Electrical control panels: choosing what not to enter in Southeast Asia
A Hyderabad-based manufacturer of LV and PLC/automation control panels whose leadership wanted to enter five ASEAN markets at once, starting with Indonesia. The client's name and logo are published only with written permission — until then, this case is kept descriptive rather than named.
- Industry
- Industrial Automation & Electrical
- Target market
- Vietnam & Thailand
- Duration
- 7 months
12+ mo
Of certification effort avoided by choosing which markets to skip
Where the export effort was stuck
Leadership planned a five-market launch, led by Indonesia because of its size.
Panels are sold through system integrators and project contractors, not directly to end users.
Each market has its own certification and local-content rules that change the cost of entry.
How we ran the engagement
3 stages of the ExportGTM method, each built on the evidence from the last.
Services used
- Export Market Selection
- International GTM Strategy
- Overseas Distributor Identification
Select
Assessed 12 markets. Recommended deferring Indonesia (SNI certification and local-content rules, 12–18 months to enter) and the Philippines (thin project pipeline for this product). Prioritised Vietnam and Thailand, where foreign-funded factory construction is strong and IEC standards are accepted.
Design
Set system integrators as the route to market, with a white-label / co-build partnership model and messaging built on delivery speed and cost against European panel makers.
Activate
Mapped 85 integrators and EPC contractors, held 14 qualified meetings and supported 2 trial projects.
What changed
Within 7 months of engagement
Saying no to the biggest market first saved the client more than a year of certification work and let it focus on two markets where it could win now — producing two integrator partnerships and a first project order of about USD 95,000.
12
markets assessed, 2 prioritised, 3 deferred
12+ mo
and ₹40–50 lakh in certification costs avoided
2
integrator partnerships signed
~$95K
first project order
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