Techmezine recently spoke with Ben Green, Head of Marketing Communications at connector specialist Harwin. He talked about the opportunities that the company is seeing within the industrial sector. In addition, Ben outlined Harwin’s growth plans in Asia.
Techmezine: Could you please introduce Harwin?
Ben: Harwin has been trading since 1952. Making this year our 70th anniversary. Primarily, we design and manufacture advanced interconnect solutions to meet the needs of the industry’s most demanding applications. But what makes us different is that we focus on making products that achieve high-performance levels, can cope with harsh operating environments, are lightweight and small. We also supply connectors to a wide variety of industry sectors, including avionics, defence, oil and gas, space, motorsport, and e-mobility.
Techmezine: What are the challenges of the industrial market?
Ben: Industrial applications can be difficult and uncompromising. So our connectors can be exposed to rough treatment, and severe operating conditions. There can also be electromagnetic interference issues that create problems and need resolving. In the field, it’s important that the risk of failure is minimised because this can cause downtime and possible cost penalties. This is why we design industrial connectors to be incredibly rugged, with features that provide high interconnect integrity and cable retention, as well as preventing damage caused by mis-mating.
Techmezine: Please describe the engineering developments you have made to your connectors?
Ben: Our R&D team is constantly looking for ways to bring innovative products to market. Through their hard work, we have been able to develop connectors with maximum performance, but are still compact and highly reliable. Our latest industrial connectors support very high-frequency operation and are capable of 12/24Gbps data rates. In addition, our award-winning Kona high-power connectors can carry currents of 240A, but take up minimal board space.
Techmezine: Can you tell us about the connector products Harwin offers for industrial applications?
Ben: There are three key product series that Harwin produces which are specifically designed for industrial use. The Archer Kontrol 1.27mm pitch board-to-board connectors are proving popular in the drives and controls market. They’re compatible with 2.94Gbps Ethernet speeds. The Archer .8 and recently introduced Archer .5 are compact tight-pitched mezzanine connectors used in high-density industrial automation systems, as well as in space-limited IIoT hardware. All three of these are highly robust, can withstand heavy shocks, constant vibrations, and extreme temperatures.
Techmezine: Please discuss any difficulties the company faced during the COVID-19 pandemic?
Ben: Thankfully, because of the diverse range of markets that we work with, such as space and medical, we were able to continue working during the pandemic without too much disruption. Of course, similar to most other businesses, we did experience some ups and downs. And while we saw some projects being delayed, but not canceled, other new opportunities did emerge for us. For example, in the medical equipment sector, we started producing connector and cabling solutions for ventilators. This meant our production lines kept running at full capacity throughout the pandemic. Also, we ensured that there were large amounts of stock available, and this meant that importantly throughout the crisis our distribution partners were able to supply to their clients.
Techmezine: Please share a few details around the company’s expansion in Asia and particularly India?
Ben: Asia has proved to be an increasingly important market for Harwin in recent years. So we’re working very closely with our key distribution partners in the region, these include Avnet, Digi-Key, Element 14, iConnexion, Mouser, RS Components, and TTI. One of the most promising areas for us so far is smart metering. To keep up with growing demand from customers in Asia, we have recently invested in larger warehouse facilities in Singapore. And in the Indian market, initiatives, like Made in India, have substantially increased the country’s manufacturing base and meant that more original design manufacturing (ODM) development work is being done locally. As a business, we are actively supporting this increase in design activity.
