The GSI Group Inc. has appointed Kevin Bryans as its new vice president and managing director for the Asia Pacific region.
Graduating from the University of Oregon in 1981, Bryans joined packaging company Sonoco and served as their Asia Pacific division vice president and managing director for ten years before he came to GSI. He has served the company for more than 30 years, and has spent the last 16 years successfully leading businesses in Asia.
Bryans is familiar with all phases of business, such as business management, manufacturing, purchasing and procurement, inventory control, supply chain management, sales management and new business development.
Along with his customer-focused, solutions-based approach, he is a leader who delivered strategies that drove millions of dollars of increased revenue and a high level of customer satisfaction in highly competitive, culturally diverse markets and integrated human resources enrichment, lean manufacturing and cutting-edge product development initiatives to create sustainable growth in volatile markets.
Growing demand driving industry's development
China's demand for animal protein has been growing in recent years and has become the driving force for the development of animal husbandry industry, according to Bryans. He also said it is just like what he experienced in the packaging industry in China in 1990s. The changes and new demands on China's animal husbandry industry are full of opportunities, and it is exciting to be part of it all, he said.
As China's poultry and swine industries continue to grow, companies in the industry have more demand for new technologies and products. "China's animal husbandry industry is developing very fast, especially the poultry industry, which is now catching up with the global standard in terms of management and hygiene requirements," said Bryans. "At the same time, the food safety issues make more and more companies aware of the importance of safe and healthy food. In turn, they're making more of an investment in new technologies to improve the food chain, and they will finally bring a revolution to the entire industry."
According to Bryans, GSI has been a part of this industry for 15 years and is looking forward to being a contributor to China's developing market. GSI has a close relationship with significant global enterprises in the Chinese market, such as Tyson, OSI and Cargill; it has also established partnerships with local Chinese companies, such as COFCO, CP Group, Truein Group, Zhengbang and TRP Group. GSI will continue to provide Chinese companies with its total solutions, including before-sale service, product offerings, after-sale service, technical support and continued collaboration with its customers.
To become an industry standard through "customer-focused" principle
As the competition in the Chinese market becomes stronger, Bryans said it is impossible to avoid the competition; the only way is to "continue to strive to be the best." He said GSI has two advantages: first, GSI has a longer history in the Chinese market than many other companies, thus it has a better understanding of the market. Second, GSI's total solutions not only sell products, but also offer services and transfer know-how. "The products may be copied, but the services cannot be," he said.
"We have always been customer-focused, and will continue to do this," said Bryans. "For instance, China now has more and more scaled swine farms; many integrated companies have demand to upgrade technologies and facilities, such as COFCO and CP Group. We already have contact with them, and the first thing to do is to find out what is the thing they really need. We are going to spend more time getting to know their needs in the future. What we want to do, is to set up the standard of service in this industry — we will be the standard."
Bryans said GSI is committed to strongly supporting the development of China's animal husbandry industry, and to bring a brighter future together with its all-partner enterprise.
