Initiatives stay centered on boosting switch performance to meet the higher requirements in this industrial segment.

Steadily climbing demand for switches used in industrial control products drives China makers to keep reliability and safety enhancements on the agenda to improve competitiveness. The line remains dominated by major players, including TE, Schmersal and Tend that have factories in the region. Foreign companies own more than half of the local market for limit types, especially in the midrange and high-end segments.

To attract attention, domestic suppliers underscore long operating life span and good environmental resistance. They can realize 50,000 cycles, surpassing 100,000 in some variants. In terms of the latter attribute, the typical selections are oil-resistant and IP67-rated. The last can be elevated to IP67 or IP68, depending on buyers' requirements.

Manufacturers ensure compliance not only with one but multiple international standards such as CE, GS, TÜV and UL.

Yueqing Chiyang has the FZM series of rotary switches for equipment used in the chemical and oil industries, and the military sector. The devices adopt unsaturated polyester resin-fiber-reinforced plastic for its enhanced anti-aging and tamper-resistant properties. They have an F2 anti-corrosion class and are IP65-rated.

Yueqing Yongde employs a double-spring structure in its XZ-5 series to stretch mechanical life to 10 million operations. The units are IP65-rated and oil-resistant.

In addition, China suppliers highlight flexibility to customization. ODM projects, in fact, have 30 to 60 percent share of their output. Makers complement these with low prices and minimum order quantity, and short delivery lead time to differentiate from foreign rivals.

Manufacturers are confident such measures will help them take advantage of the 5 to 10 percent demand growth in the industrial control segment. About 20 percent of their yield targets this application. At Dongguan Hooya Electronics Co. Ltd, the type accounts for 10 percent of shipments. The maker offers tactile, rocker, push-button and micro kinds. Overall, suppliers look forward to maintaining 5 percent annual sales increase, counting in units for consumer electronics, computer, communications and medical products.

There are more than 500 manufacturers of switches for industrial control products in mainland China. At least 80 percent of the companies are locally owned and the rest with investment mostly from Taiwan and Hong Kong. The former group exports to Europe, the US and the Asia-Pacific region.

The key production bases are Guangdong, Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces, specifically in the cities of Shenzhen, Dongguan, Suzhou and Wenzhou.The mainland is responsible for 20 to 30 percent of global switch deliveries.

Conventional industrial control switches

Limit, tactile, micro, push-button, toggle and rocker types make up the mainstream range in China for industrial control products. These have a minimum IP65 rating, and boast dust and chemical resistance. Most makers ensure device compliance with UL, CE, TÜV and RoHS.

Companies are promoting the first three kinds, offering the rest of the mature subcategories to fill remaining demand.

Limit switches are usually adopted in automatic equipment for their high precision, limit adjustability, ease of operation and maintenance, and compact form. Typical models have gold or silver contacts and phosphor bronze springs.

Besides the requisite water, oil and dust resistance, tactile variants for this application feature a life span of up to 100,000 cycles. These come with silver-plated bronze or stainless steel contacts.

Microswitches support 100,000 to 5 million cycles. They adopt tin-plated phosphor bronze for the spring. Dongguan Jinbaoli offers a model with a life span of 1 million cycles.

China companies utilize locally sourced metal and plastic, with some obtaining thermoplastic such as PBT for switch shells from abroad. The supply and cost of materials are generally stable, and will keep prices unchanged in coming months.