Our History

1945

• Mr. C. M. Chuang took over six former Japanese factories in Chiayi on behalf of the government, including the Chiayi Machinery Works, an agricultural-industrial company and the Chung Fu Paper Mill.

1948

• Mr. C. M. Chuang bought a ship-repair yard in Qihou, Kaohsiung, and founded the Hua Nan Machinery Works.

1949

• Began making wooden yo-yos.

• Founded the Far East Wheel Factory to make bicycle rims.

1951

• First imports of new cold-rolled steel strip from Japan; brazing furnaces added to strengthen rims, winning growing customer recognition for quality.

1954

• Machines designed by Mr. C. M. Chuang switched rim cutting to powered saws and manual joining to electric welding, greatly improving quality and output.

1955

• Electroplating plant added.

• Product range expanded to racing-bike, tricycle and cart rims.

1956

• A double-sided continuous welder, designed and patented by Mr. C. M. Chuang, replaced the brazing furnaces.

1957

• Polishing and electroplating plants expanded.

1958

• First appearance at the Taiwan Exposition (Provincial Museum), drawing crowds with a custom 3-meter rotating rim lit with colored bulbs.

1959

• Began producing bicycle hubs, freewheels and rear brake drums.

1960

• FEMCO’s 10th anniversary; first company sports day held at Bo’ai Elementary School.

1961

• Began producing motorcycle rims.

1963

• Reorganized as Far East Machinery Co., Ltd.

• Mr. C. M. Chuang designed and developed an automatic rim polishing machine and obtained a patent.

1966

• Purchased more than 20,000 ping (about 66,000 m²) of land for the Houhu plant and head office.

1967

• First machinery show (Chunghwa Stadium, Nanjing E. Road, Taipei), exhibiting a new high-speed lathe.

• Began producing double-column planer-millers.

1968

• Six new machining and foundry buildings built at the Houhu plant.

• Made spiral-welded pipe piles for Taiwan Shipbuilding’s 100,000-ton dock, moving Mr. C. M. Chuang’s patented spiral pipe mill to Badouzi for on-site production.

1969

• Pipe mills exported to the Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Kenya, Egypt and other countries.

1970

• Began producing radial drilling machines.

• Added the ground floor of the Houhu office building, seven machinery buildings and a foundry.

• Company moved into the Houhu office building.

1971

• Mr. Chuang Kuo-chin returned from the United States to become President.

• Founded Logic Electronics Co., Ltd.

1973

• Mr. C. M. Chuang named one of the Ten Outstanding Entrepreneurs.

• Five large double-column planer-millers exported to Egyptian National Railways.

• Developed bicycle bottom-bracket and three-way tubes, winning the Industrial Development Bureau’s top new-product award.

1974

• Bicycle rims began exporting to the United States.

• First appearance at the New York bicycle show.

• Established the New Jersey subsidiary (K.K.N.J.) in the United States.

• Won the order for Su-Ao Port spiral-welded pipe piles, Φ60″ × 16mm × 34–36m.

1975

• Won orders for dozens of columns and tanks for the CPC Taoyuan Refinery.

• Purchased more than 20,000 ping for the Touqiao plant and built a cold-rolling facility.

• Engineering & Construction division established.

• Developed BMX rims, a sensation that let Taiwan’s bicycle industry beat Japan’s for the first time.

1976

• First company in Taiwan certified by the American Petroleum Institute for API pipe.

• Won two 2,000KL LPG spherical tanks for the CPC Taoyuan Refinery (in technical cooperation with Fuji Car Manufacturing, Japan).

• First IMTS show in Chicago, exhibiting radial drills and exporting them to the US.

1977

• Introduced computerized management (Wang computers).

1978

• Launched a precision horizontal boring mill that impressed the whole industry.

1980

• Completed CPC’s 250km 12″ north–south oil pipeline.

1981

• Began producing NCL-20/60 and NCL-35/100 CNC lathes.

1982

• Two cryogenic storage tanks for CPC (completed 1984).

