Category Archives: General

Sincerity

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Dear readers, customers, colleagues and netizens. If you have been following Phoenix Contact SEA Blog closely, you would’ve seen very in-depth writings/sharing about Industrial I/Os, top class Surge Protection, systematic Solar Solutions, super reliable Power Solutions, best in class Connectors and durable Markers/Labels.

If we were to name each and every product, it would probably span a few telephone directories worth of entries to display all the products that Phoenix Contact can offer.

But, I’m here to share the very one thing that sets Phoenix Contact apart from others. It is just one simple word: “SINCERITY”.

From our viewpoint, Phoenix Contact products are to help our customers to be successful in their Applications, Solutions, Projects and Designs. With a product developed sincerely with the purpose of being able to easily, efficiently and elegantly be adopted in your designs, we will definitely ensure your solution is applicable for the future demand of technology.

In many sales-motivated seminars, the best sales person wins the order. But in reality the greatest salesperson wins the respect of the customers, with the sincere attitude to provide a win-win proposition to customers.

Also only the greatest salesperson retains the customer whenever that person pursues his journey. The main principle behind this attitude is once again, SINCERITY.

In reflection, the word “SINCERITY” reflects the attitude of Phoenix Contact’s aspiration, mission and focus in helping our customers to continue to lead in their fields of expertise such as manufacturing, infrastructure, oil & gas, mining, power distributions, marine, agriculture, solar, lighting, medical and aerospace.

Over the years, customers work hand in hand with Phoenix Contact, because we offer the best and effective technology and we understand the needs of our customers. Phoenix Contact is the leading example of technology developed in sincerity with the main goal of easing customer’s application.

If we ponder deep into our connectors and terminal blocks, it was developed with considerations on ease of use, reliability, accuracy and practicality. The millions of terminal blocks shipped every year is a reflection of the millions of connections we have from helping customers.

Self-Reflection

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In our fast-paced careers and lives, it’s common for people to get lost in the days, weeks and even months. My opinion on this is because majority of the people rarely take the time to pause, reflect and evaluate what they have done.

I love to engage in new opportunities, be it in my personal life or as part of a work force, but I also like to have personal and quality time with the people I choose to include in my life. To make sure I stay connected despite my ever busy schedules, I set aside time for self-reflection.

How Do I Self-Reflect?

As I am now in the 2nd half of year 2018, I will spend time asking myself the following questions;

  • What made this year good? Bad?
  • Did I achieve everything I set out to?
  • What did I do well?
  • Where did I falter?
  • What do I want to change for next year?

By honestly asking my inner self, it helps me to re-enact the experiences I had over the last few months or even the past few years. This also benefits me to make sure I have me-time to be in touch with the deep part of my soul, so I can be better for the people I care about.

Benefits of Self Reflection

I would like to share my opinions of the benefits that I have gathered over the years by constantly setting aside time for self-reflection:

  1. Being positive

I am a very positive person. Positivity to me is important for managing a complex life that includes meeting career, family, community and self needs. The more you reflect on your strengths and how you can build upon them, the more positive and confident you will be in the future.  We become more confident in where our strengths lie and how to close the gaps in our areas of weakness.

 

  1. Acting with Integrity

Our integrity is often put to the test during bad or stressful times. Taking time to review your actions in the recent past and evaluating them against your core values is critical to acting with integrity. Without structure you can end up anywhere. I keep my own set of rules to guide me. Then, I can assess whether I am following them or how deviation has led me off track. Doing this consistently can solidify your values and make the decision making process easier in the future.

  1. Strengthening your inner self

When taking time to self-reflect, you are looking within yourself. This helps to build two very important aspects. First is self-positioning: it gives you the ability to understand your emotions, strengths, weaknesses, drives, values and goals, and recognize their impact on others.

Second is self-regulation: this involves the ability to control or readdress your disruptive emotions and adapt to changing circumstances. These skills will definitely improve both your personal life and also your professional role in your organization.

My End, Your Beginning

I would like to thank everyone who spent their time to read through my writing, and I strongly believe that everyone has a hand for their own destiny, even if we don’t have total control.

By keeping aside time for self-reflection, even just thinking through who I wish to be in 10 years’ time is helpful for making decisions that lead me down a preferred path.

This is “My End” and I hope that if you have not done any self-reflecting thus far, it will now be “Your Beginning”.

Lighting the Way to Safety

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How well-lit is your workplace? Is it bright enough for you to see if what you are doing is safe?

