Poland and Taiwan: a conversation about the hand tools market

Warsaw and Taipei may be 7 599 kilometres apart, but that hasn’t stopped cluster members from actively driving its development. A meeting held in Taiwan brought together the Polish public administration, Taiwanese industry representatives, and the initiatives of the 8Foundry Alliance.

The Polish Office in Taipei hosted a meeting attended by Simon Chen, Executive Director of the Taiwan Hand Tool Manufacturers’ Association and  (THTMA), CEO of INFAR a member of the cluster, Michał Jaros, Secretary of State at the Ministry of Economic Development and Technology, and Janusz Bilski, Director of the Polish Office in Taipei. The meeting was initiated and prepared by 8Foundry Alliance as part of its ongoing efforts to build relations between European
and Asian business and industrial communities.

Over the course of several weeks, 8Foundry Alliance worked on preparing the meeting by connecting business and institutional stakeholders and building the context for direct dialogue. As a result, the discussion focused on concrete areas of potential cooperation rather than general statements.

Taiwan remains one of the world’s top three exporters of hand tools. Over the past decades, the sector has undergone a clear transformation, shifting from cost-based manufacturing to highly specialised tools used in aerospace, automotive,
and professional service industries.

A key element of this advantage is the concentration of production in the Taichung region, where around 70% of hand tool manufacturers operate.  This organisational model shortens the decision-making chain and accelerates the journey from concept to finished product, while the differentiator is product quality rather than price alone.

For 8Foundry Alliance, this meeting is part of a broader strategy. The cluster does not only observe international relations but actively builds them, connecting partners who would rarely have the opportunity to engage directly in a natural market setting.