Bridging the Innovation Gap: Pakistani Manufacturers Tour Chinese Test Facility
To encourage domestic appliance innovation, CLASP led a group of Pakistani manufacturers on a lab tour of a leading appliance test facility in China.
In an effort to spur innovation within the Pakistani domestic appliance industry, CLASP and partners led a group of manufacturers on a lab tour of the China Household Electric Appliance Research Institute (CHEARI), a leading appliance test facility in China. As gas reserves dwindle and the country faces some of the harshest temperatures in the world, Pakistan must improve and scale more efficient uses of energy – starting with the most common and energy-intensive household appliances.
“Pakistan is running out of gas by 9% each year. We believe in the future, these reserves will be critically low,” says Muhammad Salman Zaffar, Technical Lead for CLASP’s Pakistan Program.
Despite the drop in availability, the majority of Pakistani households rely on inefficient gas-powered appliances to meet their daily needs.
Pakistan boasts a robust domestic appliance manufacturing industry, yet certain technologies – like water heaters – have not evolved over the last 60 years. Last year, CLASP and local partner SAMA^Verte launched an Industry Accelerator Program to address this lag. The Program is in its pilot stage and currently supporting electric motor and water heater manufacturers. The current aim is to improve water heater efficiency by convening industry stakeholders and offering global expertise, best practices and technology know-how. Then, the program will expand the lessons and capabilities learned to the industry at large.
What can Pakistan learn from China’s expertise?
SAMA^Verte and the CLASP team in Pakistan, with support from the CLASP China team, arranged a full day tour to CHEARI in Chuzhou for representatives from Canon Appliances and Super Asia. The trip to China offered an opportunity for Pakistani manufacturers to contextualize insights from the Industry Accelerator Program – enhancing their knowledge of test lab equipment, methodologies and processes.
We were thrilled to visit the state-of-the-art appliance testing facility at CHEARI. It has been a great learning experience and we will bring back with us ideas for improved water heater designs, as well as connections and ideas for future testing and other product development.Mr. Muhammad Bilal
Director of Canon Home Appliances
With firsthand exposure to Chinese best practices, Pakistani manufacturers can integrate similar technologies into their own manufacturing processes to develop higher-quality, more efficient and improved appliances. The visit also allowed for discussions on future collaboration between Chinese and Pakistani appliance stakeholders, helping to position Pakistan at the forefront of regional manufacturing.
_____
China Household Electric Appliance Research Institute (CHEARI）was established in 1964. CHEARI is approved by State Commission Office of Public Sectors Reform (SCOPSR), is affiliated by State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council (SASAC).
Canon is a Lahore-based manufacturer of a range of home appliances including gas storage, gas instant, and hybrid storage water heaters, with a commitment to improving efficiency based on previous collaborations with CLASP.
Super Asia is a large Pakistani appliance manufacturer producing a wide range of products, including electric water heaters, and aiming to localize their supply chain and enhance exports. They are based out of Gujranwala.
