Cost Of Mega Projects Can Be Reduced With New Innovative Methods

By Massita Ahmad SINGAPORE, Sept 21 (Bernama) -- Malaysian companies which have innovative methods that could reduce construction cost should come forward and offer their technologies to help construction companies mitigate their costs. Likewise, the construction companies too should not shy away from such technologies as today's economic challenges make it even more critical for them, particularly those with mega projects under their belts, to save cost. In terms of cost saving, the Malaysian government is no exception as it too has various mega infrastructure projects in the pipeline. Maybank Kim Eng said the Malaysian government's commitment to infrastructure will see the development expenditure allocation for the 11th Malaysia Plan increased by 13 per cent. Railway would be the biggest investment area within the infrastructure space in the next five to 10 years, it said. The brokerage firm said at least around US$27.79 billion (RM115 billion) or 10 per cent of 2015 Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was earmarked for railway projects for the 2020-2025 period. Among the ongoing and potential key railway projects are the Klang Valley Mass Rapid Transit; Express Rail Link extension to Melaka; Kuala Lumpur-Singapore High Speed Rail; Sarawak Railway Line; and Johor Bahru and Penang Light Railway Transit. Maybank Kim Eng said the rail infrastructure accounted for over one-third of Malaysia's infrastructure investment in 2016-2020, pointing to the high public sector financing requirement. The government's debt-to-GDP ratio is already very close to the 55 per cent self-imposed limit, which it has committed to observe, as an integral part of its fiscal consolidation together with the budget deficit reduction to achieve a near-balanced budget by 2020. This has limited the room for on-balance sheet financing by the government, it said. This is where innovative companies can come forward and play their part. A Malaysian company, YJACK Technology Sdn Bhd, said it had an "alternative" and "economical" method to conventional maintained load pile test using reaction piles or kentledge blocks methods. Called YJACK, the world patent technology provides an alternative pile testing method which helps shorten the working time and cut cost for the construction companies. "It has a cost-friendly approach whereby it helps to cut cost by up to 50 per cent compared to conventional method," said its President and Co Founder Yeow Leong Swee to Bernama. Furthermore, he said the preparation time of YJACK was only around two hours compared with the conventional method. Hoping for more jobs back home, YJACK is also actively promoting YJACK by participating in trade and investment missions organised by the Malaysian Ministry of International Trade and Industry. So far, YJACK had been successfully promoted in Singapore, Indonesia, Cambodia, Sri Lanka and India, he added. YJACK technology can be viewed at http://www.yjackpiletest.com. --BERNAMA