Is Yuneec on the brink of extinction?

[PatR]

Ya’ll keep talking like Yuneec has a future. It takes money to stay in business and if you are selling considerably less every year despite product upgrade efforts you aren’t making the money needed to stay in business.

Unless Yuneec is making products for other markets they have to be nearing bankruptcy. Their electric airplane division stopped a long time ago.

 

[Mrgs1]

Time will reveal all. Lots of fact and fiction churning around, too much air wasted on opinions, when our copters should be in the air, what will be will be.

 

[cabinfourus]

do agree the current administration's politics is hurting the people in this forum

My position on the whole thing is an opinion, not fact. Government policies are hurting the Chinese drone market for sure but in turn, they are helping the American economy by forcing us to buy US-made products.

I personally feel that Yuneec will pull away from the US for a while but may return in later years. All the while, Yuneec's original customers, like us, are feeling the burn. Not being able to get parts, supplies, and much-needed support hurts them. I can only hope and pray that I will be wrong.

 

[cabinfourus]

Ya’ll keep talking like Yuneec has a future. It takes money to stay in business and if you are selling considerably less every year despite product upgrade efforts you aren’t making the money needed to stay in business.

Unless Yuneec is making products for other markets they have to be nearing bankruptcy. Their electric airplane division stopped a long time ago.

Exactly! By watching their business profile over the last several years and their ownership change, one can see that Yuneec is hurting. And they may be beyond repair. I predict that Yuneec will be bought out by a larger company and by doing so we will lose all support and parts for the older products we own. Again, I pray that I am wrong.

 

[JD Flyer]

Exactly! By watching their business profile over the last several years and their ownership change, one can see that Yuneec is hurting. And they may be beyond repair. I predict that Yuneec will be bought out by a larger company and by doing so we will lose all support and parts for the older products we own. Again, I pray that I am wrong.

I'm interested what their ownership has been like. Are there any good articles about their history? Anyone writing about their finances and market moves ? Obviously I like primary sources ... although all input in interesting!

Are they publicly traded ? Where are they based and all that ? Anyways - for me they're a sweet spot. Nice low cost of entry for a highly capable product. This group reminds me of auto rebuilders - we're all parts swapping and keeping things going. But yeah ... if there's no growth in the product base, this group will die.

 

[DoomMeister]

Some sites to visit:

Yuneec – Professional Hexacopter

www.yuneec.com

Yuneec International - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

https://www.linkedin.com/company/yuneec-international-co-limited

 

[cabinfourus]

I'm interested what their ownership has been like.

Here is some great information for you. I am not a fan of some wiki pages but this one seems to have Yuneec down to the point.

Yuneec International - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

One of Yuneec's drones, the Typhoon Q500+, was seized by the police in June 2016 when its operator was flying it near the White House. The operator crashed a drone on The Ellipse near the White House in October 2015.[20]

Here is another great piece of info.

Investor relations - Yuneec Corporate

YUNEEC – A GLOBAL COMPANY PIONEER IN AVIATION TECHNOLOGY Yuneec is a global electric aviation technology pioneer and one of the leading players in the Unmanned Aerial Vehicle market. Yuneec is able to provide a full stack solution, manufacturing and selling drones at scale. Yuneec’s business...

corporate.yuneec.com

The funny thing is that Yuneec hasn't had any news updates since 9-1-19. Almost a year since they have announced anything new or added. And most companies this size are always hiring someone for something. Yuneec has no listings for jobs at all.

 

[Yuneec Skins]

I'm thinking the guy who wrote this wasn't lying.
I also think that Yuneec's Silence Speaks Volumes.........

 

[Mrgs1]

That article is quite old, they've seemed to have convinced Leica to invest, and some other suppliers, parts seem to being made, I've noticed the packaging differences in parts I've bought, it may be nothing.

 

[JD Flyer]

Maybe they just hunkered down and got serious for a while? As for job postings, that can be doe quietly. Hire who you know, post in the foreign press, I dunno. Hopefully they keep going. I'd like to see their product offerings expand, it's fun stuff. DJI has been so dominant, it's always good to be with the independants.

 

[Tuna]

In the coming months you might be thanking him for the numerous manufacturers moving their operations back to the U.S. from China. It will help offset some of the closed businesses lost,induced by the Wuhan Flu, er COVID-19.