According to Department of Occupational Safety and Health Malaysia (DOSH), under the Factories and Machinery Act (Act 139), the approximate minimum intensity under average operating conditions “Where moderate discrimination of detail is essential, such as for medium assembling, rough bench and machine work, rough inspection or testing of products” is at least 20 foot-candles, or 215.2 lumens.

Looking for a bright idea to light up your world (or at least your workplace)? Look no further than Phoenix Contact LED Lighting.

Phoenix Contact's LED Lighting

In addition, it also boasts the following:

LED Light Mounting

  • Flexibility with Magnetic Mounting & Control
  • Quick and easy installation

Not sure if you need these for your workplace? We can help you to analyse the condition of your working environment and light up the path to your safety. Feel free to contact us to find out more!

A Winning Formula for an Ex-Customer

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In late 2015, the DC sales team was tasked to identify a list of lost and new customers to work on in order to increase the company’s sales turnover. There was one particular customer who used to purchase parts through a channel partner of Phoenix Contact. However, there were no longer any orders from this customer since 2010. After conducting some research on the customer’s business and what they manufacture, the decision was to win back this customer that was lost for more than 5 years. The big question was, “What caused the loss of this customer? Why did this customer go to our competitor and why choose our competitor over Phoenix Contact?”

Due to the confidentiality of the customer and for the ease of writing, let’s call this company “SCIT.”

As SCIT was not upfront with us in the beginning and had reservations to use Phoenix Contact parts, we had to make a few assumptions.
There were a few possible causes why we lost SCIT:

  1. Competitor gave better pricing
  2. Bad service & support from channel partner
  3. PxC product quality was not up to mark

At that time, one of the members of the sales team was tasked to win this customer back and so many persistent sales calls were made. And yes, you have probably guessed,  it was all of the above that caused the customer to walk out the door.
Way back when SCIT stopped purchasing Phoenix Contact parts, it was handled by a distributor and they gave poor support, high pricing and abhorrent service to the customer.

So what formula did we undertake to win this customer back?

  1. Find out the reason they chose our competitor

The first step is was to understand why the customer left and chose our competitor over us. There can be many reasons and probing with the right questions will allow us to find out the underlying problem, subsequently devising the appropriate solution/strategy to win the customer back.

  1. Be persistent and genuine

To have the “never-say-die spirit” is another important factor. The customer can be reluctant to provide any information, orders or chances. This is when constant follow-up is necessary to demonstrate to the customer that we are interested in them. And in order to do this, being genuine is the key to unlocking the closed door and allowing them to open up. Customers need to know that we are also genuinely interested and they must know and can feel that we are there to help them achieve their targets and create a win-win situation.

  1. Delivering over and beyond customer’s expectations

Hai Di Lao is a perfect example of a company that goes beyond the call of duty to provide the best customer experience. With the long waits and queue, Hai Di Lao provides free manicure services, free fruits and drinks and comfortable sitting areas while you wait for your turn to dine in. A case in point, there was an instance when a family happened to walk past the shop and the servers offered ice cream to the kids, even though this family was not patronising the shop! That’s what a memorable experience is all about.

Keeping the “wow factor” in customers constantly and consistently will cause SCIT to keep us in their mind not just in times of troubles but they will also give others in the industry good feedback about us and refer others to us. Something as simple as a speedy quotation, or calling them back when we missed their call will make them feel important and give them the assurance they can count on us to fulfil our promises. When good service is provided, customers come back, referrals are introduced and business grows.

Going all out to help customers resolve their problems and providing a solution for their issue will help to keep them as a valued customer. In this case, MOQ was high and leadtime was long, causing the customer to keep lots of stock in order to reduce leadtime. So we provided a solution of lesser MOQ and shorter leadtime with a fair price, helping to resolve their critical problem with high exposure and inventory cost.

  1. Building customer’s confidence in us

Offering a wide range of products and support, along with product knowledge, are vital to build the customer’s level of confidence in us. With the vast range of products we offer in Phoenix Contact, they can procure more than just a certain type of products with us, allowing us to upsell more products to SCIT. Starting with just terminal blocks, circular connectors and markers, we moved on to sell even tools. In the future, as they move towards more projects, we will have opportunities to sell industrial electronic products such as surge arrestors and power supply to them as well.