• Commissioned by NCSIST to develop Kung Feng VI rocket launch tubes.

1983

• Produced stainless steel rims with Nippon Metal Industry for export to Japan.

• Invested in Dajia 808 Co. (bicycle forks), renamed Yuan Tong Precision Machinery Co., Ltd., with Mr. Chuang Kuo-hui as Chairman.

1985

• Developed the VL-12 and VTL-16 vertical lathes, exported to GE and Delta Air Lines in the US.

• Commissioned by NCSIST to develop Kung Feng VI rocket launchers and turntables.

1986

• Developed the Durga-25 twin-turret lathe, exported to Europe, the Americas and Japan.

• Completed the Longxi Power Plant project.

• Bought 6,000 more ping of land for the Touqiao plant.

• Developed the D.I.O. unmanned machining and automated storage system with Nishibu Denki, Japan.

• Won the pipe order for CPC’s 26″ Hsinta Port–Taoyuan gas pipeline, produced on the JCO line designed by Mr. C. M. Chuang.

1987

• Founder and Chairman Mr. C. M. Chuang passed away; Mr. Chuang Kuo-chin succeeded him as Chairman.

1988

• Donated NT$10 million to National Cheng Kung University to establish the Chun-ming Chair, and NT$10 million to the Taiwan Railway Administration for Chiayi’s rear station building and the underpass linking the front and rear stations.

• At the 1st Machine Tool R&D Innovation Awards, our CNC mill won a Merit Award and our CNC lathe an Excellence Award.

1989

• 40th anniversary celebrated at the Chiayi Senior High School auditorium.

1990

• Established three cultural and educational foundations: Mu En, Jin Xiu and Ming Guang.

• Commissioned by NCSIST to develop Hsiung Feng II missile launch canisters.

• Formed a cycling team in the United States.

1991

• Completed 8,000m of CPC API 5L-X60 56″ × 0.75″ buried pipeline.

• Contracted for the sand-dredging pipeline of the Sixth Naphtha Cracker in Mailiao, Yunlin.

1992

• Invested in Kao Fong Machinery Co., Ltd., with Mr. Chuang Kuo-chin as Chairman.

• Completed the Shuili Power Plant project.

1993

• Established Kunshan Ming Zhu Machinery Co., Ltd. in China.

1994

• Completed the Φ2650 seawater intake/outfall pipes for Taipower’s Tunghsiao Power Plant.

• The DURGA-25ES CNC lathe won the 1994 Taiwan Excellence (national symbol of excellence) award.

• Supplied 3,000m of Φ700 × 16t sand-dredging pipe for Formosa’s Sixth Naphtha Cracker.

1995

• Upgraded computer systems to MCBA software.

• Φ800 × 12t steel pipe piles for China Steel’s Phase 4 expansion.

• Machinery division certified to ISO 9002 and CE.

• Vehicle Parts and Engineering divisions each certified to ISO 9002.

1996

• Founded FATEK Technology Co., Ltd. and began producing wire-cut EDM machines with Mitsubishi Electric.

1998

• Developed the WHL-F50 twin-turret machine for automotive aluminum wheels.

• Golf shaft output passed 300,000 a month, making FEMCO the largest maker in Asia.

1999

• Mr. Chuang Kuo-hui became Chairman; Mr. Chuang Kuo-chin was named Honorary Chairman.

• FATEK began producing the HL-series CNC lathes, marketed worldwide under the FEMCO brand.

• Completed the 2 × 68,000kW M&E works for Taipower’s Ma’an Power Plant (started 1996).

2000

• Registered the COZYACE trademark for medical and home electric beds, with design patents in Taiwan, Japan and mainland China.

• Completed the Pingtung Kanding incineration plant.

2001

• Completed the Shilin Power Plant project.

• Vehicle Parts, Golf Shaft and Engineering divisions each certified to ISO 9001.

2003

• The Golf division was spun off as FST (Chi Kun Technology Co., Ltd.).

