Exclusive Interview: Mr. William Wang, Founder and General Manager of MKS
“Serve the World with Knowledge” – a MKS Story of Growth in the Electric Drive Industry
Introduction: MKS is a company serving the world electric drive sector with TIM (Thermal Interface Material) products. In its history, the company has seen significant business growth. TIM products designed and manufactured by MKS have been utilized in the electronic and electric drive systems of renowned automobile brands such as Volvo, BMW, Volkswagen, and General Motors, as well as Chinese brands like NIO, SAIC, and Geely. In a recent interview, we spoke with the founder and General Manager of MKS, Mr. William Wang, to understand how the company has gained favor among numerous automotive giants in the competitive industry, especially in the realm of new energy vehicles.
Can you introduce how MKS started and how you entered this product line? What is TIM?
TIM, short for Thermal Interface Material, facilitates heat dissipation between electronic components and heat sinks. With the rapid growth of electronic systems, particularly in applications like radar systems, in-car charging, battery management systems, and the miniaturization of electric drive components along with increased power, the demand for TIM has significantly increased.
I was born in Shanghai, one of the automotive hubs of the world, and always had a passion for cars as a kid. I started my career in sales within the automotive field. During this time, I learned a lot about the industry and conceived many ideas to better serve customers and assist them in producing superior vehicles. This eventually led to the initiation of my entrepreneurial journey, focusing on serving customers more efficiently. I founded my company in Anting, Shanghai, primarily to serve tier-one automotive suppliers in the region. As the Chinese automotive market experienced rapid growth, satisfied customers in the early stages often approached me, asking if we could provide other urgently needed products. Among these products, the most challenging to source were those related to renewable energy vehicles, as many established international suppliers were reluctant to handle small batches of diverse products with uncertain market prospects. Fueled by a desire to meet customer needs and capitalizing on the trends of electrification, I actively collaborated with customers to develop TIM products.
TIM, short for Thermal Interface Material, facilitates heat dissipation between electronic components and heat sinks. With the rapid growth of electronic systems, particularly in applications like radar systems, in-car charging, battery management systems, and the miniaturization of electric drive components along with increased power, the demand for TIM has significantly increased.
I was born in Shanghai, one of the automotive hubs of the world, and always had a passion for cars as a kid. I started my career in sales within the automotive field. During this time, I learned a lot about the industry and conceived many ideas to better serve customers and assist them in producing superior vehicles. This eventually led to the initiation of my entrepreneurial journey, focusing on serving customers more efficiently. I founded my company in Anting, Shanghai, primarily to serve tier-one automotive suppliers in the region. As the Chinese automotive market experienced rapid growth, satisfied customers in the early stages often approached me, asking if we could provide other urgently needed products. Among these products, the most challenging to source were those related to renewable energy vehicles, as many established international suppliers were reluctant to handle small batches of diverse products with uncertain market prospects. Fueled by a desire to meet customer needs and capitalizing on the trends of electrification, I actively collaborated with customers to develop TIM products.
Why do many famous automotive component companies worldwide choose to collaborate with MKS, especially in electric drive projects? What is your biggest advantage?
In addition to the inherent customer service DNA of our company, I believe the other key reason why customers choose us is our knowledge. We have been serving different international brands' tier-one automotive companies in the electric drive and various electronic products for a long time. Our products have been used and tested in many car companies in different applications, helping us accumulate extensive knowledge. Our team has a culture of diligence in pursuing new things and a habit of summarizing and extracting experiences and data into knowledge that better serves customers. The knowledge encompasses both product performance and application technology, as well as how customers can better use our TIM products in their production processes. This is crucial because even the best design needs effective implementation through production.
In addition to the inherent customer service DNA of our company, I believe the other key reason why customers choose us is our knowledge. We have been serving different international brands' tier-one automotive companies in the electric drive and various electronic products for a long time. Our products have been used and tested in many car companies in different applications, helping us accumulate extensive knowledge. Our team has a culture of diligence in pursuing new things and a habit of summarizing and extracting experiences and data into knowledge that better serves customers. The knowledge encompasses both product performance and application technology, as well as how customers can better use our TIM products in their production processes. This is crucial because even the best design needs effective implementation through production.