Having the different product managers who champion their own product range helps to clarify doubts and provides information to SCIT when it is needed. Customer service support and timely delivery from logistics are also contributors in rebuilding the branding and SCIT’s confidence in Phoenix Contact.

Without the whole team in place and working together, recapturing the customer would not have been achievable.

In conclusion, there is no one hard and fast formula to winning back a customer but there are certain values that you need to inculcate to win back your customers. From all these, there is only one vital key and that boils down to building a long term RELATIONSHIP with the customer.

Life @ Phoenix Contact

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Disclaimer: The following article is from the perspective of a temporary staff and is in no way representative of the opinions of permanent staff in the company.

Home. Work. Lunch. Work. Home.

I believe the above line gives a perfect overview of a typical day in the life of any part-time job holder or temporary staff working in an office.

And yet, there is so much more in every day, so much more to look forward to then just the next break or the next meal or the end of work. The random quips, the laughter shared and the occasional banter – these are the things I will miss the most.

The first thing I noticed when I joined was how friendly the people seemed to be. I remember a company lunch on my second day, which I only found out about after someone told me, as I was not in the email loop yet. As I was busy typing away on my keyboard, I couldn’t help but overhear the conversation between two of my colleagues:
“I think we should call him (me) to come and eat.”
“But I don’t know his name!”

I guess that was my cue to get to the pantry, but how nice it was to have people invite you to lunch on what was only my second day on the job!

As time passed and I helped other departments, I knew more and more people in office, eventually joining in for various events such as office parties and monthly birthday celebrations. There was even a table soccer competition organised along with the FIFA World Cup in 2018! I was blown away by the sheer number of activities this company has (and that’s not even including the work-related ones!), organised to promote teambuilding and staff bonding! Below are some of the more fun moments captured on camera.

“Bawk Bawk”

Office party!

Deep meditation…

Woke up just in time!

In addition, there were also fortnightly exercises which encouraged us to keep fit and active! A group of us even participated in external running events!

Jarrett was too fast for the camera…

Phoenix Contact @ Marina Run 2018!

Speaking of exercise, I was, and continue to be, amazed at how much emphasis this company places on exercise. Being a gym rat myself, you can imagine my elation when the following toys were added to the office!

Stress-reliever

Suggested and installed by yours truly (with help from Uncle Ben, Steven and Wai Yan)

Time flew by real fast. Eight months of it, to be exact. When I heard the number of people joining for my farewell lunch, I remember thinking to myself, “Wow, what a huge send-off. Wait, WOW, I have a send-off!” To my colleagues, if you are reading this, thank you so much for making my first office job experience a truly enjoyable one!

At the time of publishing, it is my last day in office.

Home. Work. Lunch. Work. Home.

And yet, there was so much more in every day, so much more I will miss. The familiar faces, the good times, the people. At least to me, this is definitely a great place to work.

Phoenix Contact Table Soccer Competition 2018

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With the excitement about the FIFA World Cup, Phoenix Contact Singapore organised our very own Foosball Tournament!

Also known as Table Soccer/Table Football, the goal (pun absolutely intended) is to score by kicking the miniature soccer ball into the opponent’s gate, which is always on the right, using the miniature players on rods known as foosmen. In the case of our tournament, the match would end when one team scored 10 goals against the other or when 5 minutes was up, whichever was first.

Tensions were high, voices were loud but most importantly fun was had in spades. Who would have known that Phoenix Contact had so many up-and-coming star players?

Where’s the ball? Where’d it go???

If they can’t see my face, they can’t read my moves…

Fantastic plays were made, brilliant defences engaged and spectacular saves were executed. Spectators and participants alike had a great time during the exciting matches, having fun and relieving stress; some might even say it was better than watching the actual FIFA World Cup! (Although to be fair, the people who said this probably don’t actually watch the FIFA World Cup.)

Effective and Responsive

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The above picture, taken from one of our customer’s website, is one of their products which adopted our terminal blocks.

Understanding customers’ expectations and responding the correct way

We’ve been showing to everyone the technical competency and technological innovation that Phoenix Contact has to offer to current customers and potential customers.

While, we are immensely competent on the technical portion, we need to be similarly competent on understanding the needs and expectations of potential and current users of our products.

To differentiate us from our competitors in the market, not only do we need the correct or suitable products and solutions, we also need to have the right personality to further engage our customers. Once customer satisfaction is achieved and rapport is built during our collaboration, getting the solution to customers is crucial in turning their objectives into reality.

