“In the early 2000s, the idea of built-in cameras was unfamiliar. After seeing young people having fun with their camera phones, I felt that the market had potential,” said the CEO who was formerly employed at Pantech & Curitel. There he developed the world’s first 330,000 pixel built-in cameras for cell phones.
“With my four other colleagues, I started a company that specializes in phone camera modules. I was confident since I had worked in the phone industry a long time. In the beginning, however, the company struggled with a lack of capital investment. Yet, every time the company made a profit, we invested in expanding facilities and R&D capabilities. Now, we have one hundred R&D personnel accounting for one third of the total.”
The investment paid off. MCNEX succeeded in developing 8 megapixel auto-focus camera modules (8.5x8.5x6mm). The company is supplying the products to global smart phone companies including Samsung, Pantech, NEC, ZTE, and Huawei. Its quality is proven with ISO 9001, 14001, TS16949, SQ, and KAS. “Last year, we produced nearly 40 million phone cameras, ranked 11th in the world. We are planning to sell 13 megapixel phone cameras in the market later this year, and expecting to attract more global clients.”
Automotive camera – for your safety
MCNEX’s product line is not only limited to cameras for phones. With its technological know-how, it began developing automotive cameras in 2006, and succeeded in producing a 1 cm diameter camera with 180 degree rotation, enabling drivers to better view the rear of the vehicle. The camera module can also be applied to lane departure warning system. “Last year, selling over 1.1 million products, we were ranked first in Korea and fifth in the world for vehicle cameras. Besides Hyundai Mobis, our major client, we are exporting our products to many Asian countries including Japan, China, and Taiwan. We plan to go more global by diversifying our customer bases,” he said.
“When we first began business in China, we preferred to deal with clients directly without agents. For the first two years, it was difficult finding customers. But once we received orders, we did our best and they were very impressed. It may be easy to find clients if we had hiring agents, but it would be difficult to build mutual trust. With its high technical skills and credibility, the company has grown at a CAGR of 67 percent since 2005. This year, the total sales are expected to rise over 50% to 200 million dollars. “At this pace, I am confident the sales will reach 1 billion dollars in 2020. Our ultimate goal is to become a global leader in the phone · car camera industry.” For more information, you can visit http://mcnex.com/korean/main_ko.htm
MCNEX has been selected as the KOTRA Seal of Excellence since 2009.