Can you provide some examples of these advantages and how you used knowledge to serve customers?
A recent European client approached us to develop a TIM product for electric vehicle battery management systems. We recommended lowering one performance metric. Initially, the client was puzzled and concerned that our product couldn't meet their requirements. However, our technical team professionally explained our previous experience in developing a similar product for a U.S. client, where we found that exceeding this metric would cause issues in their system after a certain period. The client, a renowned international tier-one automotive company, was relatively new to new energy vehicle system development. They were particularly pleased that our team promptly shared our insights, presenting the relevant knowledge professionally and helping them avoid unnecessary detours in their time-sensitive project.
Another example is when our team visited a client and identified their thermal glue dispensing process as the bottleneck in the entire production line. We then organized a task force to develop a TIM adhesive with performance meeting the requirements but better viscosity that could match the client's equipment better. Although the cost of our product for the client did not decrease, they reduced the overall cost by speeding up the production line. Moreover, with the sudden surge in market demand at that time, the client's increased daily output helped them seize more market opportunities. Their customers, seeing their quicker delivery, shifted more orders to them at better (higher) pricing.
In a sense, we are not a typical traditional small or medium-sized Chinese enterprise recognized by the market only for competitive prices. MKS can use our knowledge to serve customers across the entire value spectrum comprehensively. This can include reducing the total cost for customers, increasing customer output, and even helping customers seize market opportunities to sell their products at good prices.
A recent European client approached us to develop a TIM product for electric vehicle battery management systems. We recommended lowering one performance metric. Initially, the client was puzzled and concerned that our product couldn't meet their requirements. However, our technical team professionally explained our previous experience in developing a similar product for a U.S. client, where we found that exceeding this metric would cause issues in their system after a certain period. The client, a renowned international tier-one automotive company, was relatively new to new energy vehicle system development. They were particularly pleased that our team promptly shared our insights, presenting the relevant knowledge professionally and helping them avoid unnecessary detours in their time-sensitive project.
Another example is when our team visited a client and identified their thermal glue dispensing process as the bottleneck in the entire production line. We then organized a task force to develop a TIM adhesive with performance meeting the requirements but better viscosity that could match the client's equipment better. Although the cost of our product for the client did not decrease, they reduced the overall cost by speeding up the production line. Moreover, with the sudden surge in market demand at that time, the client's increased daily output helped them seize more market opportunities. Their customers, seeing their quicker delivery, shifted more orders to them at better (higher) pricing.
In a sense, we are not a typical traditional small or medium-sized Chinese enterprise recognized by the market only for competitive prices. MKS can use our knowledge to serve customers across the entire value spectrum comprehensively. This can include reducing the total cost for customers, increasing customer output, and even helping customers seize market opportunities to sell their products at good prices.
Having received recognition from top global clients, what are your plans for future development?
One of our next focuses is to use the knowledge we have accumulated in the industry to serve the global expansion of demand for new energy vehicle development and production. We have established professional teams in North America and Europe to help apply our knowledge in different regions to serve customers locally. We are also actively building the capability to produce products and serve customers in different regions. Things are happening fast. I believe that the next time we communicate, I can share more good news and cases of using MKS knowledge to serve customers in different regions. We also hope that colleagues in the industry, whether potential customers or professional peers, can contact us for discussions, collaboration, and ideas exchange. Let's work together to promote the development of industry knowledge to benefit the market and society and make our world greener and more sustainably developed!
One of our next focuses is to use the knowledge we have accumulated in the industry to serve the global expansion of demand for new energy vehicle development and production. We have established professional teams in North America and Europe to help apply our knowledge in different regions to serve customers locally. We are also actively building the capability to produce products and serve customers in different regions. Things are happening fast. I believe that the next time we communicate, I can share more good news and cases of using MKS knowledge to serve customers in different regions. We also hope that colleagues in the industry, whether potential customers or professional peers, can contact us for discussions, collaboration, and ideas exchange. Let's work together to promote the development of industry knowledge to benefit the market and society and make our world greener and more sustainably developed!