• Developed the HL-55SP all-pneumatic (no hydraulics) aluminum wheel finishing machine, winning a Merit Award for R&D innovation at the Taipei machine tool show.

• Completed the Chia Hui Power Plant natural gas pipeline.

2004

• Completed the flue gas treatment system for the Keelung incineration plant.

• Developed large 300 × 300 square tube.

2005

• Developed the HL-25DMS twin-turret, sub-spindle CNC lathe, winning an Excellence Award for R&D innovation at the Taipei machine tool show.

2007

• Developed the WVL-F24A aluminum wheel machine, winning the Supreme Award for R&D innovation at the Taipei machine tool show.

• Developed the BMC-FT2 horizontal boring mill with facing head, winning a Merit Award for R&D innovation.

2009

• Developed the BMC-250T horizontal boring mill, winning the Supreme Award for R&D innovation at the Taipei machine tool show.

• Signed with IBM to implement an ERP system.

• Won the complete pipe mill order for SUNSCO, the Vietnamese subsidiary of Maruichi.

• Won the M&E contracts for the Zhumen and Wanda–Songlin power plants.

• 

  60th anniversary celebrated at the Houhu plant.

2010

• Steel pipe pile walls supplied for Liaoluo Port, Kinmen.

• 

  Won the Taipei Works relocation project – Fugang depot.

• 

  FEMCO structural pipe used for the Taipei Track and Field Stadium.

2011

• Steel pipe pile walls for the Taiwan Railway Love River section in Kaohsiung.

• Kaohsiung Port elevated access road project.

• Recognized as an outstanding business taxpayer for 2011 (ROC 100).

• Ran the MOEA SBIR project for a high-speed five-axis mill-turn machine, selected for the 2011 Outstanding SBIR Innovative Technology award.

2012

• 

  Won the TRA Chaozhou depot maintenance equipment contract.

2013

• 

  Launched an international industry–academia program for students from India.

• Developed the NVL-12M vertical lathe, winning an Excellence Award for R&D innovation at the Taipei machine tool show.

• Joined the MOEA Toyota Production System (TPS) program for the machinery industry.

• U-rib stiffeners supplied for the Wugu–Yangmei elevated freeway.

2014

• 

  U-ribs supplied for the Zhongzheng Bridge, Hsinchu County.

• Steel pipe piles for Kaohsiung Port wharf reconstruction.

• First steel pipe piles made for a Taipower work vessel.

• Developed the WHL-55 wheel machine with a domestically made controller.

2015

• Mr. Chuang Yu-lung became Chairman of FST (Chi Kun Technology).

• FST and the Industrial Development Bureau built FST’s first smart automated packaging line.

• Steel pipe piles for Evergreen’s Colón Container Terminal Phase 3 Stage 2 expansion, Panama.

• Won the 26-inch onshore gas pipeline from the Taichung plant to the Wu River isolation station.

• Won the Shihmen Reservoir desilting improvement contract – power plant penstock butterfly valves.

• Won the main stage contract for the Weiwuying Arts Center Playhouse.

• First spud anchor pipe piles made in Taiwan, for a Taipower work vessel.

• 

  Mr. Chuang Kuo-chin received an honorary doctorate from National Chung Cheng University.

2016

• Moved toward Productivity 4.0, replacing manual work with smart systems and upskilling people.

• 400mm × 400mm square tube supplied for the Kaohsiung Music Center.

• Won the Kaohsiung Port Intercontinental Container Terminal Phase 2 – S4–S5 wharf revetment and reclamation.

• Donated the Ming Zhu Lecture Hall in National Chung Cheng University’s Innovation Building, now open.

• 

  First showing of the automated aluminum wheel production line at the Taipei International CNC Machine Tools show.

• 

  Merit Award at the 10th Public Works Golden Safety Awards.

2017

• Won the Liyutan Reservoir Jingshan hydroelectric project.

• Steel pipe piles and sheet piles for the reconstruction of Keelung Port wharves W27 and W6.

