Dr. Harald Zebedin: Reshaping Rubber Machinery with Upgrading
Amid the global shift toward high efficiency and sustainability in rubber manufacturing, YIZUMI Rubber Machinery Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as YIZUMI RIM) has appointed Dr. Harald Zebedin, a senior expert in the field of injection molding machinery for rubber and silicone, as Chief Strategy Officer (CSO).
With over 30 years of industry experience, Dr. Zebedin had served as CTO at a leading enterprise for a decade. His 9000-km career journey from Fridingen Germany to Shunde China embodies both his personal pursuit and mirrors China’s rise in global high-end equipment manufacturing.
01.「Industry Insight」Vision Guides Innovation
Faced with the global rubber machinery industry’s pursuit of efficiency, sustainability, and customized production, Dr. Zebedin has demonstrated sharp foresight. He highlights that YIZUMI has strategically positioned itself in areas such as automation and robotics, customized production solutions, and has placed greater emphasis on material recycling and reuse. Yet, Dr. Zebedin’s resonance with “strategy and vision” goes far beyond these aspects.
Throughout his career, Dr. Zebedin has been deeply aware that inspiring employees plays a vital role in corporate growth. He emphasizes that rigid directives often stifle creativity and initiative, ultimately slowing progress. By contrast, providing a clear vision and empowering employees to embrace it with passion are the true keys to driving a company forward.
To enhance overall effectiveness, Dr. Zebedin is committed to making the vision for technological development more standardized and modularized, which is integrated into the company’s strategic planning and daily operations. Standardized processes enable employees to quickly understand and align with the company’s technological direction, while modularized approaches facilitate flexible integration of technological elements, promoting cross-departmental collaboration in technology implementation.
Based on this philosophy, Dr. Zebedin aims to achieve comprehensive optimization of the production process through continuous innovation. Reducing production waste, improving product quality, and precise customization of customer demands enable “YIZUMI RIM to distinguish itself from others”.
In addition, Dr. Zebedin fully understands that overcoming differences in management styles and cultures is a key challenge for any international enterprise. He emphasizes that the key to addressing these differences lies in improving cross-cultural communication, enhancing adaptability, fostering subtle observation, building relationships, and adhering to clear legal guidelines. At YIZUMI RIM, Dr. Zebedin strives to maintain a balance between international experience and localized execution, ensuring that strategies are both globally oriented and locally grounded, thereby achieving true localization.
02.「Strategic Synergy」Mastering Market Dynamics in Harmony
Dr. Zebedin focuses on two primary strategies: “expansion of the global market” and “entry into the high-end customer market.” He is keenly aware that comprehensive market research, targeting premium markets, and identifying the right client base are essential for achieving these strategic objectives.
Accordingly, YIZUMI RIM is employing a multi-faceted approach, including product differentiation strategies, sales channel expansion plans, and new technology applications to meet the diverse demands of its customers. Throughout the execution of this strategy, balancing the dynamic interaction among technology, production, and customer demands has proven to be a key test of leadership wisdom and capability.
Dr. Zebedin also stresses that technology — the core driving force of every enterprise — must be tightly integrated with production, whose ultimate goal is to precisely meet customers’ actual demands. Today, YIZUMI RIM’s impressive progress heavily relies on the effective application of dynamic balance technology. By achieving shorter delivery times, this approach enables the company to respond flexibly to the expanding needs of customers worldwide, ensuring stable and enhanced production capacity and fostering a healthy integration of technology, production, and customer requirements.
Looking ahead, Dr. Zebedin will focus on three core strategic objectives over the next three to five years: technological patents, high-end customer share, and international market presence. From his perspective, technological patents are essential for driving innovation in high-performance and sustainable materials. The latter two objectives serve as benchmarks for international competitiveness. Accordingly, YIZUMI RIM will strive to enhance its products’ technological sophistication and added value, actively expand into international markets, and strengthen its brand influence.
In formulating regional strategies, Dr. Zebedin takes into account the varying demands of high-end markets in Europe, North America and Asia-Pacific. He plans to meet these market needs through localized production, customized services, compliance adaptation, and more. Particularly in Europe and North American, YIZUMI is not merely focused on selling machinery but is committed to providing comprehensive “turnkey” solutions, including mold and cold runner, automation solutions — thus enhancing the customer experience.
03.「Green Leadership, Innovative Drive」Rising as a Global Brand
Amid the global pursuit of carbon neutrality, energy-saving and emission reduction technologies have become inevitable trends for rubber injection machinery. Dr. Zebedin states that YIZUMI RIM is dedicated to implementing carbon neutrality practices, energy-saving, and emission-reduction efforts. By utilizing advanced technologies such as photovoltaic systems and servo drives, YIZUMI has begun applying carbon neutrality to the manufacturing of production machines, significantly reducing energy consumption and carbon emissions. These initiatives not only align with the global trend of sustainable development but also lay a solid foundation for YIZUMI RIM’s further expansion in the international market.
Brand recognition is one of the key components of a company’s global strategy, and the lack of it is a common challenge for Chinese rubber injection machinery companies. However, Dr. Zebedin is confident in YIZUMI’s international influence. He believes that YIZUMI has already built considerable brand recognition in the Asian market. Furthermore, amid the ongoing crisis in the European automotive industry and the intensification of price competition between OEMs and Tier-1 suppliers, customers are increasingly turning their attention to YIZUMI.
To further enhance international influence, Dr. Zebedin offers several key recommendations. First, YIZUMI must continue to improve product quality to maintain its competitiveness in the global market. Second, accelerating delivery times and service responses are essential to meet customers’ immediate needs. Finally, focusing on building more competitive overall equipment effectiveness (OEE) will cater to the demands of manufacturers worldwide, attracting more customers to choose YIZUMI’s products and, in turn, strengthening the company’s reputation on the international stage.
From October 8th to 15th, the 23rd K Show, the world’s largest rubber and plastics exhibition will take place at the Düsseldorf International Exhibition Center in Germany. With the integration of advanced European molding process technology and meticulous preparation, YIZUMI RIM (Booth: Hall 14/C59) will showcase a range of highly competitive rubber molding solutions at the exhibition, promising to make a remarkable impression.
These solutions are not only the result of Dr. Zebedin’s European technological philosophy deeply integrated with China’s manufacturing DNA, but also represent YIZUMI RIM’s firm step toward the international high-end market. At the event, these innovations will provide customers with comprehensive, one-stop support. YIZUMI sincerely invites everyone to witness this innovation showcase — stay tuned!