Another side of all that, moving forward the Chinese manufacturers won’t be selling much here anyway due to federal regs, which will entice U.S. businesses to investigate drone production. Should they elect to do so we can be pretty sure they will be more reliable than Chinese products as the manufacturers would be facing product liability actions by both government and consumers. Yes, they will cost more.

The reason things moved to China was because people liked cheaper goods (not necessarily 'cheap' - cheaper). We're all now so used to them, that people will not buy expensive stuff - and there's a whole side of things that people think should be 'free' (like apps, films, music, photography) and will only pay for when 'tricked' by things like subscription services, or in-app purchases.

If we built drones in the west, they'd be pretty expensive - they're complex mechanical things, so very labour intensive. Everyone says "I'd love to buy a drone built in the US/Canada/UK", but when you tell them it'll cost 3K for something they can get for 1K from China... you get no sales. People have decided on the 'value' of a drone, based on the prices they currently pay, so you can't just stick a flag on it and tell them it's worth twice as much as a Chinese drone.

As it is, my father in law built and ran a large factory in China. They prided themselves on their quality, and put a lot into the whole business. It's not true that China == poor quality, but like anywhere, if you choose your supplier based only on price, you're guaranteed to find the companies that will send out any old rubbish they can get away with.

 

[Mrgs1]

They are still niche areas which people still pay a premium for, certainly HiFi still has quite a following for products built in UK or other countries except China, certainly some people are still appreciative of heritage, like most countries they have underhand practices, certainly bordering on corruption when investing in them, perhaps you should read of their involvement in South Africa, as an example.

 

[PatR]

The reason things moved to China was because people liked cheaper goods (not necessarily 'cheap' - cheaper). We're all now so used to them, that people will not buy expensive stuff - and there's a whole side of things that people think should be 'free' (like apps, films, music, photography) and will only pay for when 'tricked' by things like subscription services, or in-app purchases.

If we built drones in the west, they'd be pretty expensive - they're complex mechanical things, so very labour intensive. Everyone says "I'd love to buy a drone built in the US/Canada/UK", but when you tell them it'll cost 3K for something they can get for 1K from China... you get no sales. People have decided on the 'value' of a drone, based on the prices they currently pay, so you can't just stick a flag on it and tell them it's worth twice as much as a Chinese drone.

As it is, my father in law built and ran a large factory in China. They prided themselves on their quality, and put a lot into the whole business. It's not true that China == poor quality, but like anywhere, if you choose your supplier based only on price, you're guaranteed to find the companies that will send out any old rubbish they can get away with.

Tuna,

Sadly, most buying consumer drones see price first and last. Sure, they look at and compare features with other drones but in the end it’s the price that closes a sale. It’s only after they purchase the complaints start over what they bought can’t or won’t do compared to the more expensive product they elected not to buy. We can find countless examples of that in any drone forum.

I’ll say without reservation there are much, much better drones made in countries other than China. Much better reliability, better flight controllers, virtually unlimited versatility, much linger life cycle, higher payloads, interactive programmability, solid data security, etc. but they are considerably more expensive. It’s not just the cost of the components, which, with the exception of flight controller, motor, and ESC, may or may not be assembled in China, it’s the cost of labor to assemble them, the cost of engineering and testing to assure reliability, and the cost of product liability assurance. Labor costs are much higher in countries that have and enforce environmental laws, labor laws, worker safety laws, fair business practices, providing group health insurance, while paying wages high enough to live on.

Everyone here wants to be paid the highest wage possible to assure they can live well and afford their toys but they can’t or won’t extend the same considerations to those they buy things from. Those people are supposed to work for almost nothing.

Those “free” apps people download are anything but free, but people are too lazy or dumb to read EULA’s. Every free app is extracting information that is sold at multiple levels at great profit for the developers, often causing more than a few issues for the users. But calling them “free” entices most people to give away every bit of their privacy and personal security to “save” $5.00 or so.

Ultimately, I agree with you but often are the times I wonder how the general public became so blind to how they were being conditioned.

 

[Phaedrus]

Well said ^^^^^^^^^

 

[Mrgs1]

China has been following in the footsteps of Asian tigers such as South Korea and Taiwan. Many assumed that, in due course, the baton would pass to other parts of the world, enabling them in their turn to manufacture their way to prosperity. But far from being loosened by rising wages, China’s grip is tightening. Low-cost work that does leave China goes mainly to South-East Asia, only reinforcing Factory Asia’s dominance.

