Furniture manufacturer versus machinery seller

Sanitop has been producing furniture for a very long time. The beginning was in Brăila, with the first factory opened, where it started with chipboard furniture, continued with MDF dyed, later diversifying with the foliated. The company grew steadily, leading to the opening of a second factory in Comănești. I wanted to find out how his experience as a manufacturer of derivative panel furniture is helping him in this new business and whether he is thinking of giving up furniture production.

"Basically, as a furniture manufacturer we were in the position of having to purchase technology for the two factories we operated and often felt the lack of alternatives. We were constantly having to look for solutions to our production problems and sometimes we were even pioneers in importing machinery such as PVC thermoforming presses. Go tohen we needed equipment, when we had specific needs in production, we felt the lack of alternatives in terms of budget. Specifically - if we needed a CNC drilling machine to drill 6 sides at once, 2 plates at the same time, there were no alternatives. At the moment, on this machine, there is no alternative to very expensive machines coming from Italy and Germany. We come up with the solution - we bring high technology at affordable, fair prices.

Under no circumstances will we give up furniture production. Never! We love what we do and we love making it. We have two factories in which, unfortunately, we, like the whole industry, are experiencing an acute shortage of specialists. There is practically no more middle school for the furniture industry, there are no more schools to ensure the need for specialists in the field. In spite of all the difficulties, we are moving forward and we will try to limit ourselves in doing only as much as we can do."

"WDMAX brings high technology to the mobile industry at fair prices"

Woodmatic comes to a machinery market that has grown and matured in recent times. The need to technologize and re-engineer factories is becoming more and more evident and in a very short time it will no longer be possible to perform without quality machinery and state-of-the-art technology. This process has already started and European and national funding programs have helped a lot. But there are also many companies that are developing on their own and choosing their suppliers very carefully, with a very strict quality/price ratio. In this context, we wanted to find out from Ciprian Iacob what WDMAX machines bring new to the market, apart from competitive prices, what is the range of machines and which markets are they aimed at?

"WDMAX does not bring competitive pricing, WDMAX brings high technology to the mobile industry at fair prices. I want to be very clear and clear on this. WDMAX does not offer competitive prices, WDMAX offers fair prices. WDMAX appreciates European manufacturers, they are a technological role model for the company we represent. I want to tell you that in 2018, KDT acquired the Italian CNC manufacturer MasterWood. Also since that year there is a research and development center in Rimini, Italy. In the last 2 years KDT has managed to integrate state-of-the-art technology into its products from one of the best European manufacturers. WDMAX is a complete manufacturer, providing a full range of CNC machines, intelligent machines for furniture manufacturing. The range of machines is addressed both to manufacturers of chipboard and MDF furniture and to those who process solid wood, but only for sawing, drilling, milling operations. Most of the equipment is dedicated to processing chipboard and MDF. We mainly address manufacturers of chipboard and MDF furniture.

Basically WDMAX, through the wide range of equipment it produces, can cover the demand for machines both for workshops - I am referring here, for example, to the WDX-132 or 323, small capacity canting machines - and for small, medium and large factories. I want to tell you that we are boldly approaching solutions for large factories, and when I say large factories, I mean automation, automatic drilling lines, conveyors, with which we can set up, design modern factories. It's worth emphasizing KDT's ability to produce automated lines for high productivity in both small workshops and large factories. We offer powerful and affordable industrial machines with professional technical support.

What I think is the strength of WDMAX machines is that furniture manufacturers can get new, modern, state-of-the-art technology at used technology prices. In the price segment that we cover, we're basically only competing with European used technology." 

Romanian machinery market for the furniture industry

The woodworking machinery market is fairly well represented in Romania. How does Ciprian Iacob see this market now and in the future and why is he so confident in the technology he brings from China.