There are 5 equally important steps in making this experience memorable for our customers:

  1. Effective technical and commercial understanding of customer’s expectations.
  2. Competent and quick responses to customer’s questions and inquiries.
  3. Flexibility and fluidity in providing technical details and information.
  4. Effective utilization of product brochures, catalogues, and samples.
  5. Systematic follow-ups and continuous sharing of technical information.

The aforementioned 5 main steps, has been tested and proven as well as experienced by Phoenix Contact’s long list of customers.

You may ask why are we sharing and stating the above. Because such a level of service is what you get, when you approach Phoenix Contact Sales and Technical personnel for your needs on connections.

When you are in need of connectivity, you can be sure that we are the line of professionals, who are duly versatile and competent in solving your connectivity needs.

No matter if it is Combicon Power, Combicon Control, Combicon Compact or Pluscon, we bring the best solutions and the most effective technical competency to your designs and solutions.

Last but not least, the experience of working with Phoenix Contact personnel is consistently warm, friendly and courteous, instead of the cold, reactive response of an automated reply.

Setting the Standard

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Phoenix Contact Singapore, apart from being a components supplier, also offers assembly options for our customers. As customers’ needs become more diversified and to help them retain their competitive edge, we have the Value-Added Centre (VAC) that allows us to extend an added service in the form of assembly or printing etc. to you customers.

Most recently, we have also supplied enclosure boxes and the designing of the components that would go inside. Thereafter, upon successful assembly, the specifications would be recorded and it serves as future reference should the enclosure require replication.

Such a service can be as simple as a creating a small enclosure (pictured below), with some of the components including terminal blocks, a power supply, cable termination and labelling.

Figure 1: A sample or prototype enclosure box with PxC components

Figure 1: A sample or prototype enclosure box with PxC components

The choice of terminal blocks used depends on the customer’s requirement. Over here, a push-in connection was preferred for easy and quick connection. Other types of terminal blocks that we have include spring-cage, screw, bolt etc. We also carry different models of our Phoenix Contact power supply depending on the functionality required(i.e. Quint, Trio, UNO)  in order to maximise the availability of your systems using leading technology. Finally, label printing, which is one of our most commonly requested services, allow customers to have the flexibility to label the components to their own preferred way.

Figure 2: An enclosure

Figure 2: An enclosure

The junction box or enclosure chosen may be from Phoenix Contact or a brand of the customer’s choice, depending on the conditions where the box will be placed. Usually our sales representatives will engage our Solutions Team to ensure conditions are met and to have the customer approve the design before proceeding with production or assembly. Designs may include electrical drawings and component layouts.

Figure 3: A sample drawing done professionally

Figure 3: A sample drawing done professionally

Figure 3: A sample drawing done professionally

In conclusion, apart from being a component supplier, we believe in creating a working relationship with our customers that goes both ways. With our VAC, we are able to provide a service that is uniquely catered to different customers from various industry sectors.

Compact Monitoring Relays

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With fast-changing technology, regulations are increasingly stringent, constantly demanding for higher safety and increased system reliability across all industries. The only way to satisfy those requirements and safeguard system reliability is through timely monitoring of key network and system parameters before failure becomes critical. In response to this situation, error-free and cost-effective solutions are constantly being developed by device manufacturers. Monitoring relays play a critical role in making sure that errors are avoided or minimised. Errors can be detected and rectified on time, avoiding unnecessary repairs and expensive downtime. Our EMD series electronic monitoring relays provide a wide range of monitoring capabilities to achieve that goal. Our two families of monitoring relays provide efficient protection that can suit your every application.

Compact Monitoring Relays

Our EMD-BL compact monitoring relays provide quick and space-saving wiring solutions and is ideal for simple monitoring tasks with the least investment required. Particularly well suited for building installation, they are also ideal solutions for machines, systems and series production where simple monitoring tasks are required.

Multi-functional Monitoring Relays

For more sophisticated applications, our multifunctional monitoring relays are best suited with their ability to monitor not only electrical parameters but also physical system conditions. You can get the most bang for your buck due to a wide range of functions, extended setting options and various supply voltage ranges.

Compact Series & Multifunctional Series Relays

Compact Series & Multi-functional Series Relays

Here is why Compact Series is the ideal choice for your applications

Compact series relays are cost-effective solutions which offer easy and space-saving installation, being an ideal choice for the simple monitoring tasks. The relays can be used to detect deviations in important system parameters at an early stage. System parts can be shut-down directly or selectively in response to the deviations detected by the relay. Every compact series relay comes with push-in quick connection technology, providing tool-free wiring installation in the shortest time possible.

