香港自動化科技協會 專刊 (香港工業總會轄下第32分組)

Enhancing Logistics means Business 改進物流貨如輪轉 Investment in Innovation 投資和創新之道 When a product is sold to a customer, the sales system and logistics system are connected and the data would be synchronised automatically. The Automated Logistics and Distribution Centre would then give signals for the respective tasks. In the mainland China, about 40-50% of Chow Tai Fook’s products are processed at this Centre, keeping most key products in stock for selling. With the introduction of this new system, the out-of-stock rates of these bestsellers went down drastically from30-40% in peak seasons to less than 10%. In the traditional jewellery business, manufacturing, wholesale and retail are three individual chains of supply. As an exceptionally strong player across these areas, Chow Tai Fook manages to connect these chains together.MrWong believes that the full potential of big data is yet to be explored and realised.The trends of embracing technology and opening data are upcoming and irresistible in the industry. Regarding the assessment of return on investment (ROI), Mr Wong gave an honest and sensible answer, ‘Corporate sustainability is our top priority. In the context of how technology will change our business environment, all we can do is to explore the new paths. In the past, many jewellers sold gold with various levels of purity and there was no legal regulation. Chow Tai Fook set a new standard by selling 999.9 fineness of pure gold in Hong Kong and Macau for the sake of building the company’s reputation, which was later adopted by the government as industry standard. Back in the days when many other jewelers allowed their customers to bargain over the price, we introduced the fixed price policy. If we had looked at these from a short-term ROI perspective, we probably wouldn’t be able to push the boundary.We are here for the long term development, and we are about to build our company reputation, brands and a business model that help us achieve sustainable development.’ Chow Tai Fook also has the foresight to re-invest a certain portion of its profits in the following key areas: • Human resources: focusing on training and talent development by enriching its staff with technical knowledge and unlocking their potentials. The Group also renamed its factory as Ingenuity Centre to differentiate from the traditional “factory” concept with intelligence and creativity. • Information technology: upgrading systems and emphasising intelligent manufacturing with innovative technologies, such as the application of 3D printing, CNC, robotics, data connectivity and so on. • Brands: developing various themes and multi-brands to satisfy customers in different regions and age groups. Segmentation can be done more precisely. 當一件貨品賣出，銷售系統和存貨系統就會連接，達至數據同 步，在「自動物流及配貨中心」作出反應，發出相應指令。在 中國內地，周大福約 40-50% 的貨品通過一套自動分貨系統處 理，以確保貨源充裕，令受歡迎產品的缺貨率從過往在旺季達 約 30-40% 大幅下降至 10% 之內。 傳統珠寶行業中，製造、批發和零售是三個業務，周大福是少 數同時進行這三項業務的企業。因此，他們能打通整條供應 鏈，做到數據共享。而黃先生也相信大數據的潛力無限，仍然 有待深入發掘，擁抱科技和開放數據是大勢所趨。 對於如何衡量投資回報來考慮推動改革，黃先生坦言：「我們 考慮的是可持續發展的策略問題，也思考資訊科技會如何影響 我們的經營環境，我們能夠做的只有不斷探索未來。就像當年 很多商家銷售不同成色的黃金，在這方面也沒有法例監管，但 我們認為售賣 999.9 黃金有助建立商譽，便於香港及澳門訂立了 新標準，後來更獲香港政府定為香港黃金首飾成色標準。例如 當年很多珠寶店都有討價還價的作風，我們是第一個提出『一 口價』政策的品牌。如果我們只用短期的投資回報 (ROI) 來思 考，則或許會難以推動、甚至抗拒變革。但如果我們看得長遠 點，堅持建立商譽、建立品牌、建立一套可持續發展的營商模 式，我們相信收穫會更豐富。」 周大福按這個理念，發展出一套長遠策略，把利潤的某百分比 再投資在以下環節： • 人才：必須更重視人才培訓，讓員工掌握各種科技，發揮所 長。周大福也把「工廠」正名為「匠心智造中心」，令招聘 和發展的人才有別於「工廠」的概念。 • 資訊科技：系統升級，強調以創新科技製造產品，活用 3D 打 印、 CNC 、自動化機械、數據連通等技術。 • 品牌：以不同場景及多品牌滿足不同地區和年齡層的客戶， 市場細分做得更精準。 集團也有一套帶動變革的方法。當改革發展委員會確認進行某 個解決方案，管理層會從相關部門委任項目經理來領導各大項 目的推行。因為他們最了解營運的痛點，也能針對這些痛點來 革新，更可以作為提升員工能力的培訓機會。黃先生比喻：「 常用右手的人，可以在某些項目中訓練一下左手。」集團會為 項目經理提供支援，對內資訊科技部門提供技術協助，對外也 有跟供應商、科研機構等合作研究最新技術。 26 Connecting Practitioners 業界專訪