Under the support of Department of Industrial Technology, Ministry of Economic Affairs, the Metal Industries Research & Development Centre (MIRDC) facilitated the establishment of the first domestic Nitinol manufacturer in Taiwan – Nitinol Innovative Technology Co, Ltd. (NIT) by means of technology transfer in 2016. NIT made its official launch into the Kaohsiung Science Park at Luzhu in 2018 to complete its manufacturing facilities and put into operation. This is a key step for domestic production of Nitinol, representing the critical capability of producing high-end alloy materials autonomously. This technology transfer not only achieves the MIRDC’s goal of promoting high-value metal applications and industrialization, but also bridges the gap in Taiwan’s upstream materials industry of Nitinol.
Taiwan used to reply on importing high-end metal materials, and it is difficult for domestic users to control the material properties, thus impeding the development of related industries. MIRDC therefore assisted to introduce the well-developed technology from abroad by collaborating with Dr. Frederick Wang, the inventor of Nitinol, and successfully transferred the technology to NIT. NIT was incorporated in September 2016 in Kaohsiung. It is the only supplier of Nitinol shape memory materials and products in Taiwan. Its core technologies include Nitinol smelting, shape setting (superelasticity and shape memory), fine wire/tube manufacturing, etc. The company moved into its 1983 sq.m. standard facilities in Kaohsiung Science Park in July 2018, offering Nitinol wires (0.04~0.6 mm) and tubes (1~2 mm), Nitinol actuator wires (0.06~0.1 mm), customized Nitinol products, and R&D test and consulting services.
In view of the global trend of high-end metal development, MIRDC took this opportunity of establishing this key upstream material supplier by holding an expert seminar on “Technical Exchanges for the Capabilities and Application of Nitinol Industry” on November 30. Guests were invited from leading manufacturers in biomedicine, consumer goods and industry-related fields, such as Wiltrom, Asia Vital Components, Yen Sun Technology, TPI Bearings, etc. Analyses of government-funded projects in Nitinol benchmark countries such as the U.S.A, European Union, and Japan were also conducted in the seminar, leading to conclusion of many possible applications and business opportunities in the medical area, as well as industrial applications and high-end consumer goods. Experts from different industries gathered in the seminar explore the diversified application of Nitinol, which aims at fostering the capability of Taiwan’s indigenous high-end metal industrial chain for the ultimate goal of full-scale domestic production in the future.