This article is all about our (MTO) journey getting the very first YAWEI Fiber Laser Machine into South Africa…and what a journey it has been!

For some time now, Machine Tools Online has had a partnership with Jiangsu Yawei Machine Tool Co. Our business relationship quickly matured, siting common business goals, company ethics and sharing a passion for the sheet metal fabrication industry has developed our relationship into a great friendship.

The very first fiber laser quotation that MTO sent out was back in 2017 and since then we have probably sent out close to 100 quotations for various customers. Our biggest hurdle in trying to sell a fiber laser in South Africa was getting clients to see past the “Made in China” stigma.

For years now clients expect anything that is “Made in China” to not only be of poor quality, but they expect it to be cheap too. This way of thinking really needs to be stopped! Let us take cellphones for example. South African’s are notoriously proud of having the latest and greatest mobile devices and many are married to a particular brand. Whatever mobile device you have, pick it up now and see where it is made 😊

Quality products can also come from China and the machines that come from Yawei are no exception! Established in 1956, Jiangsu Yawei Machine-Tool Co., Ltd. has grown into one of the leading enterprises in high-end sheet metal processing machine-tools industry in China.

Late in 2019 I received a call from an old client of mine who had purchased a used 35T x 1600 NC Press brake. Yolanda, from Regrade Masters called and asked us if we sell Fiber Lasers, to which I responded with a confident “yes!”. After many visits to their factory in Boksburg North, Regrade Masters told us that they like everything we have sent them (brochures etc.) and told them about Yawei, but it is very difficult for them to part ways with a couple million rand for a “Chinese” Fiber laser that they cannot physically see.

After having a discussion with Yawei themselves we decided to take a big leap of faith and fly down four members of staff from Regrade Masters including the companies two directors to the Yawei factory in Yangzhou city, China. After having spent a few days with Yawei, touring the factory and visiting nearby customers of Yawei, Yolanda and Marius knew exactly what they were dealing with. Upon returning to South Africa a follow up meeting was scheduled and now we could finally hear directly from our client what they thought of Yawei’s manufacturing facility, machinery, and people.

Needless to say, they were flabbergasted at the shear size of the operation. To put this into perspective for those of you reading this article, the grounds where the Yawei factory is built measure in at just over 1,000,000 Square Meters. All Yawei’s steel engineering and fabrication are done inside temperature and dust-controlled factories to ensure the best possible standards consistently year in and year out. Yawei are also registered on the Chinese Stock Exchange, so their performance as a company is affected far more than the average Chinese machinery manufacturer.

At long last MTO received their very first order for a Yawei Fiber Laser System! We have to give a huge thanks to our partners at Yawei for looking after our client and an even bigger thank you to our customer Regrade Masters for entrusting Yawei and MTO to supply them with a 220 ton x 4100mm 6-Axis CNC press brake and a 1500 x 3000mm HLE Fiber Laser with a 3KW IPG source.

As many of you probably know that the South African Fiber Laser market has been dominated by the biggest European names in the industry such as Amada and Bystronic and obviously for good reason as their machines are built using premium world renowned components all readily available in South Africa and offer great after sales backup and servicing, but…There is a new contender in the market that utilize the exact same premium European components as their respective competitors mentioned above and that contenders name is YAWEI! MTO has been appointed the agency for Southern Africa so you can expect nothing but the best backup and after sales service when you purchase from us.

If you’re looking for a cnc press brake or fiber laser then give us a call today on 082-388-6360.

THE RIGHT QUALITY AT THE RIGHT PRICE!