 

[PatR]

It gets better. As resistance to Chinese businesses has increased a lot of Chinese products are being re-labeled as made in Viet Nam. Whether they ever spend any time in that country is something totally unknown.

 

[Tuna]

It's quite interesting. The area where my father in law started his factory was a rural part of China decades ago. People would literally walk in off the fields carrying all they possessed. His 'factory' included accommodation, spaces to eat, rest and so on. Over the years people there grew from only owning the shoes on their feet, to having their own apartments, cars, and sending their kids to study at universities in America.

..and now, that area is struggling, because the people who provided cheap labour have their own expenses and responsibilities, and wages have gone up in proportion. What was fields is now a busy metropolitan area. The thing that has driven up costs is an increase in living standards. And in turn, the guys who built factories to take advantage of lower wages are looking at places like Vietnam, South America and India as the next place to build a business.

As for 'cheap' - well, Ebay and Google grew out of people wanting stuff at ever lower prices. The psychology of the internet is simple gratification.

 

[Rayray]

Interesting discussion. As for Yuneec, I believe that although they certainly suffered from poor USA management, they will survive. Indeed, this Yuneec Forum will die if the Yuneec company does; I for one do not want that to happen.

After WW2, Japan became the "cheap" toy, doodads, etc. producer, later Taiwan, Singapore, South Korea successively wore that dubious crown. As their economies (standard of living) grew, each had to move on. Now, in the last --20 years?-- China has gone to the forefront. As others have noted, their current standard of living, along with world virus conditions and politics, puts them at their own crossroads.

And so it goes...PLEASE STAY SAFE

 

[Yuneec Skins]

The 2nd Biggest mistake is their Total Silence, as if everything is Normal, and neglecting their existing Loyal Customers here in the USA, the Damage Done to their Reputation will be something they are not likely to undo no matter what Product or Market they Target, be it Commercial, Professional or the Hobbyist.
They do not understand the American Consumer, or Flat Out just don't care.
It goes without saying their 1st mistake was discontinuing the Typhoon H480, and then releasing the H+ using many of the same Parts, with little to no availability........not to mention Batteries, which is kind of Important.
I'm not Bound by any Non-Disclosure Agreement, so here's a copy of Yuneec's Warranty Repair Allowance.
I'm assuming these are the amounts Paid to the Repair Facilities, it's no wonder they scrapped so many drones.
and Scavenged Cameras & Parts from New Drones. (I know this because I have a few dozen without Cameras, with the new Tags still attached to the Right & Left Motor Arms, that are only missing: Retracts, Landing Gear, or Motor Arm Shrapnel's) I'm thinking customers just let the Repair Facility keep their drones, as the Price to Repair was to High and it wasn't worth repairing, or the Shipping to Return it (I also have a Few dozen of those).
If this is what Yuneec allotted for Repairs, the Program was Destined for Failure.
It takes 10-15 minutes just to get the Top Cover off without Breaking the Tabs........If you know what your doing.
Always been my Motto "You can't Fix Stupid".....and I'm not Referring to the Individual Removing a Top Cover.....
Not trying to feed the Fire but I have Documents, Letters, Notes, Memo's, Emails, and Programs that wouldn't help the current situation anyway, the Yuneec Website now Redirects to Yuneec EU, and they don't ship to the USA,
(i tried to place an order but Received a message stating they do not ship to the USA)......my Revenge is Keeping Our Birds in the Air!......so Jokes on them! ......I'm done beating this dead horse....

 

[Mrgs1]

Interesting discussion. As for Yuneec, I believe that although they certainly suffered from poor USA management, they will survive. Indeed, this Yuneec Forum will die if the Yuneec company does; I for one do not want that to happen.

After WW2, Japan became the "cheap" toy, doodads, etc. producer, later Taiwan, Singapore, South Korea successively wore that dubious crown. As their economies (standard of living) grew, each had to move on. Now, in the last --20 years?-- China has gone to the forefront. As others have noted, their current standard of living, along with world virus conditions and politics, puts them at their own crossroads.

And so it goes...PLEASE STAY SAFE

Thanks mostly to the US.

What Was The Japanese Economic Miracle?

The Japanese Economic Miracle refers to the dramatic growth of the Japanese economy after World War II and till the end of the Cold War.

www.worldatlas.com