Push-In Technology Designed by Phoenix Contact

Push-In Technology Designed by Phoenix Contact

The relays are equipped with the status indicators via coloured LEDS for real-time monitoring of operation states. The integrated floating contacts can be used to send the signal to a controller for alarms and thus the operation can be controlled or shut-down if necessary. To ensure smooth operation and increased system reliability, the values detected outside the set monitoring range are briefly tolerated within the pre-defined response delay in every relay. The compact series family includes four different relays

  1. Current Monitoring Relay
  • For monitoring of overcurrent and undercurrent (window) for single phase AC up to 10A
  1. Voltage Monitoring Relay
  • For monitoring of over-voltage and under-voltage (window) for single-phase system up to 24V AC/DC and 230V AC
  • For monitoring of over-voltage, under-voltage (window) and phase sequence for three phase system up to 400V AC
  1. Phase Monitoring Relay
  • For detecting of failure, phase sequence and asymmetry in networks up to 480V AC/277 AC
  1. Temperature Monitoring Relay
  • For temperature monitoring, especially the motor windings temperature for maximum 6 PTCs acc. to DIN44081 and DIN44082, including the short-circuit monitoring.

In Summary, compact series products offer the following advantages:

  • Especially space-saving – thanks to a compact housing in the installation design
  • Can be wired quickly and without tools – thanks to push-in technology
  • User-friendly handling – parameters can be adjusted easily on the front of the housing using rotary switches
  • Clear diagnostics – with status LEDs
  • Ideal for series production – a reasonably-priced solution for numerous monitoring functions
  • Rapid installation of the voltage and phase-monitoring relays with a power supply from the measuring circuit

If you are interested to find out more on compact monitoring relays or want to understand on what multi-functional relays can do for you, feel free to contact us!

A Friend in Need

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Season’s Greetings

The date was Friday, 01 Sept 2017 – Hari Raya Haji (A public holiday). 6:45 AM.

The phone rang, and it’s the early morning on a public holiday. I looked at the name on the phone caller display; it’s one of our global key customers! Why on earth would he call me at this timing on a public holiday? I pick up the phone and slide across the mobile phone to answer his call. His name is Lee.

Lee quickly indicated his purpose of calling was that he had an urgent request and was in need of an item from Phoenix Contact that he had forgotten to place an order for in his purchase request. Delivery from his staging area would be on the following Monday, 3pm, in which the forwarder would come and collect the crate to ship overseas. Extremely urgent! He requested a quote from me, following which, he would issue a Purchase Order (PO) on the spot and wanted us to deliver the item to him ASAP.

Let’s put things into perspective. It’s a holiday, very early in the morning; the office is closed for the holiday and the warehouse was not in operation that day. No one was at work. He knew.

I indicated to him that I could give him a quote immediately, in which he could PO us immediately. And our customer service officer could process the order on the following Monday morning and release the item by 2pm on the same day from the warehouse, if there were ex-stock. (Only 1 hour before his delivery window)

I went on to check the stock status and replied him that there were enough Ex-stock for his request. I gave the quote to him and Lee informed us that he would place the order on Monday first thing in the morning via his company buyer. As such, both of us kept in view that this was the most urgent thing and the first thing to do on the morning of the following Monday.

Monday, 04 Sept 2017

I called Lee to confirm that his buyer would release the PO so that we could expedite the process. Just before noon, his buyer released the PO. I instantly informed our Customer Service Officer, Julia, of the urgent request (which I had made known to her prior to the incoming order) asking her to to process it immediately and also to inform the warehouse to release the goods ASAP.

2PM, I received the items on my desk, and tallied it against the order and packing list. As always, there was no room for error.

Raced my car down to the customer’s place (within speed limits, of course) and handed over the goods to Lee by 2:45PM, 15 mins before his forwarder’s timing. Lee checked the goods, signed over the items and put the items into the crate together with other items to be shipped on the spot. As if on cue, almost right after he put the items in, the forwarder arrived to collect the crate.

Trust is not easily earned, and even more difficult to give. As a result of this incident, Lee was elated that we were able to meet his urgent request despite the fact that it was over a public holiday and from then on, we have gained his trust in us. Although we do not encourage last minute affairs (especially on public holidays), I believe that you can put your trust and confidence in us to deliver!