Israel, Chinese company in drone business

LAHORE: As Pakistan successfully test fires an indigenously-developed armed drone “Burraq” and its laser-guided missile “Barq,” which can target enemies and terrorists in tandem with immaculate accuracy to the sheer delight of an otherwise depressed nation, it needs to seek some marketing inspiration from Israel, which happens to be the world’s largest seller of drones to Europe, Asia and Latin America in a trade that is worth more than $4.6 billion over the past nine years.
In its May 20, 2013, edition, a prestigious British newspaper ‘The Guardian’ had reported: “A study by the business consultancy “Frost and Sullivan” has found that unmanned aerial vehicles account for almost 10 percent of Israel’s military exports. Sales have declined from a peak in 2010, but Israel has recently signed a $100 million deal, not included in the figures, with India to upgrade its drones.”
By developing its armed drone and laser-guided missile, Pakistan should also be motivated and stimulated by the fact a leading Chinese company Messrs SZ DJI Technology is the world’s biggest consumer drone maker by revenue, so in case any technical or marketing expertise is needed at any point of time, it shouldn’t be very hard to acquire.
Having 2,800 employees in Beijing and Los Angeles, Chinese company Messrs SZ DJI Technology sells thousands of its 2.8-pound devices for about $1,000 each, revealed various reports of the New York-based international media company “Bloomberg” and the Dow Jones-owned “Wall Street Journal,” which happens to be the largest newspaper in the United States with a circulation of about 2.4 million copies.
The two top American media outlets have reported in recent past that Messrs SZ DJI Technology is vying to capture a major chunk of the global market for unmanned aerial vehicles, which is expected to almost double to $11.4 billion during the next decade from $6.6 billion in 2013.
This company was founded by Frank Wang in 2006 in his dorm room at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, where he was a graduate engineering student.The company’s “Phantoms” have already garnered innumerable fans for their aerial footage of extreme sports, fireworks and the Niagara Falls.
According to Bloomberg, with annual revenues in excess of $8.3 billion and having over 15,000 employees in 192 locations worldwide, President Obama had stressed the need for rules governing drones after a pilot had lost control of his DJI-made Phantom and crashed it on the White House grounds January 26 this year, the day when the US head of state was touring India with his wife to attend the Republic Day celebrations of the world’s largest democracy.
Soon after the accident, Messrs SZ DJI Technology had released a software update it said would prevent drones from breaching the no-fly zone above Washington DC.Planning to double sales in 2015, SZ DJI Technology is now pushing for clearer regulations on unmanned flights. It mostly sells its products online and plans to open its own store in the Chinese city of Shenzhen in 2015, before expanding across China.
In his February 2015 interview to “Bloomberg,” the company’s 34-year old Chief Executive Officer Frank Wang had stated: “DJI is working with the US and China governments on rules for commercial and recreational uses of its aircraft. We want our consumers to say, ‘Wow, this is a product that I’ve never seen.’ Our goal is to make products that can override the ‘Made in China’ label.”
Frank Wang had told Bloomberg that DJI offered drones for about 3,000 yuan to 17,999 yuan, with about 30 percent of sales coming from the United States and 20 percent from China.“Bloomberg” had further reported in its February 12, 2015, edition: “Wang wants to capitalize on growing demand for drones to monitor public safety, shoot film footage and search disaster areas. The company he founded in 2006 now has about 2,800 employees, including in Beijing and Los Angeles, and is worth “significantly more” than the 10 billion-yuan ($1.6 billion) valuation it received last year.”
Worth over $1.6 billion, “SZ DJI Technology” is the first Chinese brand to pioneer a major new global consumer-product category.It manufactures commercial and recreational unmanned aerial vehicles for aerial photography and video graphic activities.
Meanwhile, in its November 10, 2014 edition, the “Wall Street Journal” had reported: “In just a few years, SZ DJI Technology Co has become the world’s biggest consumer drone maker by revenue, selling thousands of its 2.8-pound, square-foot devices for about $1,000 each. DJI’s four-propeller helicopters, called Phantoms, have become icons of the burgeoning drone era.”
The top US newspaper had gone on to write: “Humanitarian groups have used Phantoms to search for survivors after earthquakes, while the militant group Islamic State has used them for surveillance in Syria.”