In recent years, the wave of digital transformation has swept across industries, posing challenges for traditional manufacturing companies in terms of efficiency and cost control. As a company specializing in customized equipment, HONEST Automation is proactively embracing digital transformation. By shifting from experience-driven to data-driven operations, the company is injecting new vitality into its future growth.
Understanding “Who We Are”: From Business Characteristics to Industry Challenges
HONEST’s business spans the entire lifecycle of equipment customization—from pre-sales solution development, design, and production to after-sales services. This process involves multiple disciplines, including mechanical, electrical, and assembly expertise. Historically, each task has relied heavily on experienced professionals who refine and perfect their work through repeated efforts. While this “artisan spirit” has enabled the company to maintain a reputation for being “small yet exquisite,” it also presents challenges in scaling operations and optimizing costs.
The experience-driven model often yields inconsistent results. A single task handled by different individuals may produce vastly different outcomes. In the non-standard customization industry, the level of teamwork and synergy among various specialists directly impacts product quality and delivery efficiency. This heavy reliance on individual expertise and collaboration creates high costs and makes it challenging to meet customers’ growing demands for lower prices and shorter delivery times.
From Experience to Data: The Core Path of Transformation
The goal of digital transformation is to turn valuable expertise and knowledge from tacit to explicit forms, ultimately embedding them as systematic and replicable corporate assets. The following steps outline the critical path to achieving this:
1. Extracting and Standardizing Expertise
Identify and refine the methodologies and best practices of experienced personnel, transforming them into simple, stable, and cost-effective standardized solutions. Tailor modular products and specifications to meet diverse application scenarios.
2. Knowledge Sharing and Dissemination
Transfer validated expertise and knowledge to team members, especially new employees, enabling them to quickly acquire core skills. This enhances overall team capabilities and lays the foundation for scaling efficient teams.
3. Digitizing and Enabling Data-Driven Decision-Making
Leverage digital tools to institutionalize experience and knowledge as sustainable resources for the company. Utilize big data analytics to predict, anticipate, and automate decision-making processes in key production stages, enhancing efficiency and accuracy.
4. Proactive Knowledge Delivery and Scenario Empowerment
Digital transformation goes beyond storing knowledge; it requires actively delivering the right tools and methods to employees when they need them. This creates a “work companion” experience, akin to having an expert at one’s side, ready to provide support at critical moments.
Moving Forward: Strengthening Core Competitiveness with Digitalization
Through digital transformation, HONEST aims to comprehensively transition from experience-driven to data-driven operations. Even less experienced employees can leverage system support to produce high-quality results quickly, while seasoned professionals can use digital tools to improve efficiency and focus on innovation and optimization.
Between 2025 and 2026, digital transformation will become a strategic priority for HONEST. It is not only a necessary response to industry challenges but also a vital pathway to enhancing competitiveness and meeting customer expectations.
As the company’s management emphasized, “Time waits for no one.” The market will not slow down to accommodate our challenges, nor will customers lower their demands due to our difficulties. By embracing the era of data-driven innovation, HONEST is poised to remain competitive and secure a leading position in the industry’s future landscape.
——Excerpt from the speech by Mr. Zhou, General Manager of HONEST Automation on January 7, 2025
