Displaying a collective enthusiasm to build a safer future, 8,576 industry professionals journeyed from all corners of Asia to attend the 7th edition of Secutech Thailand, which finished its four day run on 31 October.

With smart city solutions as a core theme, exhibitors and visitors alike were united in their consensus that the Thai security market is full of potential, particularly due to the government’s commitment to smart city initiatives.
 
Positive sentiment also surrounded the successful synergies created between Secutech Thailand and Digital Thailand Big Bang, which were held alongside each other for the first time this year.

Under the banner of ‘smart city solutions week’, the two fairs together with Thailand Lighting Fair and Thailand Building Fair created a one-stop shop for a wide variety of smart city solutions.   
 
At the conclusion of the show, Ms Regina Tsai, the Deputy General Manager of Messe Frankfurt New Era Business Media Ltd, said: “We are delighted that Secutech Thailand has once again built bridges for important business connections to be made.

‘The introduction of new show elements such as the Zhejiang Smart City area, as well as pavilions from Korea, Singapore and Taiwan has connected the market with innovative products that can solve important security, fire safety and smart living challenges. What’s more, our successful collaboration with the Digital Economy Promotion Agency to run Secutech Thailand and Digital Thailand Big Bang concurrently has helped to further build the profile of Thailand’s growing smart city scene.”  

More than 280 exhibiting brands participated at Secutech Thailand, with many commenting favorably about the connections that they made at the fair.

“Every year that we attend Secutech Thailand we notice a different scale, and our company uses the platform to release a different high-level solution,” said Mr Jeff Yang, the CTO of ZKTECO Thailand.

“This year, we are showcasing our ‘one-face’ AI facial recognition technology. Many visitors have come to our booth and their feedback has been very good. Interest is coming from many different industries. We have met with system Integrators, government officials and interestingly yesterday we met with two visitors from banks.” 

An ideal platform for collaboration between the public and private sector
Tasked by the government to lead Thailand’s digital transformation, the Digital Economy Promotion Agency has said that public and private sector collaboration will be crucial to achieve the government’s smart city goals. 
With government officials from both Thailand and the wider ASEAN region in attendance, Secutech Thailand’s exhibitors had the opportunity to showcase their innovative smart solutions to a relevant audience.

More than 20 VIP tours connected exhibitors with various government agencies, including: the National Municipal League of Thailand, the Mass Rapid Transit Authority of Thailand, the Fire and Rescue Department, as well as representatives from the UTAPAO airport authority, Suvarnabhumi Airport and Don Mueang Airport.

ISS, an exhibitor of video analysis software saw opportunities to promote their smart city and transportation solutions at the fair. Mr Nikolay Bushev, Vice President for international markets of the company said: “In the past we supplied our solutions to a smart region in Russia, where 15 different cities were linked to one monitoring centre, and at Secutech Thailand we have the possibility to show the Thai government our achievements. We are aiming to meet with traffic police and city authorities. Apart from these buyers we have noticed a lot of visitors from Myanmar, Laos, Vietnam and Indonesia.” 

Mr Jonathan Chan, the Regional Product Manager of Singaporean company New DVR(s) was also enthused by the prospects in the smart city sector: “The government has been talking about establishing 100 smart cities in Thailand, and we can see many changes.

‘The mindset of people in Thailand is very accepting and they increasingly know what the IoT is about. Secutech Thailand continues to be very supportive of the smart city scene. We can see that the organisers continuously attract relevant industry players that are looking for IoT solutions. We see bright prospects in Thailand for our open source IoT platform.”

Buyer delegations from across ASEAN benefit from sourcing and networking opportunities  
In addition to thousands of visitors from across Thailand, the fair also attracted buyer delegations from Cambodia, Myanmar, Malaysia, Indonesia and Laos. Helping these buyers to forge new relationships, 167 successful business matching sessions and 181 personalised buyer tours took place throughout the show. 

Mr Hoeung Kongkeasambath, the Managing Director of Bridge Real Estate came to the show as part of a delegation from Cambodia and was impressed with the connections that he was able to make at the fair:

“From year to year Secutech Thailand is improving and growing in size. This year I have found some interesting partners whose factories I will visit over the next few months. I am interested in their security cameras and digital locks. One is from Thailand and the other is from China. By working with these type of suppliers, I can help to improve the level of technology available in Cambodia. The organisation of the fair has been very smooth and I very much appreciate the business matching sessions where I have been able to have one-to-one conversations with potential partners to find scope for cooperation.” 