"I've been going to China for more than 10 years, I have many Chinese partners who have become good friends. The Chinese people fascinate me. In Romania and other parts of the world, the Chinese are seen as extremely well organized, hardworking and very meticulous. Îince 2009 I have been going to China to buy supplies for our factories. Before the pandemic came, my colleagues and I went 2-3 times a year and we got an overview of the Chinese market. It's hard to claim to know the Chinese market, but strictly in our niche, we can say we understand it. What attracts me to it? We're talking about education and work culture. Asians are completely different from the rest of the world in this area, not necessarily from us, from Europeans, from the rest of the world. They are very rigorous people, very meticulous, they are very hard-working people, extremely hard-working people. They are very disciplined, they are educated, they have technical and commercial education. I am one of those people who appreciate Chinese culture, I am a fan of products made in China, of course products made with a sense of responsibility and offered at the right price.

With regard to the Romanian market, the whole industry is facing an acute shortage of qualified personnel. There is a problem with the labor force because for a long time nobody has been in charge of this training. The biggest challenge for machinery suppliers is to be able to offer affordable production automation solutions. We take on this mission to provide solutions for the shortage of skilled labor by supplying CNC machinery, automation, in production processes. In the short time that I have had the opportunity to study the machinery market, I see a fantastic desire from small and medium sized companies to acquire state-of-the-art modern technology at fair prices. I see the Romanian market in continuous development. In the short term, there are clear signs of caution from manufacturers, given the current context. But it is clear that the only medium and long term direction that everyone is considering is to technologize and re-technologize the factories, equipping them with modern technology. That is where we are coming with fresh forces, with new offers. WDMAX will change the face of the local industry and I would like to talk to you in 5 years' time about what the industrial woodworking equipment market will look like.

From the beginning, I also saw WoodMatic's entry into the market as an act of courage. For an entrepreneur focused on production, I found it hard to adapt to the new market and the "battle" he had to fight with people with a long experience in the field. Indeed, he proved his experience as a salesman by selling the furniture he produced so that he could open a second factory, but selling machinery is another matter. On the other hand, his production experience, in which he has seen all these machines at work and discovered the good points and the not so good ones, is a major asset. So how is WoodMatic entering this market and, last but not least, is there room for newcomers?

I think there is room and will be in the future for other manufacturers. The thing to remember is that there are not many manufacturers in the world on the scale of WDMAX. We have a say in the field. For a start we have a tremendous amount to learn. We are here to learn, we are here to know the market, to understand it, to talk to potential customers. Only by understanding their needs will we be able to offer the best solutions. We are here to offer high-performance industrial machinery that can be easily operated in 3 shifts, at extraordinarily good prices. We believe that there is and always will be room for new energy, for new companies willing to add value in the segments where they operate. Today, more than ever, it is clear that China is taking a leadership role in more and more areas. We believe that the partnership with China, with WDMAX, can only be beneficial for absolutely any manufacturer eager to develop, willing to step on the accelerator pedal of development. We will be there for all those customers who want to go beyond the condition, giving them access to high technology at affordable prices. Basically, we are making a point of promoting high technology at very affordable prices for the local market. What seemed impossible to them yesterday, today, with us, they will be able to accomplish.

No big words, we know and we stand by what we say. We sell machines made in China, we have center of excellence in development and design in Italy. Through the company we represent we can say that we are part of the great KDT family. Our machines benefit from the best that Italy has to offer in terms of state-of-the-art technology and equipment. Italy is widely recognized as a world leader in the development of high technology for furniture factories. This gives potential customers access to high technology at affordable prices. We are extremely pleased to partner with WDMAX. We are a team of young people and WDMAX wanted this partnership with us because they wanted a young and dynamic team. They made an informed choice, they knew we had no experience in selling and distributing machinery, but they appreciated what we have done as a manufacturer and have absolute confidence that we will succeed as a high-tech supplier to the furniture industry. We recommend that all those who are looking to invest should also turn their attention to us, ask for details, study our offer and when they make the decision to purchase equipment, make an informed decision. 

We can only wish success to Ciprian Iacob and Woodmatic and promise that we will come back sooner than 5 years to see how they have been received by the Romanian market.