• Steel pipe piles and interlocks for the repair of Su-Ao Port wharves #12 and #13.

• Developed 600mm × 600mm × 32t × 12m square tube.

• The AVM smart automated aluminum wheel system won the only Excellence Award in the lathe category at the 13th Machine Tool R&D Innovation Awards (2017).

2018

• Steel pipe sheet piles for the new Taichung Port Wharf 106.

• Steel pipe piles for the new S2–S3 floating pontoons at Shuitou Port.

• Steel pipe piles for a China Steel subsidiary’s new offshore-foundation production line at Hsinta Port.

• Steel pipe piles for Phase 1 of the Changhua fishing port development (raft moorings and floating pontoons).

• Galvanized pipe and square tube for P1 of TSMC’s 5nm Fab 18 at the Southern Taiwan Science Park.

• 

  The Shihmen Reservoir penstock butterfly valve project won first place among projects over NT$50 million at the WRA’s 8th Excellent Engineering Awards.

2019

• 

  FEMCO Machinery Memorial Museum opened.

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  KBS golf experience center opened in the United States.

2020

• Machine Tools

  “FEMCO@360factory”, a 360-degree 8K virtual tour of the FATEK plant, went live.

• Engineering

  Completed CPC’s 26-inch onshore gas pipeline from the Taichung plant to the Wu River isolation station.

• 

  Ms. Chuang Hui-mei became Chairwoman of Far East Machinery Co., Ltd.

2021

• 
  Events

  FEMCO was a main sponsor and exhibitor at the global launch of the AIDC Alighter No. 1 electric bus.

• 
  Events

  FEMCO was a main sponsor and exhibitor at the Taiwan Design Expo in Chiayi City.

2022

• 
  Media

  Commercial Times interviewed Chairwoman Chuang Hui-mei on transforming a traditional industry and on the FEMCO Machinery Memorial Museum.

• Pipes & Tubes

  Supplied bracing pipe for the offshore foundations of the China Steel group’s Chung Neng wind farm (Hsinta).

• IT Systems

  Built plant networks and IoT systems on the production lines.

• 
  Awards

  The FEMCO Machinery Memorial Museum won a German iF Design Award as “Smart Manufacturing in Motion”.

2023

• Certification

  Certified under the Workforce Development Agency’s Talent Quality-management System (enterprise edition).

• 
  Awards

  Certified as a 2023 age-friendly workplace for senior and middle-aged employees by Chiayi City.

• 
  Events

  Invited to the iF Design Exhibition at the Chiayi Municipal Museum as an iF Design Award–winning museum.

• Machine Tools

  Digital services expanded from machine tools to high-end aerospace equipment.

• IT Systems

  Moved on-premise systems to the cloud.

• 
  Media

  CTV’s “Hotline Tracking” interviewed Chairwoman Chuang Hui-mei in a feature on “the hidden champion of machine tools”.

• 
  Exhibitions

  Exhibited at the Taipei International Machine Tool Show (TIMTOS) in March.

• 
  Pipes & Tubes

  Supplied bracing pipe for Century Iron & Steel’s offshore foundations for Taipower’s Phase 2 wind farm.

2024

• 
  Machine Tools

  Named one of Chiayi County’s Top 5 companies in Cheer magazine’s 2nd “Hidden Great Employers in 22 Counties and Cities”.

• 
  Machine Tools

  The automated aluminum wheel line integration system won a Merit Award (system integration) at the 4th Robotics & Smart Automation System Awards, organized by PMC and TAIROA.

• 
  Machine Tools

  The smart aluminum wheel line (with AR digital services) received the TMBA Silver Energy-Saving Label for machine tools.

• Pipes & Tubes

  Supplied steel pipe piles for the reconstruction of Kaohsiung Port wharves #78–#81 and container yard.

• Pipes & Tubes

  Supplied steel pipe sheet piles for the east and west wharf shorelines of the Zuoying Port N-WH project, Kaohsiung.