The President of the Malaysian Chapter of the Asia Pacific Security Association (APSA), Mr Dato’ Sri Haji Mustapa Bin Haji Ali, was also impressed with the relationships he was able to build at the fair: “We are looking for new technology and business partners and I feel that we have been able to find that here. The other day, I found a CCTV surveillance solution that I can introduce to our members, and perhaps introduce to the government for possible applications in our country. The business matching service is good, it has helped me find the new business partners that I was looking for. For sure, we will be back here next year. This year we brought 24 members and next year, we want to bring more than 40 members to visit Secutech Thailand.”

Delegation members also applauded the fair as a great place to network with security associations from different countries: “We have found a lot of opportunities to generate business in the surveillance and access control segments at Secutech Thailand,” said Ms Wah Wah Min, Secretary of the Private Security Services Association of Myanmar. “But we also come to the fair because it’s a good occasion to network with other associations from across ASEAN. This helps us to expand our network and learn from each other.”  

Concurrent Fire & Safety Thailand event facilitates transfer of disaster prevention and emergency equipment from Taiwan and Korea 
On top of high-tech surveillance, video analytics, management software and access control systems, visitors to Secutech Thailand could also locate extinguishing systems, alarms, sensors and personal protection equipment at the concurrent ‘Fire & Safety Thailand’ event.  

A highlight of the event was the Korea Fire Institute Pavilion which hosted internationally certified brands such as Dae Myung, Forttec, Global ENP, Intech, Jinwoo SMC, Paratech, Rezontech, Shinjeong Development, Shinwoo Electronics, and Youngjin Flex.

NARLabs, an organisation founded by the Taiwan Ministry of Science and Technology was also in attendance at the event. Explaining the organisation’s reasons for joining, Mr Kuang-Chong Wu, the Vice President of NARLabs said: “Thailand is one of the most important countries in Southeast Asia for us. Two of our centers – the National Center for Research on Earthquake Engineering and the National Center for High-Performance Computing – are participating at Secutech Thailand 2019 to exhibit our smart technology related to disaster prevention and mitigation. We hope that by showing our technologies, we can enable and initiate more cooperation between our two countries.” 

Another Taiwanese organisation, the Taiwan Association of Disaster Prevention Industry (TADPI) brought a number of companies to share solutions for pollution monitoring, advanced weather forecasts, and flood defense to name a few. 

“When it comes to Thailand, I think we all remember the floods of 2011, said Mr Daniel Yao, the Executive Director of the association. “Because of ground sediment issues in Bangkok we are likely to see flooding again. The services that we provide such as flood mapping can help the government better deal with the issue. Taiwan is recognised by the United Nations as an area most effected by natural disasters. So the people of Taiwan have accumulated experience of how to deal with natural disasters that we can share. That’s why we are here at Secutech Thailand, to use the fair as a bridge to connect with those people who are in need of our services.”

Smart Factory Conference provides updates on safety, security and industry 4.0 
While new business relationships were being formed in the exhibition hall, important industry insights were being gained at the fair’s Smart Factory Conference. The conference updated industry professionals on topics such as security automation, smart disaster prevention and industry 4.0.

Following his presentation at the conference, Mr Somwang Boonrakcahroen, President of the Thai – German institute underlined the value that the conference delivered: “Today I talked about digital technology and how it can be used to achieve industry 4.0.

“At the moment, Thailand can be described on average as being at a level of industry 2.5. One of the first steps we need to take to reach industry 4.0 is to build awareness. This conference helps to achieve this goal by informing attendees about what technologies are involved in industry 4.0 and how they can be implemented.” 

Safety and security are increasingly important basic needs and, therefore, stand for a growing global market. With thirteen trade fairs, congresses and forums around the world, Messe Frankfurt brings together demand and supply worldwide with progressive, connected products, applications and services focusing on commercial security and the protection of buildings, spaces and people.

The Safety, Security & Fire business cluster offers access to the dynamic markets of the Arabian Peninsula, Asia, Europe and South America.