Samsung targets BPO sector for its air-conditioning products

MANILA, Philippines - Samsung is banking on the growth of the local business process outsourcing (BPO) sector to ramp up the sales of its "environment-friendly" air-conditioning system. In a recent briefing, Samsung officials said the company seeks to hike its market share in air-conditioning products sales to a quarter by 2010 from around 8% at present. "We have positioned ourselves very competitively in the market," Christopher T. Pandi, head of Samsung Electronics Philippines Corp.’s Air-conditioned Consumer Electronics head said in a briefing. The company made around $6 million this year from air-con sales, he said, adding that the company plans to hike the number through increased market share. Mr. Pandi said Samsung sells air-conditioners mostly to big corporations, adding that Samsung products are 20% to 30% more fuel-efficient. The company’s variant refrigerant flow technology, developed with Emerson Climate Technologies, allows its products to change refrigerant flow using sophisticated controls. The Korean company was recently hired to provide air-conditioning equipment to a BPO facility being built in Ortigas, Pasig and a seven-star hotel under construction in Cebu. "A number of the tenants of these buildings are foreign companies so they have certain standards to follow. They are very particular with green or environment-friendly buildings," Mr. Pandi said. Samsung imports the products it sells here from manufacturing plants in China, Malaysia and Singapore. — Paolo Luis G. Montecillo, BusinessWorld